Let’s be logical about the swine flu

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In no shape or form am I a doctor, so I won’t talk about how the swine flu is real or not, but instead I will offer some observations.

According to CDC(USA based numbers):

more than 200,000 people are hospitalized from flu-related complications; and
about 36,000 people die from flu-related causes.

Mind you, these figures are for the seasonal flu, now let’s compare these figures to the H1N1 flu.

According to CBC:

there have been 3,486 world wide (just over 1000 from USA)

Simply by comparing those numbers, there is a huge difference and it begs the question why the media does not compare these figures? Because really, 36,000 people dying is a lot worse then 3,000.

Also, let’s look at the symptoms of the seasonal vs. H1N1 flu, quoted directly from flu.gov website.

Seasonal Flu

H1N1 Flu

All types of flu can cause:

Fever

Coughing and/or sore throat

Runny or stuffy nose

Headaches and/or body aches

Chills

Fatigue

Same as seasonal flu, but symptoms may be more severe.

Fever

Coughing and/or sore throat

Runny or stuffy nose

Headaches and/or body aches

Chills

Fatigue

In addition to the above symptoms, a number of H1N1 flu cases reported:

Vomiting

Diarrhea

Fairly similar, hence why a few questions pop up in my mind.

Are the reports for H1N1 deaths misleading and reported wrong?
Why is there so much coverage in the news for this flu when it is no where near the numbers of a typical seasonal flu?
Is this strictly fear based for the monetary profit of others?

Lastly, let me run some more numbers in terms of deaths from other causes.

Deaths from cancer worldwide are projected to continue rising, with an estimated 12 million deaths in 2030; from WHO.

All homicides

Number of deaths: 18,573

Firearm homicides

Number of deaths: 12,791, quoted from CDC.

Point being here, it is obviously quite interesting and suspicious as to why this new flu is getting so much press when obviously other more important issues have not been dealt with.

So let’s be rational for a moment. Soon enough we will be told to keep physical contact with others to a minimal, but what is that also say about other deaths. Such as homicide which in my city is about 2 per week; is it implying that we should not stay at home and not go out outside because of a risk of dying?

Same thing in terms of car accidents, we should stop driving because of the possibility of getting into an accident or worse, dying.

Once again, I am in no position to give medical advice but instead I am trying to shine on some logical reasoning here.

H1N1 and irrationality

Swine flu shortages