How Humans Contract Bird Flu
People all over the world have been going nuts for the very few
people that the bird flu virus has killed. The media is one of
the reasons why people have been going nuts for the very few
deaths the bird flu has caused. However maybe the media is just
serving as an early warning device to what could be a much worse
situation.
The media maybe has gotten paranoid of the fear of previous
influenza virus spread that has caused an epidemic way back.
That's why they are helping us have more of an idea of what
could be the latest big threat that could kill lots of people.
Thanks to the media we have more of an idea what causes the
spread of bird flu influenza virus to humans. The main cause of
bird flu comes form the migratory birds such as ducks. These
migratory birds often don't get affected but they spread the
virus to domesticated birds such as chickens, turkeys or geese
which becomes affected. When the virus spreads to these
domesticated birds, they die in large numbers often in just a
day.
The bird flu virus was really not much of a worry for humans
before. However because of certain people getting infected and
dying in 1997 it has become a cause for concern. Since, cases of
bird flu were reported throughout Asia, Canada and the
Netherlands. Those people who were affected have made contact to
infected birds or those areas where the infected birds made
contact.
The main reason why bird flu is able to infect humans is because
of its property of antigenic shift. Antigenic shift makes it
possible for the virus subtype A to merge and create a new virus
with a different species.
People who are often affected with the bird flu virus live or
work closely with pigs or chickens. Pigs could be the cause of
infection as well because they are a great place where both
human and bird virus often merge.
In some cases the virus directly transfers to the humans. Here
is how that happens.
1. The wild migratory birds shed their virus through their
droppings, saliva or nasal secretions. 2. The domesticated birds
catch this virus through sharing water, feed or soil that has
become contaminated or through inhaling the airborne virus. The
flu will then spread quickly from one bird to the other
eventually leading to other flocks. The virus can be destroyed
by heat but survives when it is in a cooler climate. 3. The
virus could then be spread to humans due to the unsanitary open
air markets where the eggs and birds are sold. Other reason a
person may get infected is by touching an infected bird or its
droppings.
If you are a person who works or lives with birds, it is best to
remember to have a more hygienic lifestyle to prevent the bird
flu virus killing you.