Opinion | Editorials
Valid concerns over bird flu
Bird flu is making the headlines again, this time with an outbreak in Kuwait. It may also be in Iraq but it is obviously difficult to prove or monitor. With each passing week it seems more areas of the globe succumb.
- Gulf News
- Published: 00:00 February 27, 2007
Bird flu is making the headlines again, this time with an outbreak in Kuwait. It may also be in Iraq but it is obviously difficult to prove or monitor. With each passing week it seems more areas of the globe succumb. While health officials are right to say that this is a cause for concern they are also right to warn about the dangers of mass panic.
Less than 200 people have died worldwide from bird flu since 2003. Other diseases pose a far greater risk to humanity. Malaria for instance or the scourge of HIV/Aids. The common cold has claimed more lives worldwide and while bird flu has a high fatality rate, currently about 60 per cent, it has not mutated into symptoms that are easily transmitted among humans.
Practical measures, such as making sure that all poultry products are cooked properly, washing hands before preparing meals and not coming into contact with wild birds, have all been successful in curtailing its spread. But the World Health Organisation expects a flu pandemic to break out at any moment and there is a legitimate concern that any pandemic could take on the characteristics of bird flu. If this did occur, the impact would be severe with air travel facing restrictions as would events involving large crowds. But we are not at that stage.
With spring approaching in the northern hemisphere the migratory patterns of birds will change which in turn could see a rise in the number of birds contracting the disease in Europe, north Africa and countries near the Mediterranean. Local solutions are the best answer to global fears. What happens in your home and community can have an international impact. Adhering to simple, common-sense rules on hygiene and cooking will cut down the risk of bird flu spreading.
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