Swine Flue Panic

Swine Flue Panic

The panic that ensued over the outbreak of the swine flu, now known as H1N1 virus, has left many of us shaking our heads. From the closure of hundreds of schools across the U.S. to the killing of thousands of pigs in Egypt the reaction to the swine flu bordered on hysteria. Members of the media have admitted to overstating the number of deaths reported from the disease in the onset, which helped spread the hysteria. While precautions were definitely needed in fighting the H1N1 virus, the reaction of most of the world’s population went far beyond merely cautionary. Some airports went so far as to use thermal cameras to detect whether passengers had fevers. Sounds good in theory but in practice not so good. The camera cannot differentiate between an ill traveler and one who has sprinted to catch their flight or has one of many other non-viral conditions that can affect human body temperature. Interestingly researchers are now stating that the H1N1 virus is more akin to the seasonal flu we are all more than familiar with. Well, better late than never, and I guess, better safe than sorry.

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