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Leaflets with information on how to protect ourselves against the H1N1 swine flu virus are to be distributed to all households within the UK.

The outlook at home and away appears bleak and completely underestimated by the World Health Organisation.

Pandemic level 6 looks ominously imminent and a very frightening and unknown prospect it is too. –

The first person who contracted the swine flu virus has been traced back and it appears to be a 4 year old boy from La Gloria, Veracruz, Mexico, who fell sick with the virus in February.

He has since made a full recovery and Mexico is blaming local contaminated pig farms in the La Gloria area for polluting the virus of the flu epidemic.

Deaths in Mexico to date are 159 with thousands infected and rising.

Cases in America are at 65 over 5 states at present and California has been declared a State of Emergency.

In Texas, 14 schools stand closed and 100’s more are feared infected in New York. The UK is seeing more suspected cases that have been quarantined awaiting results.

Many countries across the world have now been hit with the virus with new cases being reported hourly.

This is a pandemic of frightening proportions. –

People are asking why so many people have died from the virus in Mexico yet no reported deaths outside the area to date.

One reason could be the hygiene due to poverty in certain areas there. Many places have no running water therefore people have not been able to wash their hands making the spreading of the disease more likely from person to person.

Their immune systems may be weaker due to poor diet making it harder for them to fight off the virus. Or it may just be that as the virus passes on it is losing its strength.

In the American cases, which have been mild so far, the genetic structure of the virus is altered. This happens with a virus of this kind. It changes and mutates as it travels.

The main actual cause of death by the virus in Mexico has been by ‘atypical phenomena’ which tends to affect healthy people. Which is why most deaths have occurred in the 25-45 age bracket.

Make no mistake this virus can be extremely dangerous. It can come in waves. This wave appears mild as it is proving at present.

But the next wave could be lethal and may present itself in a far more potent form a few months along the line, as happened in the Spanish Flu of 1918.

The virus evolves and mutates and developing the right anti viral is urgent. With a 4-12 months development and production expectancy, it could come too late.

Swine flu Incubation period 2-7 days and anyone suspecting they may have contracted the virus should isolate themselves immediately and seek medical help.

Despite President Obama saying that the US were well equipped to cope, the White House has now asked Congress for a $1.5 billion advance to help fight the advance of the H1N1 Swine flu virus.

With the devastation to the export and sales of pork worldwide, experts are wondering if they should call the swine flu by another name. I would call it the Mexican flu.

In years to come though, I’m sure it will go down in history as: the great flu of 2009. -