BF in Indonesia; Alaska tests for BF; Denmark confirms BF on farm; Chickens in Siberia; a duck in Laos; What about China? Lung Shield
The virus mainly affects birds and most human cases can be traced to direct or indirect contact with infected birds. But experts fear it could change into a form easily transmitted from person to person. Experts in Indonesia say the A(H5N1) virus is known to attach to receptors found deep in the lungs not the nose and throat like normal flu. The bird flu is spreading rapidly in Indonesian flocks, and before this week, the country had 25 known human deaths, the second-highest number in the world, after Vietnam.
Alaska:
AP News: More than 40 species of waterfowl and shorebirds are considered susceptible to infection by a highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu virus that’s killed more than 100 people, in other parts of the world, mostly in Asia. Scientists will test birds in the Anchorage area through early next week. To screen the birds for the deadly virus, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Alaska’s Fish and Game Department also are setting up more than 50 remote back country camps accessible mainly by float planes or boats.
Alaska is an ideal bird flu laboratory because it’s at the crossroads of migratory pathways for birds flying between the United States and other countries. Some of these birds arrive in Alaska each year from Asia.
Denmark
Reuters: Denmark has confirmed an outbreak of the lethal H5N1 strain of bird flu on a backyard poultry farm on the island of Funen, the European Commission said on Thursday. The farm consisted of around 100 birds, including laying hens, ducks, geese and peacocks, and was located in the same area in Denmark where cases of H5N1 bird flu occurred in wild birds in March, the Commission said in a statement.
Siberia
Reuters: Russia has found the H5N1 bird flu virus in six dead chickens in Siberia, where more than 80 dead birds have been found since the end of April, a regional health official said on Thursday. The highly pathogenic H5N1 strain was identified in all five dead chickens from Omsk region that were inspected by the Novosibirsk virology and biotechnology centre Vektor, said Ilya Drozdov, the centre’s general director. It was also found in a dead chicken from the village of Reshety in Novosibirsk region.
Russia’s latest outbreak of the H5N1 strain of bird flu started in early February and has hit domestic and wild fowl in several regions of the North Caucasus area that borders Georgia and Azerbaijan. Bird flu has killed 115 people worldwide. Five people have died in Azerbaijan, but no human deaths have been recorded in Russia.
Laos
HANOI Xinhua: Laos has, for the first time, detected a duck contracting a bird flu virus since 2004. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization said the duck detected in a farm, 20 km off southern Vientiane capital, in February, was infected with a kind of bird flu virus, reported Laos’ newspaper Vientiane Times. The duck has been sent to the World Organization for Animal Health in Paris for testing.
China
Reuters: China on Thursday ruled out bird flu as the cause of death of 30,000 chickens in the northeast city of Dalian last month, blaming badly administered vaccinations by unskilled workers. The Agriculture Ministry also ruled out bad vaccines or feed poisoning as the cause.
Is this good news or bad news? China, which has reported 12 human deaths from the H5N1 bird flu strain and almost 40 outbreaks in birds across a dozen provinces over the past year, has vowed to be more open in dealing with the disease.
Lung Shield
What can you do besides avoid wild birds and people who cough and sneeze? Besides washing your hands, wiping your feet, and avoiding chicken that is not fully cooked? Cook and drink a decoction of Chinese medicinal mushrooms such as Coriolus versicolor (Yun zhi), known to boost immunity to lung cancer and other cancers. It is cooling, relaxing, and contains at least 25 % polysaccharides. Other useful herbs that enhance immunity include cordyceps, ganoderma, astragalus, cooked with American ginseng, ginger, and licorice root. You can cook a handful of each of these herbs in your crockpot (slow cooker) overnight to make a strong water decoction. Drink 1 – 2 cups per day between meals.
At the first sign of flu–fever, congestion, difficult breathing, use Chinese antibiotic herbs such as honeysuckle flower to reduce fever and kill germs. See: Flu Away instant beverage available at www.Chinasprout.com and www.eastearthtrade.com. Stay tuned to this website for Bird Flu Updates.
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