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Is Swine Flu Still a Threat To Travelers?

February 17, 2010 at 3:00 PM | by | Comments (0)

When we roundly mocked H1N1 hysteria last year, we insinuated that it was a conspiracy being waged by US tourism companies. While probably true, that picture was also likely incomplete. Turns out, big pharmaceutical companies were also at least partly to blame. All the rest of what we said—especially the parts about how swine flu is less dangerous than ordinary flu—that turns out to be absolutely true. Seriously. You can check out the newest findings. Absolutely true.

We really don't mean to sound Pollyannaish about this. Swine flu killed a bunch of people. But the sheer panic—from China quarantining travelers to Mexico calling off Cinco de Mayo—was just silly. Business travelers, who have a stake in evaluating the risk of infection vs. the risk of missing a deal, never paid it much attention. But many tourism destinations were devastated, and they didn't have to be.

Now we're entering another flu season. Visions of bodies piling up in the streets, a la the 1918 global influenza pandemic, are again making appearances. SkyMall will again be selling masks and hand purifiers to the kind of people who buy masks and hand purifiers from SkyMall. And what we're saying is stop it. We can't really do better than just to repeat for you the CDC's official stance: "flu activity, caused by either 2009 H1N1 or seasonal flu viruses, may rise and fall." Probably a safe bet.

It's also worth mentioning that there's a huge difference between previous centuries that saw influenza epidemics and today. Today, we have hospitals. These tall buildings, stereotypically made of brick and painted white but increasingly partaking of contemporary architectural conceits like open spaces and disinfectant bleach, make people healthier. There's a reason we haven't seen a 1918-style outbreak since medical facilities adopted hygiene standards. So if you're really, really terrified of getting a flu while traveling, it's best to stay away from countries without modern medical facilities. Other than that, you should be OK.

[Photo: NocturneNoir / Wiki Commons]

Related Stories:
· Number of swine flu cases in the U.S. reaches 57 million [LAT]
· Swine Flu [Jaunted]
· Travel Health Coverage [Jaunted]

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