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“The Problem Child of Seasonal Flu”: Beware This Winter’s Virus

scientificamerican.com

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Re: “The Problem Child of Seasonal Flu”: Beware This Winter’s Virus

#71

Post by mjevans »

rubicon33 wrote: post #66
moultano wrote: post #38

http://www.virology.ws/2009/06/02/pathogenesis-of-influenza-... To keep your coworkers from getting the flu, go home as soon as you think you might be coming down with something. The amount of virus you are shedding into your environment is nicely exponential in how bad you are feeling, with one exception: The day before you start feeling really bad, you are shedding nearly as much virus as when you are feeling worst…

Also worth noting: Please do NOT come back to work just because taking medication made you feel better. Too many people load up on daytime meds and show up to work exposing their co-workers needlessly to their illness. Don't be that guy, seriously.

The regime I recommend to everyone since it has worked for me for years (whenever I do get sick enough to 'take stuff')...

Standard personal care applies. Hot showers are nice for getting clean and steaming out the lungs. Plenty of water, simple food to that's easy to digest.

Rest in bed or bundled up and watching TV or something if not sleepy.

To promote better breathing and deal with drippy ickies...

:

Go to your pharmacy, ask them how you get the REAL cold medicine that you've heard you need to show ID for.

https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/1618:_Cold_Medici...

There are two drugs worth considering:

:

Night time (an hour or so before you want to pass out from exhaustion):

What used to be maximum strength over the counter Sudafed http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/pseudoephedrine

Sudafed has stimulant properties, they're an unwanted side effect but if you're REALLY sick you should be able to lay in bed for a bit breathing well and slip off to sleep; I suggest it before bed ONLY, since it tells the body to stop making mucus which allows for a good night's sleep without filling the lungs back up.

:

Day Time (take with your first meal (literal break-fast(ing))):

Under many brand names (often Mucinex) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guaifenesin promotes coughing up the stuff that is clinging to the lungs. Be ready to deposit the results somewhere sanitary.

Re: “The Problem Child of Seasonal Flu”: Beware This Winter’s Virus

#73

Post by ceejayoz »

seanmcdirmid wrote: post #70
loorinm wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The catch to this is there is substantial reason to believe that non-exposure can actually make you more subsceptible later on, so it’s better to just get the flu to stay on pace with antigens for future strains.

> The catch to this is there is substantial reason to believe that non-exposure can actually make you more subsceptible later on Don't flu shots work by giving you a mini-flu?

Only the nasal spray flu vaccines contain live virus.

The CDC is recommending against the nasal spray this season, so chances are you'll get a shot, which contains only dead virus, which can't cause anything you'd describe as "mini flu" as a result.

https://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/season/flu-season-2017-2018.ht...

Re: “The Problem Child of Seasonal Flu”: Beware This Winter’s Virus

#74

Post by nulagrithom »

GuiA wrote: post #47
moultano wrote: post #38

http://www.virology.ws/2009/06/02/pathogenesis-of-influenza-... To keep your coworkers from getting the flu, go home as soon as you think you might be coming down with something. The amount of virus you are shedding into your environment is nicely exponential in how bad you are feeling, with one exception: The day before you start feeling really bad, you are shedding nearly as much virus as when you are feeling worst…

This is all true, but sadly not going to work is only an option for the more privileged in the USA. A waiter paid minimum wage + tips struggling to pay for cost of living/child care/debt/medical expenses/etc is likely to go to work anyway, putting the health of potentially hundreds of people at risk. EDIT: 1 hour later, currently sitting at -1 - if you disagree so much that you feel the need to downvote, please expla…

Sometimes even the privileged won't have this option. I get 6 sick days a year, accumulating 4 hours a month. I have a young child in school, so I'm not sure I've ever managed to hit 3 days...

Pretty sure I had the flu last week. Still showed up because I don't want to blow any of my precious 2 weeks vacation time. Got it from my coworkers anyway, who are probably thinking the same thing.

Would take a pretty big shift in US work culture to change any of this.

Re: “The Problem Child of Seasonal Flu”: Beware This Winter’s Virus

#75

Post by ceejayoz »

ProfessorLayton wrote: post #58
opportune wrote: post #13

This article is good and reminded me of a key issue: herd immunity. I wish I could explain to more of my friends how irresponsible it is to not get the flu shot - they view it as simply an individual decision like "I'm choosing to not get the shot knowing full well I might get sick" - but they don't think of the possibility that if they do get sick, they may play a part in infecting other , more vulnerable people, su…

As someone who didn't have any kind of health insurance growing up, and had both parents working for hourly wages, I would like to add that it is a little more complex than "irresponsibility". My working-class parents would have certainly felt the impact on their budget spending ~$50/person for a shot that might not even work that year, not to mention the money lost by not working to go get the shot. I think people s…

Under the ACA, the flu shot is free (no copay/deductible), and everyone's supposed to have insurance. Cost should be a substantially lower issue than in the past.

Re: “The Problem Child of Seasonal Flu”: Beware This Winter’s Virus

#76

Post by post_break »

moultano wrote: post #38

http://www.virology.ws/2009/06/02/pathogenesis-of-influenza-... To keep your coworkers from getting the flu, go home as soon as you think you might be coming down with something. The amount of virus you are shedding into your environment is nicely exponential in how bad you are feeling, with one exception: The day before you start feeling really bad, you are shedding nearly as much virus as when you are feeling worst…

"go home as soon as you think you might be coming down with something"

I wish. I just can't do that. To quote The Faculty "I'm saving my sick days for when I feel better" When your only vacation for the year hinges on working while sick, you'll choose to struggle through it.

Re: “The Problem Child of Seasonal Flu”: Beware This Winter’s Virus

#77

Post by komali2 »

moultano wrote: post #38

http://www.virology.ws/2009/06/02/pathogenesis-of-influenza-... To keep your coworkers from getting the flu, go home as soon as you think you might be coming down with something. The amount of virus you are shedding into your environment is nicely exponential in how bad you are feeling, with one exception: The day before you start feeling really bad, you are shedding nearly as much virus as when you are feeling worst…

I wish it was culturally acceptable to wear a hospital mask in public in the USA. I do it anyway and look like a weaboo or something, but still.

Re: “The Problem Child of Seasonal Flu”: Beware This Winter’s Virus

#78

Post by post_break »

ravenstine wrote: post #37

I just wish that people who get infected would wear a freaking mask when going out in public. I've heard that masks don't do much for people who aren't infected, but I imagine a mask would catch a lot of the droplets that come out of someone's mouth when they cough. I've never been more glad to live alone.

Have there been studies that show the masks are effective? I'm just curious is all not trying to knock you down.

Re: “The Problem Child of Seasonal Flu”: Beware This Winter’s Virus

#79

Post by julianj »

lutorm wrote: post #63
Jach wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure, I'm not disputing that flu vaccines suck compared to vaccines for other things. I'm just disputing that "irresponsibility" is a poor argument against those who decide not to get one, given that the flu vaccines suck, and given the greatest magnitude intervention for an at-risk person ought to be getting the vaccine themselves no? (If you wanted to make a stronger argument for irresponsibility, I think you'd nee…

Think of it this way: If the vaccine is, say, 30% effective, then a single person vaccinating themselves will bring their risk down by 30%. But if there are N people between that person and patient zero, and all those people are vaccinated, the risk is brought down by 1-0.7^N. For the virus to propagate through a chain of 3 vaccinated people that comes out to 66%, an effect more than twice as effective as that of jus…

> For the virus to propagate through a chain of 3 vaccinated people that comes out to 66%, an effect more than twice as effective as that of just the person getting the vaccine themselves.

Is this true if the vaccine is ineffective against the strain which is circulating or is the effectiveness of the vaccine partly chance? Genuinely curious.

Re: “The Problem Child of Seasonal Flu”: Beware This Winter’s Virus

#80

Post by waterphone »

ceejayoz wrote: post #75
ProfessorLayton wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As someone who didn't have any kind of health insurance growing up, and had both parents working for hourly wages, I would like to add that it is a little more complex than "irresponsibility". My working-class parents would have certainly felt the impact on their budget spending ~$50/person for a shot that might not even work that year, not to mention the money lost by not working to go get the shot. I think people s…

Under the ACA, the flu shot is free (no copay/deductible), and everyone's supposed to have insurance. Cost should be a substantially lower issue than in the past.

There are over 27 million uninsured people in the U.S.
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