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  1. #1

    fearable bird flu

    Hi friends
    Before some time was suffering from bird flu infection, so I decided to meet a doctor, so meet a shrewdest doctor of that area, but unfortunately he have not got proper information about bird flu infection, can anyone help me.

  2. #2
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    Quote Originally Posted by ada
    Hi friends
    Before some time was suffering from bird flu infection, so I decided to meet a doctor, so meet a shrewdest doctor of that area, but unfortunately he have not got proper information about bird flu infection, can anyone help me.
    In Chinese Medicine, it doesn't matter if you have a BIRD flu or COW flu or "REGULAR" flu. It comes down to signs, symptoms, tongue and pulse. It puts the whole body in holistic healing.

    Kenton

    PS, So - no...I don't know anything about the Bird Flu, but I know a bit about TCM.
    “An ounce of action is worth a ton of theory.” – Friedrich Engels

  3. #3
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    It's baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack

    Another strain. There's a vid if you follow the link.
    Report: Third man in China dies from unusual bird flu strain
    By Jethro Mullen and Jason Hanna, CNN
    updated 11:46 AM EDT, Wed April 3, 2013
    Watch this video
    New deadly strain of bird flu in China
    STORY HIGHLIGHTS

    NEW: Third man to die lived in Zhejiang in eastern China, but worked in Jiangsu province
    Announcement comes days after the first three other cases -- and first two deaths -- were announced
    Officials are trying to find the source of the infections

    Hong Kong (CNN) -- A third man in China has died from the H7N9 virus, a strain of avian flu not previously detected in humans, the Zhejiang provincial department of health said Wednesday, according to state-run media outlet Xinhua.

    The disclosure of the third death comes only days after Chinese authorities announced the first three known cases of humans infected with the H7N9 bird flu virus on Sunday.

    The total number of people infected with H7N9 in China has risen to nine, Xinhua reported Wednesday.

    The death reported Wednesday was that of a 38-year-old man who passed away on March 27 in his home province of Zhejiang in eastern China, Xinhua reported. He worked in nearby Jiangsu province, where at least four other cases of humans infected with H7N9 were reported Tuesday.

    Two other people who died -- men aged 27 and 87 -- lived in nearby Shanghai, according to Xinhua. The World Health Organization confirmed those deaths Monday.

    Chinese authorities are trying to find the source of the human infections. They have so far said there are no signs of transmission of the H7N9 virus between any of the victims or people they have come into close contact with, suggesting the virus isn't highly contagious among humans.

    They have also dismissed suggestions linking the infections with the discovery of thousands of pig carcasses from the Huangpu River which runs through Shanghai.

    The Shanghai Animal Disease Prevention and Control Center on Monday tested 34 samples of pig carcasses pulled from the river and found no bird flu viruses, Xinhua reported.

    On Tuesday, the Jiangsu provincial health bureau reported four cases of H7N9 in humans: a 45-year-old woman from Nanjing, a 48-year-old woman from Suqian, an 83-year-old man from Suzhou, and a 32-year-old woman from Wuxi.

    The Nanjing woman worked culling poultry, it said.

    Malik Peiris, a professor at Hong Kong University's School of Public Health, said Monday that the H7N9 strain of avian flu, already known to exist in wild birds, had probably been transmitted to poultry, and it infected the humans.

    "It's really important to understand where this virus is coming from," he said.

    Authorities in Shanghai are gathering daily data on cases of pneumonia resulting from unknown causes and will set up a team of experts to assess the "severity and risk" of H7N9, Xinhua reported Tuesday.

    Since the transmission of these types of viruses from animals to humans is usually "extremely inefficient," there are often tens of thousands of infected birds for every human case, according to Peiris.

    As a result, "it is very likely that there is a quite widespread outbreak happening" among the animals from which it came, he said, underscoring the urgent need to track down the source.

    The World Health Organization said Monday it was "in contact with the national authorities and is following the event closely."

    Because there are so few cases of H7N9 detected so far, little research has been done, according to Xinhua. There are no known vaccines against this virus, it said.

    But Peiris said it was likely that existing anti-flu drugs, such as Tamiflu, are likely to work against the H7N9 strain. He also noted that the WHO has identified the H7 virus family as a potential threat and earmarked possible vaccine candidates.

    He said other strains from the H7 family had caused previous outbreaks in poultry in countries including the Netherlands, Britain, Canada, the United States and Mexico. Human infection was documented in all of those cases except the Mexican one.

    The outbreak of the H7N7 strain in the Netherlands in 2003 infected 89 people, one of whom died, according to Peiris.

    The better known H5N1 avian flu virus has infected more than 600 people since 2003, of which 371 have died, according to the WHO.

    In February, China reported two new human cases of H5N1 in the southern province of Guizhou, both of whom were in a critical condition, the WHO said.

    A spike in H5N1 deaths, many of them children, has been reported in Cambodia, prompting concern among health authorities.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
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    I read that people that associate themselves with animals tend to suffer some sort of DNA alterations. People that work long periods of time with horses can not take certain vaccines that are made from horse plazma or whatever. They become extremely elergic to it. I suspect that is how some people can catch this bird or swine flu. Their dna alters enough that animal dna specific viruses can cross into humans. Just like the swine flu, this is just a matter of time before it makes the jump into normal humans.
    Jackie Lee

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    Quote Originally Posted by Lee Chiang Po View Post
    I read that people that associate themselves with animals tend to suffer some sort of DNA alterations. People that work long periods of time with horses can not take certain vaccines that are made from horse plazma or whatever. They become extremely elergic to it. I suspect that is how some people can catch this bird or swine flu. Their dna alters enough that animal dna specific viruses can cross into humans. Just like the swine flu, this is just a matter of time before it makes the jump into normal humans.
    No, just...no. I'm drunk off Nugget Nectar and Perpetual IPA at the moment, so I'm not going to give a coherent thought out response. But all of this, forget all of it. Permanently, eternally, and never bring it back to light again...

  6. #6
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    banlangen

    Are Chinese officials trying to use bird flu to promote traditional Chinese medicine?
    By Lily Kuo — April 5, 2013

    Debating what to tell the worried residents of Shanghai. AP Photo / Eugene Hoshiko


    As cases of avian flu in China mount, Shanghai officials said in a press conference today that the Chinese herb, banlangen, the root of the woad plant, could ward off (link in Chinese) the rare and seemingly deadly strain of H7N9. (Here is a map of the outbreak and latest updates.)

    Officials have previously said traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), including banlangen, could stop viruses that have broken out in the past like swine flu or SARS. This time, the advisory is drawing fire from Chinese consumers and medical experts, who say it’s unhelpful and possibly driven by a desire to boost the local TCM industry. Most doctors believe the root works as a health supplement for immune support but others say its effectiveness at preventing stronger viruses still needs confirmation (video in Chinese).

    One blogger on Chinese social media site Sina Weibo wrote, “Ten years ago it was banlangen, and 10 years later it’s still banlangen. Ten years ago experts were spouting nonsense, and 10 years later they still are.” Doctor Fang Shimin, a popular science writer wrote, “The traditional Chinese medicine industry is trying to cash in,” the South China Morning Post reported.

    It would be easy for officials or businesses to take advantage of nervous Chinese residents who have bought up health products of questionable effectiveness during past health scares. Residents hoarded vinegar, and face masks ran out during the SARS outbreak in 2003. In 2011, there was a run on salts believed to mitigate radiation residents feared was drifting into the mainland from the meltdown of Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

    Already, investors have piled into Chinese companies making pharmaceuticals and rice wine (also believed to help prevent catching bird flu), we reported. Today, panicked Chinese residents bought up ground banlangen, clearing out stocks of the product at a store in Shanghai and almost all at a pharmacy in Nanjing. Sina Weibo was lit up with over two million posts on the herb.

    Officials may just be trying to offer residents some hope as health experts scramble to make a vaccine that doesn’t yet exist for the virus. Chinese officials, who developed a bad reputation after trying to cover up SARS, appear to be responding actively to the crisis that’s already killed six. Still, while their efforts might be serious, their advice doesn’t seem so. Officials in Shanghai also advised residents to sneeze on their elbows rather than their hands (which the US CDC also advises), and health authorities in Gansu province told people to take walks (link in Chinese) outside, listen to music, as well as massage the side (paywall) of one’s nose and light incense near parts of their legs and stomach.
    I endorse banlangen as a great cold preventative. I'm not sure how it works against Bird Flu, but I always traveled with it in Asia.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
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  7. #7
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    Disturbing

    Bird Flu Spreading? Netizens Report Mysterious Bird Deaths in China
    9 hours ago by Jessica


    China is currently dealing with an outbreak of deadly bird flu (H7N9 virus). As of April 10, there have been nine deaths and 28 confirmed infections, largely in the Shanghai area. Officials have been taking measures to prevent the spread of the disease, but they may have acted too slowly.

    A rash of shocking photos from around China has been shocking Web users over the last couple of days. The images show sparrows and pigeons lying dead on the ground with no visible signs of injury. And not just one or two, but several and sometimes more than 10 mysteriously downed birds, leaving many to speculate whether bird flu is to blame.

    Dead birds have been confirmed in Nanjing, Chengdu and Hubei Province, where witnesses to the mass die-offs have photographed the carcasses and put them online.

    According to one person in Nanjing, “Under a magnolia tree, there were all these dead sparrows. I have no idea where they came from or what killed them.”

    Another person in Hubei said, “This pigeon just like fell out of the sky dead. At school, too, we found all these bodies of little songbirds.”

    What would cause so many birds to drop dead at once without any visible sign of injury?

    The problem appears to be centered in the Yangtze River Basin at the moment, with cases in Changzhou, Suzhou, Jingmen, and Huanggang. Hopefully, the relevant agencies in China will be able to swiftly deal with this problem.
    Where there dead birds falling out of the sky like this with the previous outbreak? I can't remember and I'm too lazy to websearch it right now...
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

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    The Mainland has to be concerned with disease surveillance and follow-up but it appears they do not care. The Pigs in the River Incident probably probably started with factory(ies) dumping untreated waste chemicals, ingested by pigs resulting in death the river water carrying additional waste downstream to possible affected communities and with each step, no surveillance appeared to have taken place meaning the factory concerned, the pig feeding location and the owner of the pigs then the rotting pigs at the waterway where they finally laid to rest.

    I haven't seen information on citations issued for failure to heed the guideleines protecting the commons of the people! Lose Lose all around!

  9. #9
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    It's like SARS all over again

    I just heard of a martial arts tour to China that cancelled this summer.

    Here's my personal account of traveling in China during the SARS epidemic: Shaolin Trips - Episode Two: Reigning in at the Brink of the Precipice

    Bird Flu Fears Mount in China as Herbal Remedies Run Out
    By Bloomberg News - Apr 17, 2013 8:06 AM PT

    A popular herb called ban lan gen, or blue root, has been flying off pharmacy shelves across China as local governments encourage people to consider traditional remedies to ward off the latest bird flu virus.

    With scientists so far unable to pinpoint the H7N9 influenza virus’ animal host, locals are preparing for a possible pandemic by stocking up on popular plant remedies as well as face masks and hand sanitizers and other over-the- counter medicines.

    “Chinese people associate ban lan gen with anti-virus,” said Shen Jiangang, assistant director for research at the Chinese University of Hong Kong’s School of Chinese Medicine. “So when they hear about bird flu, they immediately think it might be effective to protect themselves although there is no experimental evidence.”

    Ayurvedic and Chinese medicines have used the remedy for centuries. Scientists have proved it can relieve bacterial conjunctivitis in eye drops and found it has an antiviral effect in test tubes. There is no test to show it works against influenza.

    That hasn’t stopped buyers. Chinese consumers, especially older ones, tend to believe in traditional formulations especially when it comes to cold and flu remedies, said Iwona Mamczur, an analyst at Mintel International Group Ltd. The market for over-the-counter medicines was worth 77.5 billion yuan ($12.5 billion) in 2011, according to a report from the London-based researcher.
    Warm Drink

    Ban lan gen is the root of a flowering plant known as dyer’s woad or indigo woad, and found in southeastern Europe, central Asia and eastern Siberia. The roots are dried and often processed into granules, which consumers ingest dissolved in hot water or tea. According to traditional Chinese medicine, which seeks to balance heat and cold in the body, the root can help clear the heat triggered by a viral attack, Shen said.

    Patients should take the remedy under the guidance of a trained health practitioner, said Albert Leung, who heads Hong Kong University’s School of Chinese Medicine.

    Huashi Pharmacy, located in Shanghai near the eastern bank of the Huangpu river, has started replenishing supplies of ban lan gen daily instead of weekly and still struggles to meet demand, according to pharmacy worker Zhang Zhijin.

    Sales of facial masks have also gone up 10 times from before the H7N9 infections announcements, hand sanitizer has sold out, and companies have been bulk-ordering alcohol wipes for their employees, Zhang said.

    Face Masks

    Beijing Tongrentang (600085), which makes a product extracted from ban lan gen, said in an e-mail that the outbreak of H7N9 has boosted sales, but didn’t provide numbers. The company’s shares increased 1.9 percent to a two-week high of 22.20 yuan at the close of trading in Shanghai today.

    Francis Chu, the Singapore-based inventor of the totobobo face mask, said he’s fielded more than 20 inquiries about the pollution-filtering equipment’s effectiveness against bird flu since the start of April. Sales are up eight-fold from the same period last year.

    “Earlier in the year, most of the increased orders from China were because of the air pollution,” Chu said in a telephone interview. “Sales are still increasing, but now it’s because of worries about bird flu.”

    Beyond anecdotal evidence, the surge is hard to quantify. Pharmaceutical companies reaped at least $10 billion in sales of vaccines and antivirals globally as a result of the 2009 swine flu outbreak, according to data compiled by Bloomberg at the time. It’s too early to tell whether H7N9 will touch off another pandemic.

    No Immunity

    Chinese authorities are struggling to identify the source and mode of transmission of the virus, which has sickened 82 people and killed 17 so far, most of them in China’s eastern provinces. While there is no evidence that H7N9 is spreading easily among people, it hasn’t been detected in humans before, so they have no natural immunity. That raises public health concerns, researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta said last week.

    Sinovac Biotech Ltd. (SVA), the first company to win regulatory approval for a swine flu shot in 2009, surged 6.8 percent to $4.11 in Nasdaq trading on April 15 after Chief Executive Officer Yin Weidong said in an interview it is preparing to make immunizations against the new virus. Beijing-base Sinovac could have a first batch of the vaccine ready for commercial use by late July in the event of a pandemic, according to Yin.

    Until such a vaccine is found, the race is on for Chinese citizens to track down the ban lan gen herb.

    Zheng Bing, who works as an assistant at a local private equity firm, recently walked away empty-handed from three separate pharmacies in Beijing’s financial district. Zheng was told by his boss to stock up on the herb for the entire office. But he found that other anxious residents had beat him to the punch.

    “I’m going to try a few more shops,” he said. “Otherwise I can’t answer my boss.”
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  10. #10
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    Disease surveillance does not seem to be a priority for China. That being said, it would makes sense to identify the chemical composition of banlangen and work to produce the best variety and quality in order to counteract the SARS related problems. The mainland needs to get back to their public health concept as put forth by Ma Haide (Geroge Hatem)

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