Nombre del estudiante: Paul Max Avalos Aguilar

Nombre del trabajo: The Virus

Fecha de entrega: 22/11/14
Campus: Puebla
Carrera /Prepa: Bicultural
Semestre/Cuatrimestre: 3ero
Nombre del maestro: Karla Gil

THE FLU IS A NOT SO WORST DISEASE TO GET

Influenza, or flu, is a respiratory illness that is caused by a virus. Viruses may be

defined as cellular organisms whose genomes consist of nucleic acid, and which
obligately replicate inside host cells using host metabolic machinery and ribosomes
to form a pool of components which assemble into particles called VIRIONS, which
serve to protect the genome and to transfer it to other cells.

Flu is highly contagious and is usually spreads by the coughs and sneezes of a
person who is infected. Three types of flu viruses exist - infuenza A, influenza B
and influenza C. Types A and B viruses cause seasonal epidemics which hit the
USA and Europe virtually every winter. The type C influenza virus causes mild
respiratory illness and is not responsible for epidemics.
Two proteins on the surface of influenza A viruses divide it into subtypes - the
hemagglutinin (H) and the neuraminidase (N). 16 different hemagglutinin subtypes
and 9 different neuraminidase subtypes are known to exist. The current subtypes
of influenza A viruses found in people are A (H1N1) and A (H3N2).

There are no B virus subtypes, but there are different influenza B virus strains.
You can also catch flu from an infected person if you touch them (e.g. shaking
hands). Adults are contagious one day before getting symptoms and up to 7 days
after becoming ill. This means that you can spread the influenza virus before you
even know you are infected. A flu epidemic, when a large number of people in one
country are infected with flu, can last several weeks.

In the Middle Ages Flu was one of the most mortal diseases and many people
could die from flu but nowadays in Mexico it is a disease everyone can get trough
easily and in this text will be presented the reasons of why the Flu is the best
disease we can get, by all means it isnt good to have a disease but is the less
bad we can have as economical as on health matter.

According to the mexican government approximately 40% of population gets flu

each year

It is common to confuse flu with a bad cold. Flu and cold symptoms may include a
runny/blocked nose, sore throat, and cough. Here are some symptoms which a
person with flu will have. These are not common heavy cold symptoms:
high temperature
cold sweats, shivers
headache
aching joints, aching limbs
fatigue, feeling utterly exhausted
gastro-intestinal symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, are much
more common among children than adults
These symptoms may linger for about a week. The feeling of tiredness and gloom
can continue for several weeks.

In the majority of cases flu is not serious - it is just unpleasant. For some people,
however, there can be severe complications. This is more likely if you are elderly or
have some other longstanding illness that can undermine your immune system.
Your risk of experiencing severe flu complications is higher if:
you are over 65
you are a baby or a very young child
you are pregnant
you have some kind of heart or cardiovascular disease
you have a chest problem, such as asthma or bronchitis

you have a kidney disease

you suffer from diabetes
you are taking steroids
you are undergoing treatment for cancer
you have any longstanding disease that can significantly lower your immune
system

Some of the complications caused by influenza may include bacterial pneumonia,

dehydration, and worsening of chronic medical conditions, such as congestive
heart failure, asthma, or diabetes. Children may get sinus problems and ear
infections.
Seasonal patterns of influenza and upper airway infection were found to be linked
to a higher incidence of narcolepsy, researchers from Stanford University School of
Medicine reported in Annals of Neurology (August 2011 issue). Narcolepsy is a
neurological disease characterized by excessive sleepiness and sleep attacks at
inappropriate moments, such as during work.

As flu is caused by a virus, antibiotics won't do any good, unless the flu has led to
another illness. Some of the symptoms, such as headache and body pains may be
alleviated if you take a painkiller. Some painkillers, such as aspirin, should not be
given to children under 12 (Department of Health, United Kingdom). If you have flu
you should:
stay at home
try to avoid contact with other people
keep warm and rest
make sure you consume plenty of liquids
don't consume alcohol
if you are a smoker stop smoking or cut your consumption down as much as you
can
try to get some food down (eat what you can)
if you live alone, tell a relative, friend or neighbor that you have flu. Make sure
someone can check in on you and do your shopping
According The Department of Health, UK, you should only contact your doctor if
you are frail or elderly, your temperature remains high after four to five days, your
symptoms worsen, you think you are seriously ill, you become short of breath,

and/or you develop chest pain. A phone call to your doctor if you are worried may
be a better solution than making an appointment.

Health experts and government agencies throughout the world say that the single
best way to protect yourself from catching flu is to get vaccination every year.
There are two types of vaccinations, the flu shot and the nasal-spray flu vaccine.
The flu shot is administered with a needle, usually in the arm - it is approved for
people older than six months, including healthy people and those with chronic
medical conditions. The nasal-spray flu vaccine is a vaccine made with live,
weakened flu viruses that do not make you ill.

A flu vaccine will contain three influenza viruses - One A (H3N2) virus, one A
(H1N2) virus, and one B virus. As viruses adapt and change, so do those
contained within the vaccines - what is included in them is based on international
surveillance and scientists' calculations about which virus types and strains will
circulate in a given year. You are protected about two weeks after receiving the
vaccination.

Annual flu vaccinations should start in September or as soon as the vaccine is on

hand and continue throughout the flu season, into January, and beyond. This is
because the timing and duration of influenza seasons are never the same. Flu
outbreaks usually peak at around January, but they can happen as early as
October.

An infant whose mother was given a flu jab while pregnant is 50% less likely to be
hospitalized for flu than other infants whose mothers were not given the shot while
pregnant, researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center reported in the
American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology (June 2011 issue).

In Mxico if you need to go to a hospital you would need to pay for having a
secure, if you would have an IMSS you would have to pay 1400 pesos monthly; for

the medicine, you would pay arround 43 pesos for getting an antiflu and 80.60
pesos for expectorants that would be most likely what a Doctor would order you to
buy, a syrup of 79.6 pesos would be also necessary, if you would need further
examinations you would have to invest arround 600-1200 pesos, and if the flu
would bring an infection you would have to buy an antibiotic for 400 pesos.

CONCLUSION

The Flu is a viral disease because it is a cell with a riboneuclic acid that replicates
its information in our cells.
The people that is infected anually with influenza rounds about 3 million in Mexico,
the people that dies from this dissease are about 500-800 per year, according to
the government organizations like IMSS the symptoms include headeache,
temprature, Muscular pains, debility, sneezes among others, the treatment only
includes, antiflu, expectorants and syrups; the prevention may include to wash the
hands very often and avoid the contact of fluids with other people for example
saliva, eat fruits rich in A and C vitamins, do not touch the eyes, nose or mouth
with dirty hands,for the sick people that have already presented the symptoms is
recomendable to avoid going to places of work where other people is, it is also
recomendable to muffle up the face when sneezing or caughing, and to use a face
mask to avoid the contagius to other people. The prizes for the all treatment of the
disease is not as expensive as in other viral diseases and can be rapidly treatened,
the cost might be arround 200 to 400 pesos if the disease doesnt complicates
more.
So yes, flu is the less bad disease we can have because as it is just unpleasant it
doesnt pass regularily troughover that line.