Written by Rupert Kircz| Wednesday, 22 December 2010| There is 1 comment
14 people have died in the United Kingdom from swine flu so far this flu season
The Big Freeze affecting the United Kingdom has led to parts of the country not receiving stocks of essential influenza medications. For example health chiefs in Yorkshire said that the bad weather had prevented Tamiflu from being delivered to some regional pharmacies and that one patient from the town of Golcar in Huddersfield had to go without it despite having a prescription for it.
The good news is however that the manufacturer of Tamiflu, namely Roche said that they had sufficient stocks of the medication to meet reasonable demand not only in the United Kingdom but in other parts of the world too. When the original swine flu pandemic had broken out there had been severe Tamiflu shortages and government stockpiles had to be rationed and only given to the most important cases.
Research shows that administering the Tamiflu drug within 24 hours of getting influenza greatly improves the chances of recovering quickly and that getting it within 48 hours also helps. In the cases of more dangerous influenza such as bird flu or swine flu getting Tamiflu early could make a huge difference and could even prevent death. According to figures from the UK Health Protection Agency fourteen people have died in the United Kingdom from swine flu so far this flu season.
It pays to take sensible precautions because influenza can be very serious if not treated properly. If you are a person who is considered to be at risk or vulnerable you should speak to your doctor and possibly get vaccinated as well as stock up with either Tamiflu or Relenza.
Tamiflu and Relenza are both recommended by the World Health Organization to treat not only regular flu and swine flu but also the very deadly H5N1 bird flu virus. It is also a good idea to stay away from others who have flu symptoms and to wash your hands on a regular basis. Eat healthily with lots of fruit and vegetables [to get the vitamin C] and at the same time do some exercise to boost your immune system.
