Covid-19 versus the Flu

[anon81060937]

@Janie

I’m over it with minor post viral infection symptoms of myocarditis because I’ve been thinning my blood with food I’d rather not eat and supplements. I’m also avoiding Omega 6’s and Vitamin K2 as they promote clotting. So I’m making a speedy recovery.

[Janie]

Glad to hear that.

[OldDoug]

I think this world-wide real-time science experiment we’re all engaged in has encouraged many of us who aren’t public health professionals to become armchair epidemiologists… I have been trying to learn as much as I can and I am becoming somewhat aware of how complicated things are, so even MDs or “well respected researchers” who aren’t actually in the field probably shouldn’t assume their expertise in one area allows them to assume the decisions are being made by chimpanzees and they themselves are more enlightened.

Balanced views like that would see Ivor calling you “vermin” on Twitter, you know This whole “I tell you all repeatedly that I know a lot about field A, so let me dazzle you all with my utterly uneducated views on why field K is a govt conspiracy” thing is just tiresome.

I don’t know anything about Ivor and this deal, but even Nobel Prize winners can be absolutely goofy. (Einstein hated socks, and Tesla fell in love with a pigeon, right? )

Here’s something from the ‘wacky conspiracy’ side, which mentions Kary Mullis, winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1993 - he invented the PCR tests for viruses. A smart guy, to be sure, but he certainly had his, uh, ‘eccentricities.’ It’s a long article, and I just have to laugh at the effort the author put into it.

Was the COVID-19 Test Meant to Detect a Virus? - UncoverDC

[Janie]

My Doctor is assuming it was COVID from my symptoms.

So he may have reported your illness to your state health board as a COVID case, which could have been another flu virus since you weren’t tested.

[petert]

I don’t know anything about Ivor and this deal, but even Nobel Prize winners can be absolutely goofy. (Einstein hated socks, and Tesla fell in love with a pigeon, right? )

It’s going to be hard to surpass Linus Pauling in the “complete whacko nutjob loonytunes” stakes, and he’s the only ever winner of two unshared Nobel prizes, which also tells us a bit about the value of some Nobel prizes, or at least the using of them as badges of < mumblessomething >, I guess.

[petert]

So he may have reported your illness to your state health board as a COVID case, which could have been another flu virus since you weren’t tested.

With an ability to reach like that, you should be in the NBA.

[Janie]

At 5’ 2” I am at a disadvantage. BUT I refused to play regular hoops with my 6-ft brother so we played around-the-world and I could hold my own then.

[Janie]

What outcome do you expect???

I am the half-glass-full argument (obviously)

You seem to be the apocalyptic we-are-going-to-die-if-we-don’t-keep-cowering-in-place person

[petert]

You seem to be the apocalyptic we-are-going-to-die-if-we-don’t-keep-cowering-in-place person

“Cowering” is such a sensible word for intelligent discussions.

It’s somewhat amusing to be (vaguely) lectured by people from a country with by far the worst record on dealing with the virus and the situation surrounding it. I can see why you always insist on changing the subject/making outlandish claims as to the motivation of doctors (both in this thread and the Bakersfield one)/hiding behind emotional but intellectually empty language like “cowering”.

Having watched events to this point, I don’t have any “expectations” because that would be dumb at this point in the process. For one, because humans everywhere are unpredictable, and two, it depends on which countries you are talking about - ones with competent leadership which have done well in this crisis, or ones like the US and Brazil, which are discovering that the usual method of just lieing about things doesn’t work all that well when there’s an actual body count that can only be partly fudged. Even the well lead countries will still have issues as they open up (because they misjudge it or because people are selfish and/or stupid) and who could possibly guess what the poorly lead countries will do, so predictions are somewhat pointless, given each country will have to navigate the new terrain with nothing to guide it.

[Janie]

You are right - my choice of wording was poor. Just my frustration at the current situation. I am one of the fortunate ones, so should be more charitable.

I have not lost any income and not been locked down like some parts of the country. I can sit down and enjoy a meal with my husband and only have to wear a mask until the drinks are served. I don’t have to wait in line to get in any stores and there are no shortages. Life here in the sticks is almost back to normal.

There is not and never has been a pandemic in my state. Why? I have no idea - we never locked down as tight as most states. But 115 deaths in 3 months (41 in nursing homes) is not a pandemic and the rate is declining. So while not over, we appear to be past the peak.

I hope the rest of the country will see similar results as they open up.

As for the US COVID statistics being so bad - well, we as a country are fat, have diabetes and expensive health care that many cannot afford. We lead the world in many diseases - not just COVID. And we trusted the medical community when they told us to limit saturated fats and eat 6 carby meals a day.

[IdesOfMarch]

That’s something else: with the flu, you typically feel as if you’ve been hit by a bus. (Or at least people tell me that’s true; knock on wood, I can’t remember having the flu.) With covid, you can have an active, communicable infection, and not know. Even if you subsequently develop symptoms, you could transfer it to multiple people.

My family doctor said that flu deaths are usually reported way high because it’s just a guess by the CDC and because pneumonia cases are rarely separated, even when other causes for pneumonia are likely. Sort of a catch-all with a fudge factor thrown in.

[Hap]

No! They cannot report unconfirmed cases.

[barns]

So I have been wondering . I hear alot of comparison of the two illnesses. So how many infuinza deaths have there been in the US this year and is that number mixed in with the coronavirus numbers cause if its a stand alone and is somewhere around the normal 50000ish and coronavirus is over 100000 now how can anybody still be saying that coronavirus is no worse than the flu. Keep in mind that yes they are attributing things like heart attacks and stuff like that to the coronavirus but they doe the same thing with the flu numbers. as far as skydivers being called covid deaths I would say thats a rarity especially considering i doubt that they are doing tours out of the rest homes. Doesnt change the fact though that there isnt much that we can do about it at this point. maybe we should have followed New Zealands approach to this.

[SammyOlsen]

Yes, you’re right, but some people don’t undestand this even now

[KetoRocks]

There is not and never has been a pandemic in my state. Why? I have no idea - we never locked down as tight as most states. But 115 deaths in 3 months (41 in nursing homes) is not a pandemic

A pandemic by definition is international, it is only declared when it is spreading across international borders…perhaps you mean you do not have a local outbreak or cluster of CoVid19 yet. I hope you never do.

So while not over, we appear to be past the peak.

Well, if it ain’t over and if the numbers aren’t indicating a steep decline, I would not personally be counting on it, given this virus has outwitted most regions that it has taken on. We thought it was under control in Melbourne and it has taken off again.

[anon81060937]

I’m wondering though if people in Melbourne are getting re-infected or if people who weren’t infected are now (getting) infected?

I fear another big mutation while I’m recovering from covid myocarditis.

[KetoRocks]

I’m wondering though if people in Melbourne are getting re-infected or if people who weren’t infected are now (getting) infected?

New infections not re-infections here. Most infections are people returning to Australia from overseas, being discovered whilst undergoing mandatory 14 days quarantine in hotels, which are contained well. But outbreaks of community spread too now.

[FrankoBear]

I give credit where it is due… Vitamin D, carrots and liquid soap.

Is that a recipe?

I wish I had paid more attention to the importance of Vitamin D and immune system function. I have had a flu vaccination every year for the past decade. I have had post vaccination illness on one occasion where flu like symptoms started within 24 hours of the vaccination. In 2013 I had the vaccination as I took on a care-giver role for an elderly relative for a few months. That was very stressful. Things didn’t go well and at the end of the time I ended up with a bad, bed ridden flu. Luckily the elderly relative did not catch it. Other than that I have been flu free. But I also have cleaned up my eating and gone low carb ketogenic from the end of 2014 onward.

[dlc96_darren]