Familiarizing yourself with bird flu facts is a good way to protect yourself and your family from contracting bird flu. Here's all you need to know about bird flu facts.
Basic bird flu facts
Bird flu, also known as avian flu, is a type of influenza that is contracted and spread throughout the bird population. It is generally found in large bird populations, like livestock chicken, because it spreads very easily and very quickly from bird to bird. It's kind of like the flu that humans get. If you're not careful to isolate yourself from a sick family member and you aren't vaccinated against it, you'll probably get sick. These are bird flu facts that will keep your family safe.
Experts are developing a vaccination to protect humans against the most common strain of bird flu. It hasn't been developed yet, but they are making progress in that direction. Bird flu facts show that bird flu takes many different forms, causing most birds to be susceptible to getting the disease.
Bird flu facts that aren't really bird flu facts
Contrary to popular belief, bird flu "facts" that really aren't factual is that bird flu has killed many people. That's not a bird flu fact, but more of a bird flu myth. Since the most recent bird flu outbreak, less than 100 people in the United States have contracted the disease. In fact, your chances of getting hit by lightening are much greater than your chance of getting bird flu.
Another common misnomer about bird flu, something that skews bird flu facts, is that it can be spread from human to human. Bird flu is not like the regular flu, which spreads quite easily between humans. A human can only contract bird flu from a bird or another animal that got bird flu. Humans cannot give it to each other.
That being said, experts are concerned that bird flu will morph into a type of flu that can be spread from human to human. This of concern because bird flu mutates and mutating strains are unstable and unpredictable. If we're not careful, human to human contraction could become one of many bird flu facts.
Bird flu facts and pet birds
Generally speaking bird flu facts say that if you keep your pet bird away from other birds, particularly wild birds, and prevent your bird from coming into any contact with a space that a wild bird occupied, your bird will be safe from bird flu.
One important thing to note is that you should always keep your bird's environment clean and wash your hand before and after handling your bird. Cleanliness protects against the spread of disease. That is one of many bird flu facts that should be heeded.
