The swine flu is a new virus that has been infecting people across the world.  America, Brazil, India, and Argentina seem to be the worst hit at the moment.  In order to best prepare for the flu, it’s important to know if you’ve been in contact with infected people and when you’ll start showing symptoms if you are.

The incubation period for swine flu appears to be about 48 hours for most people.  That means they will be asympomatic while infected for 48 hours.  Something to note, however, is that they can be contagious up to a day before showing symptoms.  If you think you’ve been in contact with someone that has swine flu, it’s best to isolate yourself for a day or two to see if you’re sick with the virus.  

While the incubation period for the flu is important, you’ll also want to know how long you can be contagious after symptoms.  Studies have shown that many people can be contagious for up to a week after symptoms and some even after two weeks.  The best thing you can do if you’ve been infected with the flu is to stay away from others for at least 5 days after symptoms have resolved, especially around high-risk groups.

Here are some tips to help you optimize your chances of survival after you’ve been in contact with or contracted the swine flu:

Watch for signs of secondary infection after you’ve been infected with the swine flu.  The best way to know if you are suffering from a secondary infection is if you start to make a recovery and then get sicker a couple days later.  If this happens, you should go to the hospital right away.  Many people actually die from MRSA, Strep, or pneumonia after catching the flu.  These are still flu-related deaths, but aren’t actually from the swine flu.  This is because it destroys your immune system and leaves your lungs raw and open to infection. Stay hydrated.  The flu has great capability to dehydrate you while you’re infected.  This is because you’ll likely run a fever and the flu can also induce dysentary and vomiting, both of which lead to dehydration.  Being dehydrated lowers your immune system and will make you more sick.  So make sure you drink plenty of water! Take Tamiflu right away if you’re sick.  While the flu is slowly becoming resistant to the antiviral, it is still the first line of defense against this deadly virus.  If you can, take it while the virus is still in its incubation period.  That is, take it as a preventative dose.  Some doctors won’t give you a prescription for that, however. Stay calm and make sure you prepare for the worst.  This means stockpile enough food for at least 2 weeks and make sure that you’ll be able to survive if the flu hits your community particularly hard.  Some good news is that the flu only seems to infect about 5% of the population per “wave” in a community, coming back later to infect more.  If this continues to be a trend, then there might not be as large of an overload per community as originally anticipated.

i just found out a little bit ago that my SIL who watches my son 4 days a week has tested positive for the swine flu. . . he hasn’t been with her since friday. . . i know i am posting this in the parenting section. . . . . . i have tried calling my pediatrician’s office but was on hold for like 20 minutes. . . . just curious as to if anyone here knows

I haven’t heard or seen anything that discusses this.

Interesting – a new strain of H1N1 influenza A viru.
I wonder what the incubation period is?
How many days BEFORE one has symptoms are they unaware and in public, and therefore spreading the virus.
For instance, I understand the HIV pathology shows that a person with HIV can be spreading the disease for 6 months before he/she can be diagnosed.
Generally, viruses are spreadable for a certain number of days before the patient KNOWS they have an illness. I wonder what that period is for this new strain of H1N1 influenza A virus.
It appears that one CSULB student is confined with an “apparent” swine flu and is being confined til proven positive or false. Meanwhile another student said that last Friday she had been in class and coughing all over the place.
Of course- as with any virus or illness, exposure doesnt mean you will get it.
Pasteur on his death bed said that he was wrong – the pathogens werent the main players, the “terrain” was.
Summing it up- the super healthy will ward it off because they have great terrain. (and thats what an Immune system is for!)
And in any flu passing through, thats why the very young and the very old are the usual ones to die.
Officially we are supposed to stay 6 feet away from each other- and wash our hands long enough to sing the entire Happy Birthday song.
I am probably living on the edge- I kissed my hubby on the mouth without brushing my teeth, Then we each went through a loud pantomime of coughing and hacking and spitting and kissed again. Monogamy does have its priviledges,
I am also thinking that there must be plenty of cases where people dont report their flu. If I was sick with a fever and flu-like symptoms, I would be too sick to sit in a doctors office to wait my turn. I wouldnt go to an ER because knowing I was in a weakened state, I wouldnt want to be in proximity of people even MORE sick.
So there have to be more cases around that dont get to the place of diagnosis or “counting”.
ANYWAY – whats the incubation/spreadable period before symptoms begin?
Anyone know?