PEOPLE WON'T CONTRACT SWINE FLU FROM PORK CONSUMPTION (PAGE 22)

PORK consumption will not make one contract the swine flu, now referred to as the A (H1N1).
It is rather an air-borne disease transmitted from human to human.
The Deputy Director of Public Health, Dr George Bonsu, made this known at the launch of the Eastern Regional public education programme on the A (HINI) at Koforidua during which an 11-member committee was inaugurated to deal with the issue.
He, therefore, called on consumers to continue relying on pork and its products to boost pig farming in the country.
The event brought together coordinating directors, information officers, traditional and religious leaders and pig farmers from the 21 districts of the region as well as students and pupils drawn from selected educational institutions in the region.
It was aimed at educating the public on the disease, particularly how to prevent it in the region.
According to Dr Bonsu, recent scientific studies had revealed that the consumption of pork or pork products would not make one contract the disease which, he said, was transmitted from human to human.
He, however, suggested that pork should be well prepared and cooked to get rid of any germ.
Giving details of the swine flu which was first detected in Mexico about three months ago and had claimed a number lives, he said its spread was initially associated with pigs, hence the disease was first called swine flu but the name had to be changed to A(H1NI), a virus transmitted from human to human.
Dr Bonsu stated that the HINI virus was spread mainly from person to person through coughing or sneezing by people with influenza and that at times, one might become infected by touching something with flu viruses after which one touched one’s nose and mouth.
He further explained that the virus could survive on environmental surfaces and was capable of infecting a person between two and eight hours after it had been deposited on the surface.
Early signs of the disease, he said, included fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills, fatigue, vomiting and diarrhoea.
Dr Bonsu further stated that signs such as fast breathing or difficulty in breathing, bluish discoloration of lips and tongue, severe or persistent vomiting, uncontrollable convulsions, being less responsive than normal or becoming confused and child being so irritable child does not want to be held are all dangerous signs of the disease that required emergency care.
He said although currently there was no cure for the disease, any person with signs of it should report at a hospital for treatment.
The Eastern Regional Minister, Mr Samuel Ofosu Ampofo, who launched the programme, said an erroneous impression had been created about pork as the cause of the disease which had negatively affected its consumption and the activities of pigs, and that the regional coordinating directorate had to allay such fears in order to boost pork production.
He also assured the people that there was no cause for alarm about the disease since the government had set up a technical team together with the regional task force to assess the situation and develop strategies to manage it if it spreads.
He called on the municipal/district coordinating directors and others assigned with the task of preventing the disease in the region to be proactive in their responses.
For his part, the Regional Director of Veterinary Services, Dr Osafo Duah, said since there was the possibility of the disease spreading to Ghana, his outfit had prepared for it, adding that any sign of the disease should be reported to his outfit on mobile phone numbers 020-2019090/021772926 or 08120678.
The Medical Administrator of the Regional Hospital, Koforidua, Dr Obeng Apori, urged leaders of Pentecostal and charismatic churches to stop the practice whereby their members shouted and waved handkerchiefs during church services, adding that the handkerchiefs should rather be used to cover their mouths to prevent any airborne virus from spreading.