H1N1 - Swine Flu remedy?

The daughter of a friend of mine was diagnosed with swine flu some days ago. I was pretty concerned and asked her immediately what she was doing about it.

Her daughter had high fever for several days and was told to wear a facemask and to take Doliprane.

Aside from that I asked what the doctor had told her to do. As far as I know doliprane is a painkiller and as such doesn't actually fight the virus much. She (the girls mother) told me that the doctor told her to give orange juice and kiwis to her daughter for breakfast as they contain C vitamin.

That was it. NOTHING MORE!!!

I was shocked. What about telling her to take C Vitamin? What about the classic flu/infection remedy of taking garlic? What the hell!? Just Doliprane and wait?!

This is sick. Obviously if someone has a virus for several days the natural immune system of the person is fighting the disease, it needs to be helped with elements that make the immune system stronger.

So why in the world does this MD just say "pain killers"?

I'm not even going to get started on the whole hype around the swine flu, frankly I think it's massive media hyperbole and drug companies need something to boost their economy. The French government has already spent upward of 1 billion euros to finance an untested drug.

Wow that's the best "beta product" I have seen released on the market. So what, after many failures we'll see "version 1.0" and then it's another few billions?

Sick.

Teenscreen - if you're not sure ... just label them suicidal

This came in on an email I got about Teenscreen. I hear some others have already adopted the teen screen model in some countries and made it mandatory. It is just like George Orwell's 1984 (yes I know I mentioned that before) - but really. I just don't get it like teenagers are committing suicide and throwing themselves out of the window all over the place? Not really - actually why don't we ask the psychiatric profession to supply the rest of society with helmets to protect themselves from the suicidal teenagers?

Jokes aside (actually if we did that people would see how stupid this program really is) it's like finding one problem and then adjusting the whole population to fit the minute possibility that all others are in the same category.

And in any case anything that checks for problems as a systematic check will eventually drive people nutty. There's got to be some evidence or an indication before the checks move in. The Vacin dillema is just one of the same.

Star Tribune

TEENSCREEN

Risks are too great

Your March 26 editorial made a spurious claim that since "schools screen for eye trouble. Why not for brain disorders?" Screening students to assess whether they are "at risk" for suicide or other mental health disorders is a highly subjective, unscientific and extremely difficult task.

David Shaffer of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention reported that for every 16 students correctly identified by TeenScreen as "at risk," 84 were falsely labeled. Since the most common "treatment" for mental health disorders is drug therapy, TeenScreen leads to unnecessary drugging and the proven risks of serious side effects from these powerful psychotropic drugs.

TeenScreen has no place in the public school system. The risks to the mental and physical health of our students are too great.

BONNIE GASPER, EDEN PRAIRIE

What TeenScreen would prefer you didn't do

I got this in an email from a friend. They got this quote from an email that TeenScreen sent about the people ANTI TeenScreen. Well if they would prefer you don't see it, then I prefer you do.

Below is what TeenScreen does NOT want you to do as they elaborate here: http://dailykenoshan.com/images/news/ts/responding.pdf

Write Letters. To the local school board. To area school principals. To the local paper. To anyone who will listen.

Attend Local Meetings. Express your opinions at local community forums, such as school board meetings or town hall meetings.

Make Web Sites and Blogs. TeenScreen says: "information proliferated by these groups remains on their own Web sites and Web logs, or blogs. It is when members of your community find these sites that the information these groups disseminate becomes problematic."

So you know what to do now...