The number of people contracting the virus this week dropped to 64,000 from 84,000 last weekThe number of people contracting swine flu in England dropped to 64,000 this week, from 84,000 last week, according to Department of Health figures. The number in hospital with the condition fell to 785, from 848.The fall may only be temporary, due to the school half-term break. In Scotland, the number of new cases rose to 21,500. Across the UK a total of 182 people have died.Sir Liam Donaldson, the government's chief medical officer, said he was making a "strong recommendation" to pregnant women to be vaccinated as they were at higher risk of complications.Swine fluFluHealthHealth & wellbeingOwen Bowcottguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to...

• Pressure on hospitals but death estimates reduced• Up to a third of children could catch virusCases of swine flu in the UK have almost doubled this week, the Department of Health revealed today, as the outbreak imposes increasing pressure on intensive care beds.So far 122 people have died after contracting the H1N1 virus and more than 500 are being treated in hospital, of whom 99 are in critical care – the highest figure since the disease emerged. Children appear to be vulnerable to higher rates of infection.Emergency planners have, however, downgraded the UK's worst case scenario, calculating this month that as many as 1,000 people could die during the pandemic infection. Far more of the victims are likely to be younger patients, unlike the normal pattern of seasonal flu, which...

Pregnant women urged to take new H1N1 vaccine when it is available as flu death toll risesA pregnant teenager from southern Scotland has been killed by swine flu, leading to the death of her unborn child, the latest in a number of deaths around the UK.It is understood the 17-year-old died in a hospital in the Borders yesterday but health officials have not released further details at her family's request.Four deaths were reported in 48 hours this week in Scotland, taking the total number of deaths there from H1N1 to 15.Health officials in Wales said today that a pregnant woman, 21, from Monmouthshire, died yesterday after being transferred to intensive care following a planned caesarean section. Three deaths have been reported in Wales in the last 24 hours.While this virus is far milder...

• Health department urges frontline staff to get jab• Inoculation vital in efforts to contain pandemic The Department of Health has ordered NHS bosses across England to ensure that frontline staff get immunised against swine flu amid growing signs that many doctors and nurses intend to shun the vaccine.Chief executives and boards who run hospitals, primary care trusts and strategic health authorities have been told to urgently maximise the number of workers having the jab. Leading DH figures including Sir Liam Donaldson, the chief medical officer, have written to them six times in the last five weeks stressing the need for action before the second wave of the pandemic causes major problems.Ian Dalton, the NHS's national director of flu resilience, last week warned that vaccination of...

No one should take the swine flu vaccine–it is one of the most dangerous vaccines ever devised. It contains an immune adjuvant called squalene (MF-59) which has been shown to cause severe autoimmune disorders such as MS, rheumatoid arthritis and Lupus. This is the vaccine adjuvant that is strongly linked to the Gulf War syndrome,...

D3 is a potent hormone which acts on many body systems. 70 per cent or so – more than 1 in 3 westerners do not have enough in their bodies. This is because of modern living and hence this widespread shortage of “Vitamin” D3 is causally associated with many widespread modern diseases such as heart disease,...

Saturday, 3rd October 2009  – North 1 East League DRIFFIELD 83 pts CARLISLE 18 pts Least said, easiest mended springs to mind!  Given the two previous and relatively comfortable victories in... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit the website for full links, other content, and more! ]]...

Because of the benefits to mothers and infants in the treatment group and the absence of side effects, vitamin D supplements should be given to all pregnant Asian women in the United Kingdom. From the British Medical Journal. And it is not just Asian mothers. Black mothers, white mothers .. in fact most mothers and infants will...

You thought you’d seen the last of it a good month or two ago, but records show the number of new swine flu cases is once again on the rise. Cue a barrage of over-the-top Daily Mail first page headlines and panic-inducing propaganda, as the predicted autumn increase in cases, a second wave of the disease, looks to be in its infant stages. There have so far been around eighty deaths from swine flu in the United Kingdom, still far from the originally predicted 60,000 by the end of the year. That figure was revised when it was found the disease is less dangerous than first thought, mostly because it doesn’t really turn you into a pig, as many suspected. Government advice is not to worry too much, for this will lead to mass panic buying which will only succeed in injecting...

I am not a doctor but these people are: Dear Dr. Cannell: Your recent newsletters and video about Swine flu (H1N1) http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=swine+flu+and+vitamin+D+and+Council&btnG=Search&aq=f&oq=&aqi= prompted me to convey our recent experience with an H1N1 outbreak at Central Wisconsin Center (CWC). Unfortunately, the state epidemiologist was not interested in studying it further so I pass it on to you since I think it is noteworthy. CWC is a long-term care facility for people with developmental disabilities, home for approx. 275 people with approx. 800 staff. Serum 25-OHD has been monitored in virtually all residents for several years and patients supplemented with vitamin D. In June, 2009, at the time of the well-publicized Wisconsin spike in H1N1...

World Health Organisation advises against giving antiviral drug if symptoms are mildHealthy people who catch swine flu need not be given Tamiflu, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has announced. The advice appears to contradict the UK's policy of making the antiviral drug readily available to those who call the national pandemic helpline or approach their GPs.Hundreds of thousands of doses have been given to British patients although the majority have not been severely ill. Fears have been voiced that mass use of Tamiflu will make the virus resistant to it.The latest advice from the WHO said: "Worldwide, most patients infected with the pandemic virus continue to experience typical influenza symptoms and fully recover within a week, even without any form of medical treatment. Healthy...

Pandemic showing summer decline but health officials prepare for second wave in autumnThe number of deaths from swine flu in Britain has climbed to 59 but infection rates have continued to fall through the summer, according to the Department of Health.The latest figures released today show the disease on the wane during the holidays with about 260 people still being treated in hospital, fewer than last week. Of those, 30 were in intensive care.There were an estimated 11,000 people diagnosed with H1N1 flu in England last week, the cases spread uniformly across the country, and representing a sharp decline from the 25,000 cases recorded during the previous week.After an unusual mid-summer spike in infections, pandemic flu could now be conforming to the normal pattern of seasonal flu which...

The government has to show it is doing all it can to contain swine flu, but healthy kids don't usually need antiviral treatmentParents have been put in an unenviable and highly undesirable quandary by a new review of seven trials into the effectiveness and safety of antiviral drugs used in normal seasonal flu.The review has shown that the main benefit of antiviral treatment is to reduce the duration of symptoms by a day. They don't reduce risk of complications or spread of disease much. Like all drugs that do anything, they can cause side effects (about 5% of kids given Tamiflu vomit, which can cause dehydration).The authors are calling on the government to be candid about the limitations of antiviral drugs. The government says this survey is of seasonal flu, not swine flu. That it's...

GMTV star Andrew Castle confronts health secretary, Andy Burnham, over policy of giving drug to childrenThe health secretary, Andy Burnham, today defended giving the antiviral drug Tamiflu to children for swine flu as TV presenter Andrew Castle said his daughter "almost died" after taking it.Burnham was confronted by Castle on GMTV after researchers said the antiviral drug's benefits did not outweigh its side-effects during the flu pandemic.Castle said his older daughter, Georgina, had a "respiratory collapse" and "suffered very heavily" after being "just handed" the drug without a proper diagnosis.The presenter said: "I can tell you that my child – who was not diagnosed at all – she had asthma, she took Tamiflu and almost died."Burnham sympathised with Castle, saying it must have...

• Side-effects said to outweigh benefits• Government queries relevance of researchChildren under the age of 12 should not be given Tamiflu or Relenza, the two antiviral drugs that form the cornerstone of the government's fight against swine flu, because their side-effects outweigh any benefits, Oxford University researchers said yesterday.A study by Dr Matthew Thompson, a clinical scientist, and Dr Carl Heneghan, a clinical lecturer, found that antivirals were no "magic bullet" and only led to a minor reduction in the length of time that a child with mild sickness was ill or the chance of their spreading the disease.The research, to be published in the British Medical Journal, said that Tamiflu caused vomiting in 5% of children, which could lead to dehydration and complications.The...

Fears of Tamiflu shortages as helpline advisers are connedPeople are conning the swine flu helpline into giving them Tamiflu in case they fall ill, Britain's leading GP has warned. The practice could lead to the creation of private stockpiles and shortages of the drug.Doctors claim some people also pretend to have the H1N1 virus and get the drug because they fear stocks will run out."Some people are deceiving the national flu line in order to get Tamiflu. Doctors tell me that some patients are undoubtedly misusing the service", said Professor Steve Field, chairman of the Royal College of GPs.More than 315,000 people received Tamiflu, which costs £16 for a course, in the fortnight after the National Pandemic Flu Service launched in England on 23 July. One doctor who uses the...

Child with possible meningitis was 'failed by system' say parentsThe parents of a two-year-old girl thought to have died from meningitis after they were told she was suffering from swine flu said yesterday that she had been "failed by the system".Georgia Keeling, from Norwich, died after being rushed to hospital on Tuesday. Her parents, Paul Sewell, 21, and Tasha Keeling, 22, said they contacted health services, including NHS Direct, the swine flu helpline and the emergency services, five times after their daughter first developed a temperature on Saturday.The couple said that by Tuesday she had also developed a rash, bruising and had been sick, but their concerns that she might have meningitis were ignored.They said that on two occasions they were told Georgia did not need to be admitted...

Biggest mass immunisation in 45 years would cover all 8.5m pupilsAll 8.5 million pupils in the UK would be immunised against swine flu at immunisation posts in every school, under plans being studied by ministers, the Guardian has learned.In the biggest mass vaccination since the 1964 operation against smallpox, school nurses, health visitors and GPs would deliver the injections to five- to 16-year-olds at all 33,700 schools. The move would be part of a concerted government effort to minimise the harm caused by the expected second wave of the pandemic this autumn."The general principle of schools being the ideal, logical place to do this is well established. They have captive audiences," said one senior source involved in Whitehall planning.While written parental approval would be...

The swine flu pandemic appears to have peaked for the moment but the virus will return with "a very big surge" in the autumn, the chief medical officer said today.Sir Liam Donaldson hailed new data as proof of a "pretty firm downturn" in the number of people seeking medical help with H1N1 from a GP. "There's a possibility the virus has had its fill of us for the moment," he said.The number of people consulting a doctor with flu-like illness had fallen from 155.3 for every 100,000 people to 138.2 for every 100,000, he said. "It's peaked in America, it's peaked in Mexico, it's peaked in Scotland, so why shouldn't it peak here?" About one in every 158 people in England has had flu in the current outbreak and 27 have died.School holidays and people being away on summer breaks helped explain...

• Experts warn workers who contract virus could sue• Businesses have been advised on staff welfareBusinesses could face a spate of legal claims from employees hit by swine flu, experts warn, as concerns mount that firms are not prepared to deal with legal issues arising from affected staff.Personal injury, health and safety, and negligence claims are all likely, according to employment lawyers, as litigation has continued to rise during the recession."I can absolutely see claims in personal injury being brought by employees who say they contracted swine flu at work," said Stephen Robinson, partner in employment law at Davies Arnold Cooper.Caroline Doran, partner in employment law at Sprecher Grier Halberstam, said: "If employers don't take some steps to consider what will happen if...

• EU accelerates approval process for treatment • WHO chief warns of dangers of untested jabsThe World Health Organisation has raised concerns about the fast-track production of the swine flu vaccine in Europe, where the treatment is due to be made available at least two months earlier than in the US. Britain is expected to be the first country in Europe to provide the vaccine, with the first of 132 million ordered doses due to be administered next month.The European Medicines Agency (EMA), the drug regulatory body for the EU, is accelerating the approval process for the vaccine, and countries including Britain, Greece, France and Sweden plan to start using it as soon as it is cleared. The most vulnerable groups, such as pregnant women and young children, will be given priority.To...

Exeter city council is considering using 19th century catacombs to store the bodies of swine flu victims if the outbreak worsens. They’ve identified the empty underground burial chambers in Bartholomew Street, currently used as a tourist attraction, as a potential mortuary. A council spokesman said the plan would be implemented if the crematorium and cemeteries could not keep up with funeral demands. “We have some empty catacombs in an old cemetery in the city,” he said. “These are 19th century underground burial chambers which are normally a tourist attraction. “They can, however, be safely used for their original purpose and allow us to temporarily store bodies in the remote possibility that the need should arise.” Figures released last night...

Flu expert says cases could drop in next fortnight before virus returns in the winterThe number of swine flu cases in Britain may drop within the next two weeks before a return of the virus this winter, a flu expert said today.Alan Hay, of the World Influenza Centre in London, suggested the first wave of illness may have already peaked but could not predict how far levels would fall in this phase of the pandemic.His remarks came the day after the government said about 100,000 people in England caught swine flu last week, nearly double the figure for the previous week.Hay told Radio 4's Today programme: "I think we will see a peak in this country in the next week or two, if not already. It will reduce. We don't know to what extent the level will drop down to a background level. We've seen...

About 100,000 people caught swine flu in England last week, the chief medical officer revealed today, as the government's online diagnosis service crashed within minutes of launch when thousands of people tried to log on at the same time.The rapid spread of the virus was confirmed as the National Pandemic Flu Service – dispensing advice and anti-viral prescriptions over the telephone and online – went live to relieve pressure on family doctors.The world's first government-run swine flu diagnosis website could not cope with the volume of traffic when it finally opened for business at 3pm today. Designed to handle 1,200 hits a second, the service was suspended just four minutes later when 2,600 people every second tried to access it.The service's inauspicious launch came as new...

• Latest figures show 100,000 cases recorded in past week• National Flu Pandemic Service can take 1m calls a weekThere are 840 people seriously ill in hospital with swine flu and 100,000 new cases have been recorded in the past week, according to the government's chief medical officer.The number of people in hospital includes 63 in intensive care.The figures were given by Sir Liam Donaldson during an early afternoon press conference at the Department of Health, providing a weekly update on the progress of the disease throughout Britain.The number of deaths associated with the swine flu outbreak has risen to 30. Last week the government announced there had been 29 deaths in total and 55,000 new cases in the previous week.The National Flu Pandemic Service for England, which started...

A national swine flu help service is being launched today to allow more access to Tamiflu. Do you trust others not to abuse it?The national swine flu helpline is being launched today and it will enable anyone with the checklist of influenza symptoms to get a coded number for a prescription of Tamiflu. You will also be able to use a website that provides a voucher number for an individual dose of the drug.Andy Burnham introduced the initiative, hoping it will ease the workload of staff in doctors' surgeries and hosptials. He has stressed that the service will use an "encryption code" which will only allow one prescription per person.Would you use the service, rather than making a trip to see your GP? And do you trust others not to abuse the system, visiting the website to get a Tamiflu...

Expected decline in cases could be followed by similar tailing off in England within weeks• Datablog: full list of swine flu casesThe current swine flu outbreak may now have peaked in Scotland, experts believe, suggesting that the surge in cases in England will subside within weeks.One of the UK's leading bacteriologists, Professor Hugh Pennington, said this morning that Scotland was "possibly through the worst of this phase of the virus".Despite a steep increase in cases in England, it is expected the latest Scottish estimated figures will show a decline when they are released later today after cases in the worst hotspots – Glasgow and Paisley – began to tail off earlier this month.As a result, Scottish health ministers are not following moves in England to set up a national flu...

Government move comes as pressure grows on GPs and hospitalsA national swine flu help service that aims to speed up access to drugs for thousands of infected people will be launched today.The government's national flu pandemic service, which can be accessed by phone and internet, will be staffed by more than 1,500 people. Another 500 workers will be brought in if needed.The service – which will only cover England – is being launched to help relieve mounting pressure on the NHS.Its introduction comes amid what is expected to be a jump in the UK's swine flu death toll, which currently stands at 31.New figures showing the number of people contacting their GP, and the numberdying from the disease, will be released later today.Workers staffing the service will have a checklist of symptoms,...

Britain's biggest pharmaceutical company is preparing to sell £3bn worth of swine flu drugs this year, it emerged today.GlaxoSmithKline revealed its vaccine, one of the world's first, could be available by September after the UK government placed advance orders for 60m doses.It also disclosed that international governments were stockpiling large supplies of GSK's anti-viral treatment Relenza, which can relieve swine flu symptoms.Worldwide sales from the two drugs are expected to reach £3bn by January, but the company rejected claims it was exploiting the pandemic – stressing that profits would be much lower once development costs were taken into account.It also said poorer nations would receive the vaccine for free with 50m doses to be donated to the World Health Organisation. More...

15-year-old girl in 'hotspot' Glasgow latest victimBritain's death toll from swine flu reached 30 today when a 15-year-old girl from Glasgow was confirmed as the latest victim of the pandemic, which has claimed the lives of more than 700 people worldwide.The teenager, who is not being named at her family's request, diedtoday, a week after being admitted to the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Glasgow. Like most of the previous victims, she had other underlying medical conditions.The girl is the fourth fatality from Glasgow, which is one of the UK's swine flu "hotspots". Her death raises fresh fears that the virus, while relatively mild for most people, can be more dangerous for children.Nicola Sturgeon, the Scottish health secretary, said: "The tragic death of this young girl is...

Those with weakened immune systems may be advised to stay away from crowds when flu pandemic reaches its heightPregnant women, cancer patients on chemotherapy and others with weakened immune systems may be advised to stay away from crowds for "a few weeks" when the swine flu pandemic reaches its height, probably this autumn, the chief medical officer Sir Liam Donaldson said today.Mothers-to-be are at present not being recommended to cut back on normal activities such as going to work, using public transport or attending events and family gatherings, but that could change if swine flu reached a level of, for example, one in three of the population.But Donaldson also said some pregnant women may wish to exercise their choice now "on a highly precautionary basis, to avoid large densely...

Rushing back to work after swine flu could be dangerous. Taking your time to recover is the best way to avoid complicationsLast week a friend of mine, Emma, a 31-year-old publisher, developed what she thought must be swine flu. She decided it wasn't any worse than a bout of flu she'd had before, and followed the NHS guidelines and stayed at home, waiting for it to pass."I took Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday off, and went back to work on Thursday," she says. "My boss took one look at me and said I looked as if I should be in hospital. I must have looked really ill, because I noticed other colleagues giving me looks of horror. I thought I was getting better – I thought I had shaken it off and was over the worst of it. I didn't feel completely well, but I thought it was nothing a couple of...

Slowing spread of virus would give more time to develop vaccineMinisters were urged tonight to rethink their policy of keeping schools open through the swine flu pandemic after research showed that a shutdown would curb the spread of infection and limit the number of deaths.As Andy Burnham, the health secretary, announced that a flu helpline to take the pressure off GPs' surgeries would go live this week, two infectious disease experts said school closures should be considered to reduce the number of cases and buy time until a vaccine is available.Schools across Britain have now broken up for summer holidays, and experts hope this will help to slow the spread of the virus. But there are fears that when classes resume in the autumn the number of cases will increase rapidly.School closures...

The government has changed its advice on swine flu in an attempt to defuse a row over its conflicting messages to pregnant women and those trying to conceive.Amid increasing concern over the impact of swine flu on expectant women, the Department of Health has posted a new document on its website reiterating previously issued advice. It has also stressed that it is no longer telling women to delay conception.Today, a DoH spokeswoman admitted that its previous guidance to those trying to conceive had been based on predictions for a pandemic involving bird flu, a more serious infection. She said the advice had now been "refined to reflect current circumstances".She denied that the DoH advice to expectant mothers – which says they should not alter their behaviour but should "avoid crowds...

Today is the date of the annual Tolpuddle Martyrs rally in Dorset but the howling gale outside put an end to any idea of flying two of the trades union banners over march in the tiny village.For the last three years, Tolpuddle has been "iffy" from a weather perspective but having taken two aircraft down there this morning; landing at the top of the large hill which is Compton Abbas, it became quickly clear that we weren't going to have a miracle pause in the windspeeds.'Violent' was possibly the best description I can give of the turbulence and with gusts of 30 knots along the runway at Compton, no chance of flying any banners. Should have stayed in bed!Meanwhile, back at home, I was listening to a rather bizarre interview on Sky News on the topic of swine flu. The Sky presenter was...

• Charity spreading alarm: medical chief • Royal Ballet in Cuba struck by illnessThe National Childbirth Trust was accused of scaremongering last night after advising women to consider postponing trying to become pregnant until after the swine flu pandemic has passed.The NCT, Britain's leading charity for parents, said delaying pregnancy could cut a woman's risk of catching the virus or reduce its severity. "Expectant mothers are thought to be at greater risk from the virus because the immune system is naturally suppressed during pregnancy to ensure it does not reject the baby," said Belinda Phipps, the trust's chief executive. "Early figures also suggest it takes expectant mothers longer to fight off the disease. Most would still only develop a mild case, but in rare cases symptoms...

A woman who gave birth prematurely and a baby were revealed to be among the latest victims of swine flu as the number of UK deaths from the infection rose sharply.Ruptara Miah, 39, had used a wheelchair for 15 years after a road accident but had brought up six daughters, relatives said. A statement from Whipps Cross hospital in east London, where she died said: "She was infected with pandemic H1N1. The trust can confirm that she had underlying health conditions."Her brother, Abdul Malik said she was admitted to hospital three weeks ago with a cough and chest infection, but her condition worsened and she died without regaining full consciousness. Her son, who was born prematurely, is being treated in an intensive care unit.The baby who died on July 8 was less than six months old and was...

Yesterday's 'flu-like' symptoms may indeed have been an advanced case of hypochondria bought on by the BBC News but the media is now giving us a sense of inevitability in regard to catching the flu virus, either mildly or more aggressively, depending, I suspect on one's age and potential immunity.With predictions now based on some 30% of the population being affected by the flu in one form or another and with schools now showing a marked acceleration in reported cases, I thought, that as the member responsible for customer services it would be sensible to explore our own council's state of readiness to deal with the impact of a flu epidemic.This is a personal note rather than any 'official' view on the emerging situation and as you might expect, our own council has a business resilience...

Phone and web diagnosis service launched as pandemic death toll rises to 29Up to 65,000 people could die from swine flu in the UK in a worst case scenario set out by the chief medical officer as the government launched a national service for patients to obtain antiviral drugs over the internet and telephone.With 29 deaths now linked to the pandemic and a further 53 patients in intensive care, the cabinet's emergency planning committee, Cobra, is meeting three times a week to prepare for the impact of the rapidly spreading pandemic.On a day of dramatic revelations, the Department of Health revealed:• The launch of the National Pandemic Flu Service helpline for England.• 55,000 new infections last week.• More than 650 people in hospital.• Half of the UK's children might fall ill.•...