"There was a bird
her name was Enza
I opened the window
and in-flew-Enza"
-- Children's song circa 1918
I'm not a doctor or a scientist. I'm just a guy who likes mental challenges. And a pandemic flu outbreak would is one hell of a challenge.
But I think there is a solution, how to keep people from dying from a flu outbreak. And the answer is kind of counterintuitive.
To understand my idea for a treatment of influenza during a pandemic outbreak, you have to understand that a flu virus in and of itself won't kill you. In fact, I can say if you are infected with the flu, your main enemy isn't the flu bug, it's your own immune system.
How a person really dies from influenza: The Cytokine Storm
When our body detects foreign microorganisms indicating an infection, it might over-protect our lungs. We race so many antibodies to the site that they collect in a Cytokine storm, potentially blocking airways and causing suffocation. Medical researchers have identified the stages of the Cytokine storm and are working on treatments, other than flu vaccines, to weaken an overactive immune response.
At all times, sentries circulate in our bloodstream, called white blood cells, that are the first to sense if a virus or bacteria has infiltrated. Immediately, our body sends defenders from the immune system, T-cells, to the site of the infection. During this stage, our immunity functions properly, and T-cells attack the microbes so they do not get too strong a foothold in our lungs.
However, the mere presence of T-cells clustered at one site, especially the lungs, alerts other T-cells that a full-scale war has started.
In the second stage, even more T-cells, known as cytokines, flood the lungs. This propagates a Cytokine storm where far too many immune cells are caught in an endless loop of calling even more. The Cytokine storm ends up inflaming the tissue of the lungs and crowding air passages, causing breathing difficulties....This is what makes the Cytokine storm so deadly in certain epidemic strains, such as bird flu.
But the Cytokine storm isn't just limited to the lungs:
From "The Merck Manual of Health and Aging"
Influenza may lead to other problems especially those with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, heart failure, diabetes, or other chronic diseases. Influenza frequently irritates the trachea and bronchi, leading to tracheitis and bronchitis. In some older people, influenza leads to pneumonia, either by the virus itself or, more commonly, from a bacterial infection. Pneumonia is the main cause of most deaths resulting from influenza infection.
Rarely, inflammation of muscles (myositis) or of the sac surrounding the heart (pericarditis) complicates influenza. Inflammation of the brain (encephalitis), the spinal cord (transverse myelitis), or nerves that branch off from the spinal cord (Guillain-Barré syndrome) may also develop. These complications may be the result of the body's immune system being overstimulated from fighting the influenza virus.
The pervesre thing about The Cytokine Storm is this: the stronger your immune system is, the stronger the cytokine reaction. During the 1918 Spanish Flu outbreak, the majority of people who died were between the ages of 20 and 40 years old. To be sure, death rates from the Spanish flu were higher than normal among all ages. But the people who beared the biggest brunt of the flu outbreak were in the prime of their lives healthwise.
So the challenge as a medical practitioner has nothing whatsoever to do with the flu virus. The question if you are trying to save the life of a patient isn't "How do get rid of the virus?" --it's "How do I stop the body's immune system from overreacting to the virus?"
And the answer to the second question is simple: give the patient sugar water.
"Cell mediated immunity is depressed by 50% for 120 minutes after sugar ingestion (75 grams). A 100g portion of sugar can significantly reduce the capacity of white blood cells to engulf bacteria. Maximum immune suppression occurs one to two hours after ingestion and remains suppressed for up to five hours after feeding... A 100g portion of sugar can significantly reduce the capacity of white blood cells to engulf bacteria. Maximum immune suppression occurs one to two hours after ingestion and remains suppressed for up to five hours after feeding." --Dr. Noel Peterson
Regarding this process, the book, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Treatment Guide, relates, "In patients experiencing the effects of excess cytokine production, downregulation of immune system chemicals can provide tremendous relief."
Once ckytokine produced has been slowed the next step is to give the patient magnesium chloride, zinc, vitamin C.. Not only is magnesium chloride cheaper than any of the anti-virals outthere, it actually works in treating the flu. It's over the counter, you don't need a prescription to get it.
And you have the added bonus of being able to supplement your diet with it NOW, to strengthen your immune system against viral infection.