8th Commentary - Bird Flu: A Global Threat

This commentary is on the article “Bird Flu: the heat is on”, dated the 22nd of February 2006, and other related articles. These articles discuss the problem of bird flu, and what some countries are doing in their efforts to halt the spread of the bird flu.

Bird flu is becoming an increasingly worrying threat to the world, as it has spread through many countries in Asia, and now even parts of Europe. It is fortunate that the number of human cases of the bird flu is still quite low. However, even the scientists are not certain about when the situation would become worse, or if a vaccine can be created in time to stop the bird flu from causing a pandemic that could affect the entire world. The scientists are doing a lot to try to create the vaccine, and from the articles, it was also reported that some tests had positive results, while others did not.

The governments of the various affected countries have at least taken steps to prevent the bird flu from spreading. The effectiveness of these measures, however, does vary from country to country, and this may cause problems, especially if the measures are not fast enough to stop the spread of the bird flu. From the articles, it would seem that Vietnam, which was very badly hit by the bird flu, has managed to contain the bird flu, as it was reported that there had been no new cases of the bird flu in either birds or humans since December 2005. This is a positive sign, as it would show that the bird flu could be stopped before it became a pandemic. It is my hope that the other affected countries can do so as well, and that not too many people would die from this illness.