What are the symptoms of avian flu in people?
The symptoms are similar to those of ‘regular’ human influenza and can include fever, cough, aching muscles, sore throat, eye infections and serious respiratory infections including pneumonia. At present, there is no vaccine against this new strain of avian influenza. Some studies indicate that certain drugs that fight human influenza may help prevent serious illness among people infected with the avian influenza virus. Can people get avian influenza from eating poultry infected with influenza? No. Avian influenza is not spread by cooked food. While the World Health Organization recommends proper cooking as a good general practice, it is even more important in countries that have a current outbreak of avian influenza. For example, the H5N1 virus will be killed by heat so foods should be cooked to a temperature of 70°C to make sure they are safe to eat (no pink parts). Eggs should also be thoroughly cooked (no runny yokes). Food preparation techniques are also important. Be sure that ju
