>> Dr. Terry Simpson: M this is our second bird flu and respiratory

flu update and it's more important

than ever to stay informed. With a

temporary freeze on public information from federal

agencies, I'm committed to sharing accurate,

up to date information. So let's explore what's happening,

what it means to you and how to protect yourself

and those around you.

I am, um, your Chief Medical Explanationist, Dr. Terry Simpson

and this is Fork you, Fork

University where we make sense of the madness,

bust myths and teach you a little bit about food

and medicine.

Here's some of the current respiratory illness

Trends as of January 24th.

You've probably noticed that there has been an increasing bit

of lung or respiratory illnesses driving people

to seek medical care. So here's what we're

seeing. Number one, some seasonal flu

cases are elevated, particularly influenza A and

rising in some areas. COVID 19

thankfully is declining and RSV

respiratory syncytial virus is also

declining locally. Here in California we're sort of

seeing a similar pattern as this. Bird flu

continues to be a, ah, growing concern. It's also

known as highly pathogenic avian influenza

or the acronym HPAI.

Since 1997,

HPAI A or

H5N1 infections have been reported in

over 925 people with a

staggering 50% case fatality

rate. Early outbreaks included 20

cases and 7 deaths in Hong Kong between

1997 and 2003. And since

November of 2003, more than 900 cases

across 24 countries have been documented.

Why is bird flu dangerous? Bird flu

infections in human can range from mild symptoms like a

sore throat or severe complications including

pneumonia, respiratory failure,

acute respiratory distress syndrome,

multi organ failure and even encephalitis or

dangerousness of the brain. Now, there are

various types of bird flu, not just

H5N1. There's an H7N1 and H9, but

we're focused on H5N1. Many of the

milder cases come from the H9 or

H7 varieties. I know it's complicated, but

stick with me. And since 2016,

there have been sporadic cases reported every year

globally, including. You probably heard about the man in

Louisiana who Unfortunately died from

H5N1. But with flu season in

full swing, the risk of someone contracting both

seasonal flu and bird flu at the

same time increases. This co infection

would allow the viruses to mix, potentially creating a

new and more dangerous strain.

And that is reflected in that Louisiana man. He died

after handling wild birds infected with the

HPAI or H5N1. And

that tragedy is a stark reminder of how serious bird infections

can be on Um, a good note. The young woman

in Canada who is infected with H5N1

recently had a downgrade in her

illness, meaning she's actually doing a little bit better.

There are other bird flu strains. There's H5N6,

about 90 cases have been reported in China. They

also have a 50% case fatality rate. And H

AH5N8. In 2020, Russia had the first

symptomatic human case in a poultry worker.

Hospitals are now testing anybody hospitalized with

severe flu symptoms. They have special flu

tests from the Centers for Disease Control.

We're also doing other things. We're looking at wastewater

surveillance, emergency department visit data and lab confirmed

cases.

Now, here's some things you can do to protect yourself.

Number one is obviously avoid exposure, not

handling wild birds, dead poultry, contaminated

environments. I talked about this more in

depth in in my previous podcast about bird flu a couple

of weeks ago. If you work with live

birds or poultry, wearing gloves and eye protection is key,

including face masks. They can greatly reduce your

risk if you're exposed to infected

birds. There are a number of medications like

Tamiflu that can reduce the risk of infection,

but they work best if started within 48 hours

of exposure. And for high risk

groups, There is an FDA approved vaccine

against H5N1. This

probably won't work against a pandemic because that'll be

a mutated strain. But we typically give this

to people who work in highly infected areas with poultry,

as well as giving them influenza standard vaccine.

Let's talk about air quality and respiratory illnesses.

So all respiratory illnesses, especially those

of us in California, sometimes come from air

quality. The recent wildfires in California

blanketed my car with ash, even though the fire was

60 miles away and the poor air quality

bothered my asthma. You can actually hear it a little bit here because I was just

recently outside. So here's what you can do.

Number one, bring in outdoor air when it's safe to do. So

that's true for viruses, but when you have something like

wildfires, you don't want to do that.

So what we have is a HEPA air cleaner. They're a portable

air cleaner with something called a HEPA filter and also a

charcoal reserve. They're a little harder to get now because of the

wildfires. A lot of Californians have bought them, but they're

still there and they're worthwhile getting.

I want to talk a little bit about vaccination now. Some of you are a little

hesitant about this and you may not understand

what vaccines do. Vaccines don't

create this impenetrable shield, but they

prepare your immune system with antibodies and

memory to fight off the virus. Vaccination

reduces your risk of severe illness and protects

vulnerable population, including the

elderly, those undergoing chemotherapy,

young children and infants, and people with

immune deficiency diseases. Now,

there's some things that you can do to actually boost your immune

system. Naturally. This is not something that will

stop anything, but clearly if you have a

deficit in vitamin C or vitamin D,

your immune system will suffer. And many people, about 20%

of the population, have vitamin D deficiency. You can

find vitamin D in things like fatty fish like salmon,

trout, mackerel, tuna,

as well as fortified foods like milk and orange

juice. For those who are lactose intolerant,

plant based options like Costco oat milk is a great

alternative because it is fortified with vitamin D. And

that fortification is every bit as good as taking a supplement

and maybe even a little bit better. While vitamin

C has been often touted as something great

for for boosting your immune system, it actually

does support white cell production. And especially if you are

on a strange low carb diet, you might want to consider having more

citrus fruits like oranges and lemons or even broccoli,

which isn't a citrus fruit, but has a high quantity of vitamin

C. Back to bird flu. It continues to evolve,

spreading to new populations, occasionally infecting

mammals. And while the risk of human transmission

remains low, these developments highlight the

importance of early detection through testing and

monitoring and preventive measures to reduce

exposure and vaccination and prompt M treatment

when needed.

Finally, one comment that

came in bothered me greatly.

I discovered today that the current administration has

overturned the ban on menthol cigarettes. Why is

that egregious? Well, I look forward to the day when

we can be like the United Kingdom. As

14 year olds become 15 year olds, you can't sell to someone

who's born in 14 years ago.

What year would that be?

2010. So anybody in

2010 and born beyond will not be able to buy cigarettes in the United

Kingdom. I would hope we would have such a ban in the United

States. We're not that forward thinking. Why is

menthol an issue? Because menthol

reduces your interest in having a cough.

If you ever have a cough, like whether it's asthma or

a virus or influenza or pneumonia, having those

menthol cough drops really helps. My favorite, by

the way, is something called Fisherman's Friend. It's one of

my favorite cough drops. Kind of hard to find, but you can find

them. They really reduce your coughing if

you have it. But putting Menthol in cigarettes reduces the

coughing, allowing people to inhale more nicotine and

it clearly gets people addicted to cigarette

smoke. And there has been a large bit

documented how tobacco companies went after the

poor, bringing menthol cigarettes to them, prominently

displaying them in the local convenience markets,

having sponsored events for menthol cigarettes

and it really has become a problem. Smoking is

not just a personal problem, but can affect people in the house,

including children, including the elderly. So I

would love to see the day when we get the

right combination of people in our government

that will actually outlaw cigarettes. Moving forward.

Thanks for listening for this rather long podcast, but I

just wanted to give an update and I'll continue to give an update because

they there's few little bit of information coming out of the federal

government. There's some, but we have many

other areas where we can find this information from

Europe, from state health departments in the United States,

etc. And I'll continue to bring you updates as they

become available or as they become more

interesting. For more information please check out my

blog@yourdoctorsorder.com and stay tuned

to my podcast 4Q. I also share

weekly updates on my TikTok and Instagram @rt

Terry Simpson where you can find practical tips and latest

healthcare news. As always, I want

to thank our friends at Simpler Media for distributing

this and my friend, the pod God, Mr. Evotera,

while I am a doctor, I am not your doctor

and should you need medical attention, please don't contact me.

Please contact a local board certified

physician. Not a chiropractor, not

some weird eastern trained medicine guy, but a

really good physician. If you want to make moves on your diet, please

see a good registered dietitian. All of these people have your

good health in mind.

All right everybody, have a good day.

De Evo these wildfires out here are

horrendous. I can't believe the amount of destruction that

we have coming on. These wildfires and what it's

done, it's also causing me a lot of cough. I hope

you guys are safe out there in the

beautiful state of Arizona.

>> Speaker B: We have been watching with uh, much

trepidation. Glad you're safe,

the friends are safe. But I know a lot of people are

not. This world,

man, this world.