A bad case of the flu in the Delta

[DeltaLitProf]

The farmers in the Delta were burning their chaff the past two weeks. Many times the smoke enveloped our town like a Dickens fog. You could drive down 61 and see tall white columns of smoke, billowing up and joining the real clouds.

So is it a coincidence that I come down with the worst case of chest flu I can remember, complete with bronchitis, coughing that hurts my head, sick headaches, nausea, body aches? Or am I just imagining things?

[stray cat]

1. The right humidity can definitely enhance influenza spread

H1N1 is still circulating and it seems to hit the lungs abnormally hard.

[dogsmycopilot]

2. Correlation does not prove causality.

In addition I would remind you that if it is flu it is a virus. If it is allergic reaction then you can blame the smoke, you can even blame the smoke for exacerbating the symptoms of a virus but you can't get a virus from smoke. Sorry. Just doesn't work like that. I will also say that the H1N1 is making the rounds. My mom works at a nursery and two babies have come down with it who were no where near the delta, BTW. Get some rest, stay hydrated, use precautions to not spread it and I'm sure it will be ok. We had bronchial complications earlier in Feb. even without it being H1N1, so even that isn't unheard of. I do hope you feel better though. And do let the doc know as if it turns to bronchitis he can prescribe something for that- an antibiotic. (Ours wasn't even that expensive.)

[DeltaLitProf]

3. Look at the date

My post is a year old.