The swine flu, or H1N1 as it is officially known, is not a new disease as some people mistakenly believe. The strain that has appeared this year though is different to any variation ever seen before and as the true “flu season” approaches in many parts of the world, as summer fades away and cold weather returns, concerns are mounting about how large the epidemic may become. According to U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano the country should be prepared for a “big influx” of cases this fall.

In 2009 so far there have been about 550 deaths reported as a result of the virus, although many of those people who succumbed to the disease did have underlying medical conditions that weakened their defenses against the flu?

Considering that the usual annual death toll from usual seasonal flus is 36,000 that is still a low number. Still, experts are now predicting that H1N1 could affect up to half the US population, meaning that the death toll could eventually triple that annual national figure.

The much touted “swine flu vaccine” is still not quite ready for widespread use and it is believed that the “regular” flu shot millions of Americans receive every year provides little protection against the new virulent H1N1 strain. The fact that the virus seems to prove deadlier than other flus amongst younger, healthier people is another concern amongst many in the medical profession.

Some recent studies have suggested that all these fears may be overblown, especially by the media, nut that has not stopped organizations all over the country implementing various measures to try to minimize the impact of a possible swine flu epidemic.

A growing number of primary and secondary schools across the nation have begun to discuss the possibility of closing their institutions to pupils if swine flu rears its head and in some colleges and universities infected students is either being sent home or quarantined in separate dorms. At the prestigious Emory University in Atlanta fifty students have already been separated in this manner.

Medical professionals are advising people that following a few basic steps can reduce both an individual’s risk for H1N1 infection and the transmission of the disease. The advice is very simple; wash your hands frequently, sneeze and cough only into a tissue or the crook of the elbow, avoid touching your face too often and if you feel ill, stay home and rest.