H5N1 avian influenza, commonly known as bird flu (流感), has killed at least 15 people across Asia and was proved in China on January 27. No human cases have been found in the mainland, but 13 of the country’s 31 provinces have reported the disease in poultry. The Chinese government has taken measures to prevent and control the disease. Poultry within 3 km of infected (受感染的) farms is to be killed and those within 5 km vaccinated (接种疫苗). At the same time, there will be continuous monitoring and daily reports on the disease across the country, and increased production of bird flu vaccines. Among the 11 Asian countries and regions having bird flu in animals, only Vietnam and Thailand have reported human cases. The people infected were reported to have caught the disease from poultry. While the World Health Organization ( WHO) says there is “no proof (证据) of human-to-human infection (传染)” of bird flu, the big fear is that the disease could combine with a human flu virus (病毒) to produce a deadly new disease that will kill millions of people across the world. Many Asian farmers live closely with their animals and sell live chickens in the market. This greatly increases the chance of humans being infected wi  th bird flu.A spokesman of the WHO said that Asian countries having bird flu should introduce a more healthy way of raising and selling chickens. The people there have to completely change their way of life and manners towards animals. Here are some safety measures for people to stay healthy; * Keep fit through usual exercise; * Avoid infected poultry and infected people; * Avoid eating uncooked or under-done poultry and eggs; * Make sure there is always fresh air in your home; * Cover your mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing; * Wash your hands as often as possible. 小题1:What does the underlined word “poultry” mean?
 |