Wednesday, February 10, 2010
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Obesity linked to flu severity

(Washington Post) UPDATED 2009-05-26
A survey of swine flu patients suggests that obesity may be as much of a risk factor for flu complications as asthma, diabetes, heart disease, and pregnancy. The survey found that two thirds of California's hospitalized swine flu patients had an underlying medical condition, and researchers noted that many of them were obese. Experts say the problem could be that obesity prevents people from breathing deeply--a factor that also puts women in the third trimester of pregnancy at risk. One of the epidemiologists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says scientists are "looking into" the possibility that obese people should be added to the list of other high-risk groups if a swine flu vaccine becomes available.  Read full story >
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