In early April, online discourse about the ongoing bird flu (H5N1) outbreak rose sharply following the first recorded case of a human contracting the virus from a cow. Reports of the virus being detected in cow’s milk have kept the outbreak in the news and social media conversations. Much of the content is focused on information sharing and concern about the growing outbreak. However, the topic has also drawn anti-vaccine ire, including conspiracy theories about global health entities and the upcoming election, false claims that bird flu is “100 times worse than the COVID-19 pandemic,” and general opposition to bird flu vaccines and outbreak protections.
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The scale of this discourse increases the risk. At the same time, the current risk of bird flu infection in humans is relatively low. Filling information gaps and answering questions from the concerned public is recommended. Prebunking messaging may explain that bird flu is a real disease that has been recognized since the 1800s. The current bird flu outbreak began in January 2022. Messaging may also emphasize that recent coverage and concern are due to the increased spread and transmission of the virus between mammals, especially cattle. H5N1 primarily affects birds, and transmission to and between mammals, including humans, is quite rare. While bird flu has a higher reported mortality rate than COVID-19, there is no evidence to support the “100 times worse” claim, which appears to have been hyperbole to emphasize the potential danger of the disease if it suddenly became a threat to humans. Health officials who have tracked bird flu for decades say that the risk to humans remains low. Emphasizing that U.S. health officials say the U.S. food supply remains safe from bird flu is recommended, as is highlighting that milk from grocery stores is still safe to drink. The FDA approved the first H5N1 vaccine in 2007, a decade after the first human outbreak in Hong Kong. Several avian flu vaccines have been licensed since, including a vaccine approved for those at high risk of exposure in 2020. The United States having a stockpile of these vaccines is an example of pandemic preparedness. Fact Checking Source(s): CDC, Politifact
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