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BIRD
FLU: POSSIBLE EFFECT ON YOUR INVESTMENTS
by Chris
Ciovacco
March 30, 2006
If you are concerned about how bird flu might affect the stock market or
your investments, you should take a moment to listen to a March 23, 2006
interview with Dr. Paul Offit, chief of infectious diseases at
Children's Hospital in Philadelphia. In the interview, the doctor,
citing the results of a study published in a magazine named Nature (www.nature.com),
states that the current bird flu virus gets imbedded deep in the lungs
of infected humans. Humans sneeze and cough from much higher levels in
the lungs making it remote that the disease would spread from human to
human. Dr. Offit states that the 1957 flu pandemic that began in Hong
Kong occurred because the virus was spread from human to human, which is
not the case in the current situation. The current avian bird flu is
known as a H5 virus. H5 viruses have been around for over 100 years and
have never caused a pandemic.
Dr. Offit goes on to
say that he believes that the current focus on bird flu stems from the
fear of future pandemics (not the current avian bird flu). As most of us
are aware, experts agree that it is only a matter of time before the
next pandemic strikes, but it is remote that we are at that point today.
Our hope is that the current coverage will help us prepare for the day
when we do have to deal with an extremely serious pandemic.
From an investment
perspective, we will continue to closely monitor the current situation.
In the unlikely event that the current avian bird flu does mutate into a
more dangerous virus, have contingency plans in place, which will allow
you to adjust your investments in a timely manner. We suggest that all
investors monitor the situation.
You can listen to the
NPR interview with Dr. Offit via the link below:
Study:
Human to Human Bird Flu Transmission Rare
© 2006 Chris Ciovacco
Editorial
Archive
CONTACT
INFORMATION
Chris
Ciovacco, CIO
Ciovacco
Capital Management, LLC
Atlanta, GA USA
Email l Website
The
opinions of FSU contributors do not necessarily reflect those of
Financial Sense.
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