Influenza

'Influenza Sorbet' Takes on Chicken Soup

Step aside, chicken soup. An Ohio-based ice cream maker has a sorbet to help with flu symptoms, ABC News reports. Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams' Influenza Sorbet contains honey, ginger, cayenne pepper and orange and lemon juice. Oh, and Maker's Mark bourbon. "My mother and grandmother made something ... More >>

Flu Season Comes To Los Angeles, Blindsides Rest Of America

We survived the end of the world, the worst economy since the Great Depression, and the fiscal cliff. And you thought we were out of the woods? Nope. Flu season is your next big obsession if you're a pessimistic Debbie Downer who dwells on a dark future. Emergency room visits for this bug are expl ... More >>

Charles B. Hensley, SoCal Inventor of Zicam, Arrested For Allegedly Selling Fake Bird Flu Remedy

​The SoCal inventor of zinc-based Zicam cold treatment has been charged with importing and distributing an unapproved treatment for bird flu, the U.S. Attorney's Office in L.A. announced today. Charles B. Hensley was due in federal court downtown today to face the music. (What, the Zicam cash ... More >>

Flu Season: Three Dead In L.A. County, 50 Infected In Outbreak At A Local School

Tristen.PeltonGet your shot on.​The sun is shining and winter seems kind in L.A. this week, but not beneath the surface. Three people have died of influenza in the last two weeks, the county reports, marking the first fatalities of the 2010-11 flu season. Don't panic, but ... The county also ... More >>

Plate Spinning: Listings From the Past Week

Some food for thought from local, national and international news sources from this past week: --Honey, I'm home (indefinitely). Let's eat in. [LAT] -- Flu shot line at Walgreens too long? Head to the bar! [NYT] -- Annual turkey-shaped Jell-O mold contest at David Byrne's studio. [New Yorker] ... More >>

Mr. Fielding, Tear Down This Wall

The folks at Neon Tommy, the USC School of Communication and Journalism publication, have written an open letter to Dr. Jonathan Fielding, the county's director of public health, asking him to be more forthcoming about how the county is dealing with the 57-death swine flu outbreak here. So far they' ... More >>

Swine Flu Deaths Covered Up In California

Neon Tommy, the USC Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism publication, has been rebuffed by several counties in California in its attempt to obtain records of swine flu deaths.Neon Tommy​ Only after some persistence did Los Angeles County allow the USC journalists to take a peek ... More >>

Your Month in Review: October Restaurant Openings

It seems that nearly as many restaurants opened as reopened in the city of Los Angeles last month. Some restaurants got makeovers, some changed hands, and others took risks. Take the pork-themed Flying Pig Truck that set out on the streets of Los Angeles in the midst of the Swine Flu scare. On the t ... More >>

California Nurses' Strike Threat: Is It Really About Swine Flu?

California nurses have threatened a major walk-out on Oct. 30. Judging by the headlines in the press -- "Nurses Plan Strike Over Swine Flu Conditions at Hospitals," says the L.A. Times -- you'd almost believe that 16,000 nurses' biggest concern is that they might be infected with H1N1.Score one for ... More >>

'Valley-wide Outbreak' Of H1N1 Happening Now

Hospitals in the San Fernando Valley are experiencing a spike in patients reporting H1N1 "swine" flu symptoms, leading one administrator to call it a "Valley-wide outbreak" of the virus. Three Providence hospitals in the valley -- Holy Cross, Tarzana and Saint Joseph -- are reporting a 10 percent i ... More >>

Swine Flu Outbreak at Pitchess Jail

The L.A. County Sheriff's Department has confirmed there are 20 cases of swine flu among prisoners at the Pitchess Detention Center in Castaic. According to Associated Press, LASD spokesman Steve Whitmore said Wednesday that the first flu case was confirmed two weeks ago at the Men's Central Jail ... More >>

Morning Sixpack: A News Roundup

Rabbinical Board Breaks Barriers Southern California's Board of Rabbis broke with tradition by selecting a woman and a lesbian as president. West Hollywood Rabbi Denise Eger is the first in both categories in the board's 72-year history. L.A. Times, Jewish JournalGood News But Not Great Cal State No ... More >>

Morning Sixpack: A News Roundup

Taco Slay Arrests Two men and a woman have been arrested in connection with a Wednesday night rifle-shooting at a Lennox taco truck that left one man dead and five other people wounded, including two boys. Associated PressMission Accomplished? Three brothers from Hong Kong hoped their plans to expan ... More >>

Swine Flu Notes: Where's the Pork?

We're one week into L.A.'s chapter of the swine flu pandemic/panic and already people are asking, "Where's the pork?" Raised on bio-disaster movies and braced for the worst upon hearing of Mexico's initial death toll, Angelenos were expecting (not, I should stress, hoping) to see bodies in the stree ... More >>

Swine Flu Notes: State's Top Doc Reports

Responding to media questions about the swine flu epidemic, Dr. Mark Horton, the director of the California Department of Public Health, made several statements at a just-concluded teleconference. Shortly before Horton's Q&A, CDPH deputy director Dr. Gil Chavez announced that as of this afternoo ... More >>

Swine Flu: One U.S. Death, One Attempt to Change Flu's Name

As of 8 a.m. this morning one U.S. death, in Texas, has been attributed to the swine flu outbreak. The fatality was a Mexican toddler whose family was visiting the state. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, 14 Californians are confirmed as being stricken by SF, while New York City lea ... More >>

Going Viral (and Vile) About Swine Flu and Immigration

"Make no mistake about it: Illegal aliens are the carriers of the new strain of human-swine avian flu from Mexico." These words, spoken in the tremulous, outraged voice of California radio jock Michael Savage, are typical of the "debate" that is already inflaming the airwaves and blogosphere in the ... More >>

Outbreak: Swine Flu Update

UPDATE: The L.A. County Coroner's Office is beginning to rule out swine flu as the cause of the Orange County man's death (see below), while announcing that swine flu is not suspected in the case of the Long Beach victim. Autopsies and final rulings are still pending. The L.A. Times reports that cou ... More >>

When Pigs Fly or Swine Flu: L.A. Remains Safe

From L.A. Observed's observation deck, Kevin Roderick says there's no need for Angelenos to panic about a certain pandemic that may be migrating from south of the border. He notes that doctors are monitoring two local flu clusters that don't seem to be part of anything other than the usual seasonal ... More >>

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The Terrorists Within

Be afraid, be very afraid

Season's Greetings

Next Time, It Might Kill You

The coming flu pandemic