Swine Flu is a respiratory disease caused by viruses that infect the respiratory tract of pigs. In some cases, people develop Swine Flu when they are in close contact with pigs, such as farmers and pork processors.

What causes Swine Flu?

Swine Flu is contagious and spreads the same way as seasonal flu. When infected people cough or sneeze, they release tiny droplets containing the virus into the air. If you come in contact with these droplets or touch surfaces recently touched by an infected person, you can catch Swine Flu.

Despite the name, you cannot catch Swine Flu from eating bacon, ham, or other pork products.

The cause of the 2009 Swine Flu outbreak was an influenza A virus called H1N1. Since then, small outbreaks have occurred. In 2011, a new swine flu virus was detected, and another mutated strain of H1N1 was recently reported in India.

India recorded over 31,156 positive cases and 1,841 deaths till March 2015.

What are the symptoms of Swine Flu?

People with Swine Flu can be contagious a day before symptoms appear and up to 7 days after falling sick. Children may remain contagious for up to 10 days.

Most symptoms are similar to seasonal flu. They include:

cough
fever
sore throat
stuffy or runny nose
body aches
headache
chills
fatigue