Another year, another Ebola outbreak season is upon us. The question is, should first-world preppers be concerned about the latest Ebola outbreak news?
Let’s cut to the chase… is this Ebola outbreak something we need to worry about?
At this point in time? No, this ebola outbreak is not something we should be worried about… unless something changes.
Ebola is a stone-cold killer, it’s as virulent as any disease kicking around these days, but we do have one thing going for us… unless we are doing medical care of somebody who is sick with the disease and not using proper techniques, we are at no risk of contracting the disease.
It’s spread by bodily fluids, not though the air. When it comes to infectious diseases, that’s a big deal. Unless it mutates into an air-transmitted form (it aresolizes) then proper first-world isolation techniques should work, even if it does hop the pond on us.
Yes, I know a health-care worker caught Ebola in the USA during the last big outbreak, but that was due to improper isolation technique by the health care provider. Even still, it was only one person affected.
Here’s a podcast we did talking about these issues and other infectious diseases:
Haven’t we been here before?
Last year, 3BY editor Paranoid Prepper wrote an excellent article about Ebola and gave several good take-aways. I recommend everybody check it out, he makes some great observations.
So what’s left to say?
Let’s talk about what’s currently going on in the latest Ebola outbreak, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
Here’s a synopsis of the current Ebola outbreak situation according to the CDC:
“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is working closely with the Ministry of Health and Population of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and multiple partners as they investigate an outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in the Bikoro region of Equateur Province in the northwestern part of the country. The DRC government declared the outbreak on May 8 after two cases were confirmed by laboratory testing at the Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale in Kinshasa.”
With an outbreak like this, local governments turn to the CDC who has resources to get medical support & personnel on site quickly, including laboratory materials, logistical and communications assistance.
So right now, all the headlines are about two confirmed cases. There of course may be many more, but for right now it’s pretty isolated.
The news media makes money by scaring people
Sad but true, scaring viewers/readers is a time-tested way to make money for the media. This doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t be concerned about infectious diseases… not at all… it just means that we need to understand what’s going on when we hear scary stories or read about them on the internet.
It sounds cynical, but who profits from the spread of the Ebola news?
Think about it.
So… let’s talk about the actual disease for a minute, and what treatments are available
Ebola is a really tough disease, because not only is it horrible and deadly, it’s also one that (at least in Africa) is very stigmatized. People try to keep infection hidden, which leads to a much worse problem quickly as more people who have been improperly caring for (and burying victims) become infected.
Here’s a really technical look at exactly what this virus is. Good luck with reading that.
Fortunately, here at 3BY we happen to have an on-staff pathophysiologist who actually speaks and writes in plain English, not gobbledygook.
Without further delay, I turn it over to Spice
Again, what is Ebola, but this time in English?
Ebola’s a virus, which means it’s a.little package of genetic material in a protein shell. It can get into human (or more often, fruit bat or monkey) cells and direct those cells to pump out new copies of the virus. Our immune systems attack Ebola-infected cells and kill them (which is a rightful immune system job), but do so so aggressively that the immune system reaction can kill the person (oopsie!)
Outbreaks most often start when people get transmission from fruit bats, which harbor Ebola virus but don’t get sick of it. Some outbreaks have come from people handling and/or eating infected monkeys or chimpanzees. One infected human can pass it to another in body fluids (blood, vomit, diarrhea, spit, and such). Transmission is usually to health care workers, family members who provide nursing, family members preparing a body for its funeral, or another patient at the same hospital who uses an unsterilized needle used earlier on the Ebola patient. No cases of airborne or casual transmission have been observed.
So, no need to worry about Ebola and other infectious diseases, right?
Not so fast, dear readers, not so fast.
We may not need to lose any sleep over Ebola, but that doesn’t mean should skip prepping for infectious diseases.
In the podcast above, we talk about other infectious diseases and how to protect ourselves. We’ve covered some of this in previous articles, but this one’s a good place to start looking at things to do to protect yourself.
PrepperMed 101: How to Not Be a Casualty in the Next Great Flu Epidemic
Rest assured, we will have many, many more articles about how to protect yourself not only by buying isolation clothing, masks, etc. but also (and even more importantly) how to use them properly.
Until then, be safe and rest easy. Ebola’s not gonna come get you.
Unless, of course, something changes.