Why Ebola Is Not The Spanish Flu

Ebola-mania is sweeping the nation right now as more and more cases are discovered in Africa those two people were diagnosed in Texas.  This has caused many god fearing Americans to liken those two cases of Ebola the Ebola outbreak to everything from Zombie Plague to Bubonic Plague.  And even, most notably, to the Spanish Flu Pandemic of 1918. 
 
To that I say one thing:  No.  No. Just no.  Those two cases of Ebola in Texas are not the Spanish flu.  And here's why:

 
The Spanish Flu Pandemic of 1918-1919 was a global disaster.  As World War I began winding down and soldiers starting returning to their countries of origin, the stage was set for virus transmission on a scale the world hadn't really seen before.  The Spanish Flu killed between 10%-20% of those that were infected, usually within hours of first showing symptoms.  What made the Spanish Flu especially terrifying is that it was transmitted by "breathing infected air"-- which meant that literally anyone could become infected super easily.  The particular strain of the Spanish Flu (H1N1... We think) was also especially deadly to people in the prime of life-- between 20 and 40 years old-- contrary to most strains, which are particularly deadly to the elderly and infants. 
 
When all was said and done, between 30-50 million people were dead between the two waves of flu that struck during this time.  In the United States alone over 675,000 died-- for context, World War I killed a tenth of that.  In fact, so many people died that the average life span was lowered by 10 years in the wake of the flu. 
 
I'm trying to keep this brief, so just a quick extra note here:  H1N1 was probably not Spanish.  And there's a chance that it wasn't even H1N1-- the strain was recently reconstructed from the tissue of a dead soldier (how fucking bad ass is that?!) and is currently being genetically analyzed.  The reason it's called "Spanish" is because many of the earliest casualties occurred in Spain, however, it's more likely that the strain originated in China and then was passed along trade routes, on which Spain was a huge stop over. 


 

Ebola became a buzzword in the States in September.  Since that fateful day that a young Liberian man was admitted to a Texas hospital with severe diarrhea and vomiting, two young nurses that were treating him have been diagnosed with the disease.  Ebola is a virus that causes Ebola Haemorrhagic Fever.  It is spread via direct contact with infected bodily fluids such as blood, urine, feces, breast milk... You know... Fluidy things.  IT IS NOT SPREAD BY "INFECTED AIR".  I feel like that needs to be in all caps because somehow my sister some people have gotten under the impression that Ebola is airborne.  While airborne Ebola is quite possibly the tenth plague of the Apocalypse, the thought of which I would assume scares the everliving shit out of the good people at the CDC, it is not a thing at this point. 
 
Airborne Ebola.  Not a thing. 
 
However, while the death toll in the US is small, Ebola has hit West Africa like it owes it money.  It began in 2013 in Guinea and has spread quickly killing nearly ten thousand people in its wake.  There are four viruses classified as "Ebolavirus" and, unfortunately for the people of West Africa, the one devastating their homeland currently is the most deadly form of the virus.  Also unfortunate is that the drugs that can be used to treat Ebola (nearly a dozen, none of which are FDA approved in the US) aren't available in Africa.  There is a process for treatment in place, however, which does greatly improve the odds of survival. 

 
So Ebola is not the Spanish Flu.  Ebola is much more difficult to transmit, which means a seriously lower number of people are actually at risk for infection.  The Ebola outbreak started nearly a year ago and we've seen thousands of tragic deaths in West Africa, however, by this point in the Spanish Flu Pandemic millions had been killed world wide.  It's just a different animal all together.   I'm not minimizing the Ebola outbreak here-- it's a horrific disease that should be taken seriously-- the fatality rate in Africa is nearly fifty percent.  But the Spanish Flu it is not. 
 
I, for one, am not worrying too much about catching Ebola, as I have recently stopped my habit of rolling in the blood and vomit of others in the wake of the outbreak; however, for fuck's sake could we get one of those DOZEN antibiotics pushed through the FDA please? 

For more info on the Spanish Flu Pandemic see the following:
https://virus.stanford.edu/uda/
http://www.flu.gov/pandemic/history/1918/index.html  (this one is interactive!)

For more info on the Ebola outbreak check out the websites for the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO), as they have the most up to date info, and the least bias.