Avian flu has yet to acquire the ability to pass easily from human to human.

But, despite that fact, many government and health officials are heightening public panic: Sound the alarm. Prepare for your doom. The U.S. is unprepared to fight the H5N1 strain of the virus, should it reach the U.S.

However, avian flu is still just that - a bird virus.

What are the psychological implications of instilling fear in a nation that is already jolted by the stress of everyday life? Is it good policy to tell Americans that a disaster is inevitable, soon to land in a neighborhood near you?

Well, that depends on how Americans use what's being presented to them, according to Psychiatrist Russell J. Ricci, M.D., a member of myDNA's Medical Advisory Board (MAB).

"Government officials and private pundits walk a psychological tight rope. A flu pandemic could kill millions, but do we want to know, worry and talk about this?" asks Ricci.

After all, the information presented to the public is grim, at best. Take comments by co-chairman of the Senate's Rural Health Caucus, U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA).

At the recent conference, "Mobilizing to Fight an Avian Flu Pandemic," at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C., Harkin criticized the President George W. Bush Administration's efforts to prevent the spread of the virus and suggested that the weakest link in the plan is state and local preparedness.

"Right now, hospital emergency rooms across the U.S. would be overwhelmed in the face of a full-fledged pandemic," Harkin, who helped to draft the American Disabilities Act of 1990, told the full-capacity crowd.

"We have a public health infrastructure with local hospitals at the frontline that has trouble coping with a busy Saturday night," he said.

No wonder Americans are hoarding what they believe to be their best - and only defense - against the pandemic: oseltamivir (Tamiflu) and zanamivir (Relenza).

Doctors across the country already report an inability to acquire the medicine.

"Avian flu hysteria continues to affect consumer purchases. The stockpiling of Tamiflu by individuals, I am embarrassed to admit - even my own patients - has resulted in shortages of Tamiflu," says Steven Lamm, M.D., also a member of myDNA's MAB.

But in reality, these panicked stockpilers are doing more harm than good.

These drugs, in advance of a pandemic, may divert the limited supplies of these medications from people who need them, health experts say.

In an effort to control the hoarding, many health care centers - including the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. - have pre-emptively restricted prescribing oseltamivir (Tamiflu), limiting it to patients with clear indications for treatment of probable influenza or its prevention.

So what then - besides run in fear - can Americans do?

Currently, there is no commercially available vaccine to protect humans against the H5N1 strain that is being seen in Asia and Europe. Studies to test a vaccine for protecting humans against the H5N1 strain began in April 2005, and a series of clinical trials is under way; but no vaccine has been approved as an effective defense to date, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

The Mayo Clinic says that the best defense against the avian flu is to take immediate action. Here are a few simple, practical tips the clinic offers:

• Travelers: Those visiting countries where avian influenza is endemic in bird populations should avoid contact with poultry. They should also avoid contact with surfaces that may have been contaminated by poultry, their feces or secretions. This includes visits to poultry farms, wet markets, places that sell live birds, and where wild birds congregate.
• Diners: Consumption of uncooked poultry or poultry products from contaminated countries should be avoided. Freezing and refrigeration do not substantially reduce the concentration or virulence of these viruses in meat; thus, if one must, following safe food-handling procedures is essential.

The Mayo Clinic also emphasizes that there is no evidence whatsoever that domestic poultry products purchased in North America pose any risk. However, all foods of avian origin - eggs and meat - must be cooked well (since the avian influenza virus is rapidly killed by heat).

When cooking or handling poultry, experts say to remember to:

• Separate raw meat from cooked or ready-to-eat foods.
• Do not use same chopping board or knife.
• Do not place cooked meat back on same surface it was on before cooking.
• Do not use raw or soft-boiled eggs in food preparations that will not subsequently be cooked.
• Wash hands thoroughly with soap and water after handling frozen or thawed poultry.
• Wash or disinfect surfaces and utensils that have been in contact with raw poultry.
• Cook food thoroughly. (Ensure that poultry meat reaches 158 degrees or that the meat is no longer pink. Eggs should not be runny.)

These precautions may be especially important for persons who hunt and eat wild waterfowl, health officials say.

Evidence suggests that the H5N1 avian influenza strain is being spread beyond Asia by migratory water birds - especially ducks. It is possible that the deadly strain will be detected in North American birds before long, spreading from Siberia via flyways through Alaska and Canada. And, wild ducks or geese are likely to be the first North American birds to be infected.

Ricci says times like these can be stressful for people, so it is important to follow the guidelines suggested by health experts.

"While endless fear and talk will not save lives, personal action can help," he says.

Staying calm, officials say, is also good advice, for the avian flu hasn't yet hit the U.S.

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