Mitch Gann’s

A web site devoted to the global travel industry claims that middle-aged adults are ” less susceptible to the H1N1 influenza strain” (R.O.A.R: Baby boomers and the swine flu).  Three reasons are offered:

1. The middle-aged have weaker immune systems that won’t  turn against their own bodies in the “cytokine storm” sometimes produced by this type of virus.
2. The middle-aged lead “more settled lives, enjoying home-life, rather than crowding into trendy bars night after night . . . .”
3. The middle-aged tend to play it safe, no longer feeling invincible as the young do.

I love the idea that my wheezing excuse for an immune system and boring life-style give me a survival advantage.  Maybe.   But, so far, the young seem to be handling the 2009 H1N1 virus much better than they did the 1918 version.  No cytokine storms yet, at least outside of Mexico, and who knows what the real story is down there?  Most of this epidemic could turn out to be the residue of poor medical reporting.