Indigenous at 'higher risk' of swine flu

By Rachael Brown for The World Today Indigenous Australians may be more susceptible to swine flu, compounding the many health problems they already face, according to new medical research. The medical journal, The Lancet, reports the flu strain could have a potentially catastrophic effect. An Aboriginal man from central Australia was the first of the country's 10 deaths so far. In Victoria, where the outbreak began, a respected doctor says the state's health system has only been spared from paralysis because of the strain's predominantly mild nature. Professor Michael Gracey is a medical adviser to the Aboriginal-run organisation, Unity of First People of Australia. His journal article in The Lancet says the tidal wave of lifestyle diseases have left Indigenous populations vulnerable. "Their general poor standard of health... [read full story]                    

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