So what can I do about bird flu?

That's the million-dollar question, isn't it? Basically, what you can do is prevention. You can avoid catching it, and you can avoid spreading it.

First of all, I want to emphasize that you don't have to worry about bird flu at all until it's a pandemic - and believe me, you'll know when that happens. The first thing to do in a flu pandemic is, of course, to not panic. Look up information with the CDC (if you're American), PandemicFlu.gov (also American), or the WHO. They are the authorities on this stuff.

So let's say there is a pandemic. There are a couple things not to do: don't swamp the hospitals, don't freak out about the lack of an instant cure, don't listen to the tinhats telling you the world is ending.

Next, the things you definitely need to do: stay away from crowds. Work, school, whatever - being around lots of people is going to put you at risk. We've heard this one before, but wash your hands a lot. You can use alcohol-based sanitizers like Purell, too. If you do have to be around people, wear a mask - but not just any mask! You actually want a respirator, not a facemask. (Those surgical facemasks you see on TV won't filter out viruses.) You'll want an N95 rating on your respirator, which means that it filters out teeny tiny particles like mold spores and viruses. The U.S. Health Department has a whole page on what kinds of masks are the right kind. And yes, it really does matter. Wearing a loose-fitting facemask in a pandemic would be like wearing a tin-foil hat in a thunderstorm: you're just asking for trouble.

If you have to care for a sick person, your chances of catching the flu skyrocket. The CDC recommends some tough measures: wearing gloves, gown, goggles, and respirator around the sick person. Remember, the best thing to do is not catch the bird flu in the first place.