SUNDAY JUNE 22, 2008 (foodconsumer.org) -- As of June 9, 2008, West Nile infection in birds and animals such as horses and mosquitoes has been reported this year in Alabama, California, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, South Carolina, Texas, and Utah, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The viral infection was also found in 8 people in the Maricopa County (1) in Arizona; Forrest County (1), Lincoln County (1), and Madison County       (1) in Mississippi; Pittsburg County (1) in Oklahoma;  Shelby County (1) in Tennessee and Denton County (1) and Montgomery County (1) in Texas, according to U.S. Geological Survey.

The real numbers could be much higher because there is a delay for the local health departments to report the cases to the federal agencies.

Last year in the United States, a total of 2630 human cases of West Nile were reported.

Up to 20 percent of the people who become infected have symptoms such as fever, headache, and body aches, nausea, vomiting, and sometimes swollen lymph glands or a skin rash on the chest, stomach and back, according to the CDC.   The symptoms go away in a few days. The rest 80 percent of the people who are infected do not experience any symptoms.

People get West Nile mostly through a bite of infected mosquito.   To avoid the virus, people should avoid being bitten by mosquitoes.