Washington, Apr 29 : Smokers interested in quitting the habit can now get some serious help from their iPhones - a new free application of the smart phone provides a live quitline coach and uses live text to advice on how to kick the butt.

Developed by The George Washington University's School of Public Health and Health Services (SPHHS) and the National Tobacco Cessation Collaborative (NTCC), "My QuitLine" app also provides evidence-based treatment for quitting.

Bangkok  - Lab tests conducted on a 42-year-old Thai woman who was quarantined after showing swine-flu-like symptoms have shown her free of the virus, hospital officials said Wednesday.

The woman, who had attended a seminar in Mexico from April 3 to 11, was admitted to hospital and put under quarantine Tuesday with a light fever, was found to be suffering from ordinary human flu, Chulalongkorn Hospital virus expert Dr Yong Phoosuwan told a press conference.

Like other Asian countries, Thailand has been swift to respond to the swine flu scare.

Mexico City - Mexican authorities corrected the number of people killed by swine flu from previously 20 to seven.

Miguel Angel Lezana, director of the national epidemiological and disease control centre, said late Tuesday the mutated H1N1 swine flu virus was confirmed to be responsible for seven deaths. The other 13 cases could not be confirmed yet.

Mexican authorities previously put the swine flu death toll at 20. Lezana said additional testing was conducted on recommendation of the the Geneva-based World Health Organization.

Taipei - The World Health Organization (WHO) has allowed Taiwan to attend its annual assembly as an observer, marking another score in Taipei's fight to end its international isolation, a Taiwan of

Singapore - Singapore stepped up measures to guard against the swine flu outbread and elevated the flu alert level from green to yellow after the World Health Organization decided to raise pandemic alert levels from phase 3 to 4.

"This is to brace ourselves to handle situations where there may be isolated imported cases but no sustained local transmission," the Ministry of Health said in statement late Tuesday night.

So far there are no human cases of swine flu in Singapore.

Hong Kong - Wealthy Asian travellers are considering flying by private jet to avoid the risk of swine flu exposure on commercial flights, a news report said Wednesday.

Private jet service Asia Jet has seen a 40-per-cent rise in inquiries about its flights, at a cost of 5,900 US dollars an hour, since the swine flu scare spread Monday to Asia, the South China Morning Post reported.

Enquiries had come from across the region for the Hong Kong-based company's fleet of Gulfstream jets, said chief executive Justin Lee Firestone.