Influenza: how not to get sick and how to be treated

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

In connection with the next traditional visit of the influenza epidemic, we remind you how to live so that the infection does not bother, and how to drive it out if you fail to protect yourself.

This year we are again frightened by the swine flu, which is especially dangerous and insidious. But you and I, ordinary patients, absolutely do not care what kind of flu came this time: swine or fish flu. Prevention measures and treatments are the same for any flu.

What to defend against

Influenza is an acute infectious disease caused by a virus. It is transmitted from person to person, spreads very quickly. The virus mutates every year and comes to us with a new epidemic.

The first symptoms appear within one to two days.

• The temperature rises quickly and suddenly.
• The head hurts badly.
• Eyes hurt in bright light.
• Aches and pains appear in muscles and joints.
• Later, there is a cough, a runny nose.

Sometimes these symptoms are accompanied by gastrointestinal upset, chest pain, shortness of breath, and dizziness.

Influenza is dangerous if it is severe and causes complications. At risk are young children, the elderly, pregnant women and those with chronic illnesses.

There is no cure for the flu. The most we can do is try not to get infected and prepare the body so that the disease passes in a mild form.

How to protect yourself from the flu

Influenza is extremely contagious, meaning it is easy to get infected with it. Since during an epidemic we cannot sit at home without communicating with people, even with a medical mask on our face, the risk of catching the virus is very high.

In addition to complete isolation, there is only one protection against influenza - this is vaccination.

But the vaccination must be done 2-3 weeks before the expected epidemic, so that the body has time to develop immunity.

Unfortunately, the vaccine will only protect against a specific virus. That is, you can still catch another ARVI (not flu). But, believe me, the usual "runny nose, cough, sore throat" are flowers compared to the flu.

The rest of the precautions are to keep contacts with patients to a minimum and to strengthen the body. This means that it is better to postpone trips to crowded places and travel in public transport, wear disposable masks, wash your hands as often as possible, clean and ventilate the premises.

Caring for the body consists in a healthy lifestyle, good nutrition, conditioning, good rest and sports. It is useless to buy drugs "to strengthen the immune system" in the pharmacy, the flu does not lend itself to vitamins.

If you get sick

Stopping the flu is like stopping a train. If you are late with the vaccination, no one can guarantee health. What if the flu has gotten to you?

Stay home.

On behalf of all who are still healthy, the Lifehacker's editorial staff very much asks all sick people not to go to work, not take the child to school, and not use public transport. Flu without bed rest is too dangerous for you and for those around you.

Be sure to call a doctor who will prescribe antiviral drugs for you and remind you of the regimen. If on the third or fourth day of illness you do not feel better, call the doctor again: you need to check whether a complication has joined the flu and whether the treatment needs to be changed.

What to take

We got to the fun part - medicines. There is a temptation to buy a miracle pill that will completely protect against any flu. And there is no need to look for advertising with such promises - it will find it itself.

Indeed, in the first hours of the disease, taking antiviral drugs helps to transfer the disease more easily. Here's what about these WHO drugs:

There are two classes of such drugs: adamantanes (amantadine and rimantadine) and influenza neuraminidase inhibitors (oseltamivir and zanamivir).

Translated from medical to human, this means that there are several drugs with the indicated active ingredients, and the doctor will definitely prescribe them for you.

To increase resistance to infections, local immunity modulators are used. They can be in the form of nasal sprays, lozenges, capsules. Pay attention to the composition. The active substance of such drugs is bacterial lysates. The doctor will also prescribe the funds in the required form.

An unimaginable amount of other funds (including widely advertised ones) are likely to help you spend your money. But it won't do anything with the flu.

Be careful with antipyretics. Firstly, do not rush to knock down the temperature if the thermometer showed 37, 3. Endure up to 38, 5 - until this threshold, the body fights viruses with the help of temperature without much harm to your condition. If the thermometer still reads more than necessary, use ibuprofen or paracetamol. But aspirin is better to postpone (especially for children and adolescents).

How to help yourself

Getting sick with the flu is hard and unpleasant, but you can help yourself to cope with your symptoms more easily.

• Drink more. The best drinks are herbal teas and dried fruit compote. And more - this is not one cup a day, but several large mugs. The liquid will help you withstand the rise in temperature, prevent nasal congestion, and soothe a sore throat.
• Ventilate. Airing is one of the ways to disinfect a room. And it will be easier for you to breathe fresh cool air.
• Maintain humidity. Optimum values of relative air humidity are 40-60%. With this indicator, it is easier to breathe, the mucous membranes of the nose and throat do not dry out, which means that they suffer less from the attack of the virus.
• Wet mop every day. In the first days of illness, you don't even want to move, but ask someone to help you with washing floors and wiping furniture. Wet cleaning helps maintain the correct microclimate.
• Get sick, if possible, in a separate room, and when communicating with people, wear a mask so as not to infect anyone. You need to eat and drink from separate dishes.

And remember that the flu is evolving at a tremendous rate. It is better to spend a few days and lie down at home while the body copes with the disease than to deal with complications in the hospital for several weeks.