Influenza is a common respiratory illness caused by a virus. The disease spreads quickly and often appears suddenly with symptoms such as fever, aches, dry cough, fatigue, etc. Depending on the condition of each person, the symptoms can last from a few days to a few weeks. Let’s explore how to treat the flu effectively in this article!
The time from when the flu virus enters the body until the onset of illness is 2 days. As soon as the first manifestation of the flu is detected, the patient needs immediate treatment to avoid dangerous complications. To date, influenza is a disease for which there is a very effective vaccine.
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Do I need to see a doctor if I have the flu?
In most cases, the flu can go away on its own after taking medication as recommended by the doctor, adjusting the lifestyle, and eating. However, if the following signs of worsening appear, the patient needs to Immediately go to the nearest medical center for timely examination and treatment of influenza, avoiding dangerous complications.
In adults
- The temperature exceeds 38 degrees Celsius
- Persistent fever
- Chest pain, shortness of breath, wheezing
- Sore throat, dizziness
In children
- The temperature exceeds 38 degrees Celsius
- Children are anorexic, fussy
- High and prolonged fever
- Cold symptoms do not go away but become more severe
- Ear pain, wheezing
Most cases of influenza do not cause many serious complications, patients can maintain a normal life. However, the symptoms of the disease can cause discomfort and prolonged fatigue for the patient. Proper treatment can help reduce uncomfortable symptoms quickly, and patients recover faster.
Take flu medicine
Use flu medicine when you want quick relief from flu symptoms or when your condition worsens with home flu treatment. However, when using antibiotics that relieve pain or reduce inflammation can often cause unwanted side effects on some other organs. Therefore, the patient should be prescribed medication by the doctor before using any medicine.
Some common home remedies for flu include Paracetamol, Aspirin, Codeine, Ambroxol, Natribenzoate, Diphenhydramine, Ibuprofen, Phenylephrine, Fexofenadine, and Loratadine.
Let your body rest
During home flu treatment, patients should minimize the amount of heavy work or have to go outdoors a lot. Instead, take time to rest and relax so that the condition improves.
Pay attention to your body. If you feel tired and don’t want to exercise, don’t overdo it. Don’t try to tackle everyday tasks when flu symptoms are severe. Rest is also an effective way to support the body to fight infection.
Besides, don’t stay up too late, get enough sleep. The right sleep cycle is the “key” for the immune system to work better. Get 8 hours of sleep each night, both when you’re sick and when you’re healthy.
Increase the humidity of the surrounding environment
Influenza viruses last longer in dry air. This makes the virus spread faster and easier. Especially in the cold season, cold outdoor temperatures reduce the humidity in the air. Indoor air can be dry due to the use of heating or air conditioning systems.
Using a humidifier to add extra humidity in your home and workplace, helping to reduce airborne flu viruses is an effective home remedy for flu. In addition, humid air also helps patients reduce symptoms of stuffy nose and sore throat. In case you don’t have a humidifier at home, you can turn on the shower with hot water and sit in the bathroom to breathe the air for a few minutes.
Steam inhalation to cure flu at home
If you want to clear the airway, in addition to taking medicine, you can boil a pot of boiling water to inhale.
Boil water, bring it to a cool place, cover your head with a towel, close your eyes and lean forward to let the steam rise to your face. Sit still and breathe deeply for 30 seconds. After the hot water has cooled down, take a quick shower and then dry off, put on clothes, cover with a blanket, and rest.
You can apply the fumigation method to increase efficiency, with the following ingredients: Bamboo leaves, lemongrass leaves, grapefruit leaves, perilla, wormwood, basil, and mint every 10-20g or a big handful.
Bamboo leaves have the effect of cooling, dissipating phlegm, and disinfecting; Lemongrass has the effect of warming the abdomen, disinfecting, decontaminating, and dissolving phlegm; pomelo leaves relieve stomach flu, cough, fever, and headache; Frankincense for colds, fever, headache, sweating; perilla area except for welding; Peppermint antiseptic, anti-inflammatory.
Treat the flu with a warm water
A hot shower helps replenish steam, moisturize, and clears the nose, making breathing easier. Do not take a cold shower as it will cause the body temperature to drop suddenly, making the condition worse. Note: Do not bathe if your body temperature is unstable or dizzy. If you feel cold, increase the temperature of the water.
Gargle and clean your nose with salt water
Dilute salt water has a high bactericidal and antiseptic effect. Gargling with salt water when you have the flu also helps to remove mucus that accumulates in the back of the throat, especially when doing a back-and-neck gargle. Consistently gargling with salt water for several days in a row helps to quickly reduce symptoms of sore throat, throat irritation, and throat infection.
Apply essential oils
Some essential oils can help you fight certain viruses and bacteria that contribute to effective home remedies for the flu. One study found that tea tree oil can help you fight the flu virus by slowing or stopping the virus’s rate of replication. Tea tree oil works best when taken within the first 2 hours after infection.
Tea tree oil can be mixed into liquid hand soap when washing hands or mixed into the lotion you are using.
In addition to tea tree oil, other plant and herbal essential oils that can act as natural antibiotics and antivirals, include cinnamon oil, menthol, eucalyptus oil, geranium oil, and eucalyptus oil. lemon, thyme oil, and oregano oil.
Use essential oils only as directed. Most essential oils can be used on the skin after being mixed with oils like almond or olive oil. You can also add fresh, dried herbs and spices to foods for similar benefits.
Diffusing essential oils into the air with a diffuser can help fight certain viruses and bacteria. Note that aromatherapy can affect children, pregnant women, and pets.
Drink lots of water to cure the flu
The flu can cause dehydration if accompanied by vomiting and diarrhea. Therefore, make sure to stay hydrated with water, juice, or electrolyte-fortified drinks. Herbal tea with honey can soothe a sore throat.
Drinks containing caffeine should be avoided because they have a diuretic effect, causing the body to lose more water. If you feel nauseous, you should drink water in small sips. Should observe the color of urine, when the urine is light yellow or almost colorless, it means that the body is sufficiently hydrated.
Add zinc-rich foods to your diet
Zinc may shorten the duration of a cold or flu. The study was carried out by Assoc. The scientists found that compared with a placebo, people taking zinc lozenges or nasal sprays could prevent five new respiratory infections in 100 people a month, reducing the risk of more severe symptoms.
Some zinc-rich foods include:
Meats: typically beef, lamb, pork, etc. are excellent sources of zinc. A 100-gram serving of raw ground beef contains 4.8 mg of zinc, which is 44% of the daily value. In addition, this amount of meat also provides 176 calories, 20 grams of protein and 10 grams of fat, and many other important nutrients;
Shellfish: High in zinc, low in calories, and healthy. However, if you are pregnant make sure shellfish is fully cooked to minimize the risk of food poisoning.
Legumes: such as chickpeas and lentils contain significant amounts of zinc. However, beans contain phytates that inhibit the absorption of zinc and other minerals, so zinc from legumes is not as well absorbed as zinc from animals.
Nuts: High in zinc, fiber, healthy fats, vitamins, and minerals. Nuts can be mentioned such as pumpkin seeds, sesame, flax seeds, peanuts, cashews, and almonds.
Eggs: contain a moderate amount of zinc to help you reach your daily goals. Not only zinc, but eggs also contain many vitamins and minerals such as B vitamins, selenium, choline, etc.
Avoid using stimulants such as tobacco, beer, alcohol
When you have the flu, you need to change your daily habits, including your diet. In particular, beer and wine are the drinks that should be avoided. Specifically, alcohol in beer and wine can cause dehydration of the body, thereby making symptoms of nasal congestion and sore throat worse. In particular, people with flu absolutely do not drink alcohol while having a fever.
In addition, alcohol can weaken the immune system. In particular, when having a cold, the body’s immune system has become weakened, and drinking alcoholic beverages such as beer and wine makes it more difficult for the patient’s body to recover than usual. Besides, alcoholic beverages can cause long-term damage to the liver and kidneys, threatening the patient’s health.
On the other hand, people with the flu should not drink alcohol because of its interaction with the medications they are taking. Some drugs that interact with alcohol include ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil), naproxen (Aleve), aspirin, acetaminophen (Tylenol), and cough syrups such as Robitussin A-C, Robitussin Cough or azithromycin (Azomax, Zithromax). These are drugs that, when combined with alcohol, can cause dizziness, drowsiness, headache, nausea, and vomiting.
Final thought
Prolonged flu makes you feel tired and lower your performance, make sure you follow the instructions mentioned above to treat the flu effectively as well as maintain your overall health.
Top News hopes this article provides you with helpful methods to cure the flu fastly and effectively!
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