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Authors: Joel Fuhrman
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with it.
We should all be appropriately fearful of the flu. Maybe that fear would encourage us to take action and start eating large amounts of nutrient-rich natural foods. Presently we donât, as a nationâbut if we did, the fear of the flu could actually save millions of lives, because the same healthy diet that protects against the flu also protects against many cancers, heart disease, diabetes, obesity, asthma, and other diseases.
Other Flu-Related Issues
While flu shots are a hot-button topic these daysâand rightfully so, as we have seenâthere are other flu-related topics to consider.
More Drug Options for the Flu
When you get the flu, many physicians prescribe drugs that are marketed as helping you get better faster. Three antiviral drugsâamantadine (brand name Symmetrel), rimantadine (Flumadine), and oseltamivir (Tamiflu)âare available in the United States for influenza. These medications are only partially effective, and they are not effective at all unless they are started within the first two days of symptoms. As prescription drugs, they have serious potential risks. Besides the more common side effects of nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and insomnia, rare but serious adverse reactions have been reported, including depression, suicide, and a potentially fatal reaction called neuroleptic malignant syndrome, which involves a high fever, muscle rigidity, and mental status changes.
The general use of these medications has a poor benefit-to-risk ratio, especially since it is hard to differentiate influenza from other, similar viral infections, for which these medications would not be indicated. Most prescriptions for these drugs are written without clear documentation of a flu virus being responsible. It takes time to diagnose the flu, and by the time a person gets to a doctor for an accurate diagnosis, the window of time in which these medications are effective will have passed. Hundreds of thousands of doses of Tamiflu are prescribed each year, and in more than 90 percent of instances, they will be used after the period when the drug has any potential to help! People will be increasing their risk of medication-caused side effects without any potential benefit .
The poor benefit-to-risk ratio would make it hard for anyone to recommend the general use of these medications. However, these medications may be appropriate in the event of an outbreak in a nursing home or hospitalâplaces where high-risk people are in close contact with one another and an early diagnosis of the flu can be confirmed.
The Protection of Good Hygiene
Almost every year flu season seems to bring with it extraordinary anxiety and fear, especially among parents of young children. Through all the fog of media hysteria and worry, letâs not lose our bearing and make rash decisions to use medications that can cause more harm than good.
The important news is that most Americans can and should take steps to reduce the likelihood of getting an infectious disease like the flu. Viruses are primarily spread via hand-to-face contact. They can also be spread when a sick person coughs or sneezes, aerosolizing the virus so others inhale it. A person can be contagious the day before he or she develops symptoms and for seven to ten days after symptoms first develop.
Here are some steps you can take to minimize the likelihood of catching the flu:
Avoid touching your face when you are in public places and immediately afterward, until you have a chance to wash your hands well. Surface transmission of the flu and other viruses is more common than transmission by sneezing or coughing. Many of the most concerning viruses can be transferred via public surfaces or people touching one anotherâsuch as shaking hands, touching door handles, using gas pumps, and sharing pens. If you use a public bathroom to wash up while youâre out and about, use a paper towel to turn off the water and then to open the door to leave the
We should all be appropriately fearful of the flu. Maybe that fear would encourage us to take action and start eating large amounts of nutrient-rich natural foods. Presently we donât, as a nationâbut if we did, the fear of the flu could actually save millions of lives, because the same healthy diet that protects against the flu also protects against many cancers, heart disease, diabetes, obesity, asthma, and other diseases.
Other Flu-Related Issues
While flu shots are a hot-button topic these daysâand rightfully so, as we have seenâthere are other flu-related topics to consider.
More Drug Options for the Flu
When you get the flu, many physicians prescribe drugs that are marketed as helping you get better faster. Three antiviral drugsâamantadine (brand name Symmetrel), rimantadine (Flumadine), and oseltamivir (Tamiflu)âare available in the United States for influenza. These medications are only partially effective, and they are not effective at all unless they are started within the first two days of symptoms. As prescription drugs, they have serious potential risks. Besides the more common side effects of nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and insomnia, rare but serious adverse reactions have been reported, including depression, suicide, and a potentially fatal reaction called neuroleptic malignant syndrome, which involves a high fever, muscle rigidity, and mental status changes.
The general use of these medications has a poor benefit-to-risk ratio, especially since it is hard to differentiate influenza from other, similar viral infections, for which these medications would not be indicated. Most prescriptions for these drugs are written without clear documentation of a flu virus being responsible. It takes time to diagnose the flu, and by the time a person gets to a doctor for an accurate diagnosis, the window of time in which these medications are effective will have passed. Hundreds of thousands of doses of Tamiflu are prescribed each year, and in more than 90 percent of instances, they will be used after the period when the drug has any potential to help! People will be increasing their risk of medication-caused side effects without any potential benefit .
The poor benefit-to-risk ratio would make it hard for anyone to recommend the general use of these medications. However, these medications may be appropriate in the event of an outbreak in a nursing home or hospitalâplaces where high-risk people are in close contact with one another and an early diagnosis of the flu can be confirmed.
The Protection of Good Hygiene
Almost every year flu season seems to bring with it extraordinary anxiety and fear, especially among parents of young children. Through all the fog of media hysteria and worry, letâs not lose our bearing and make rash decisions to use medications that can cause more harm than good.
The important news is that most Americans can and should take steps to reduce the likelihood of getting an infectious disease like the flu. Viruses are primarily spread via hand-to-face contact. They can also be spread when a sick person coughs or sneezes, aerosolizing the virus so others inhale it. A person can be contagious the day before he or she develops symptoms and for seven to ten days after symptoms first develop.
Here are some steps you can take to minimize the likelihood of catching the flu:
Avoid touching your face when you are in public places and immediately afterward, until you have a chance to wash your hands well. Surface transmission of the flu and other viruses is more common than transmission by sneezing or coughing. Many of the most concerning viruses can be transferred via public surfaces or people touching one anotherâsuch as shaking hands, touching door handles, using gas pumps, and sharing pens. If you use a public bathroom to wash up while youâre out and about, use a paper towel to turn off the water and then to open the door to leave the
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