Need personalized advice?
Below I am providing a summary of easy, cheap, and helpful steps you can take to prevent and treat viral infections. However, it is always best to get personalized advice. If you are prone to illness, currently sick, or would like specific guidance about what supplements or herbs to take, more ideas on treatment that are not listed here, or how to manage fever or other symptoms at home, please make an appointment!
I have to be able to ask you questions and assess you before I can provide a treatment plan that is right for you. Given the current concerns about viral illness, if you are ill I recommend booking a phone appointment so you do not have to leave home.
How to Prevent and Treat Viral Infections
Hygiene
Wash your hands
Soap and water is best. Get into the habit of washing your hands upon arriving anywhere (home, work, school, etc), before and after eating, after coughing/sneezing/touching your mouth/nose, and after using the washroom.
Sneeze (and cough) into a tissue (or your sleeve)
Avoid sneezing or coughing into your hands, instead sneeze or cough into a tissue or your sleeve at the crook of your elbow if you can’t get a tissue in time. This avoids transferring germs on your hands to surfaces! And obviously launder the shirt…
Choose glasses over contacts
If you wear contact lenses, you are at risk of getting sick via the conjunctiva of the eye. Viruses can be transmitted this way. So if you are concerned, stick with your glasses to avoid touching your eyes.
Steer clear of sick people
Avoid sharing water, food, or products with others who are ill. Also keep shared surfaces clean and dry.
Keep your germs at home
If you are sick, stay home and avoid contact with others. If you MUST leave the house, this is the time when it is most helpful for you to wear a mask to prevent OTHERS being exposed to your germs. Even a poorly fit mask that you take on and off is helpful because it acts as a physical barrier between you (the sick person) and others.
Home Care
Avoid sugar
Eating sugar can impair your immune response. Reducing your sugar intake while well can help prevent illness and avoiding sugar strictly while ill is important to allow your immune system to do its work.
Stay hydrated
Ensure you drink enough water daily and especially if you are ill. You can also drink broth and electrolytes. By electrolytes, I don’t mean the sugary sports drinks (not helpful at all), I mean powders (like Vega Electrolyte Powder) that contain sodium, potassium, and less sugar. Or you can make your own Natural Electrolyte Drink with ingredients at home.
If you do not feel hungry, do not force yourself to eat. It is normal to have low appetite with viral infections and it will not harm you (it may actually help you) to avoid food until you feel hungry again. But make sure you are hydrated no matter what.
Sleep
Make sure you get at least 7-8 hours sleep per night. When you are sick you need even more sleep!
Boost the humidity
Did you know that dry air is highly associated with infections? This includes the common cold, flu, measles, and bacterial infections.
Keeping the indoor humidity between 40-60% to reduce infections. You can do this by turning up the humidifier attached to your furnace and using humidifiers in bedrooms at night since we spend most of our time at home sleeping.
Support a productive fever
I could write a whole article about how fever is mismanaged, probably as a result of frequent Tylenol advertising drowning out actual medical guidelines. But today I’m just going to give you the bottom line.
Your body creates a fever as an immune response against an infection. The fever serves a purpose – it changes conditions in the body to resolve the infection. Do not focus on a fever, but instead on what is CAUSING the fever (so identify what needs treating), overall well-being and activity level, and how long a high fever is lasting. These things help you assess the actual severity of illness and whether you should seek further medical attention.
In viral infections, a fever is to be expected because it will help you heal. Suppressing a helpful fever with medication impairs the healing process and with some illnesses, leads to worse outcomes. It is normal to feel fatigued with a fever and to have low appetite and body aches.
Fevers are usually not dangerous and will rarely get higher than 40-40.5 degrees Celsius (104-105 degrees Fahrenheit). Brain damage will not occur unless a temperature of at least 41.6 degrees Celsius (107 degrees Fahrenheit) is reached for a long time. This is unlikely as fevers don’t usually run this high and if they do, it is usually short-lived, but pay close attention to any fever over 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) because you want to understand why that fever is happening and treat/support appropriately. Febrile seizures occur when there is a rapid temperature increase, not just from a high temperature.
When babies or children have a fever, it is important to monitor them closely. Here is a great article about Fever in Children: What to Do & When to Worry. For even more specific guidance on managing fever, especially in young children, make an appointment with me for personalized medical advice.
Foods, Herbs, Supplements, and Hydrotherapy
Foods
- Fresh-crushed garlic has some anti-viral properties for the mouth, throat, and lungs. It must be freshly crushed (not whole cloves) as this releases the medicinal compounds.
- Onions and leeks also have anti-viral properties, so enjoy!
Herbs
- Elderberry is a wonderful antiviral and there are several products available (look for ones with little to no added sugar!) and it is safe for a wide variety of ages. I personally add elderberry liquid to smoothies for my whole family all winter.
- Andrographis paniculata is a great choice for acute respiratory tract infections in adults. I keep an Andrographis product in my house all year to use at the first sign of cold/flu.
Also Licorice, North American ginseng, Garlic, Cordyceps, Astragalus, Stinging Nettle, and many more herbs can be used for viral infections depending on your specific symptoms.
Not all herbs are safe for all people. For more guidance on using herbs safely, make an appointment with me.
Supplements
Vitamin C, zinc, and vitamin A are all helpful for common viruses but must be dosed safely and appropriately. For more guidance on using these nutrients safely, make an appointment with me.
Homeopathy
Every year for common viral infections such as the flu, a “genus epidemicus” may be identified. This is the “combined symptoms of a large group of people afflicted with a disease or epidemic, or a remedy that covers all the symptoms which that particular epidemic is capable of producing.”
Identifying and correctly using an appropriate homeopathic remedy can very quickly alleviate symptoms and speed healing. A few remedy options have been identified for this year’s flu.
It is important that I assess your particular symptoms to prescribe the right remedy, so for homeopathic treatment, make an appointment with me. Have you noticed a theme yet?
Home hydrotherapy
Contrast hydrotherapy and warming socks are both wonderful for symptomatic relief and boosting immune response.
Other Sources:
Dr. Paul Herscu, ND, MPH: “Upper Respiratory Tract infections during the last week of 2019”
Forbes magazine, Leah Binder: “This Inexpensive Action Lowers Hospital Infections And Protects Against Flu Season”
Medscape: “AAP Issues Statement on Managing Fever in Pediatric Patients”
New York Times: “Lifting a Veil of Fear to See A Few Benefits of Fever”
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