Along with Autumn colors, the flu comes with it! Our Appalachian mountains are having a drab Fall and just today, very late in the season, the colors can be described as barely "vibrant."
The Old Coot and I both have gotten our flu shots and checked to see that our pneumonia shots are current. We are waiting, not so patiently, to receive the H1N1 inoculation. This coming week I will be calling the Public Health Dept. and Walgreen's to check if they've received the vaccine yet.
In the meantime, we wash our hands often and I bought an aerosol room spray called Neutra Air made by Lysol which is supposed to kill bacteria in the air and on counters, etc. We are taking extra precaution because of The Old Coot's lowered immune system which makes him vulnerable to any lung infection.
My former daughter-in-law (and still my good friend) forwarded an e-mail she had received that I think is full of good common sense. I'm sharing it with you:
The only portals of entry are the nostrils and mouth/throat. In a global epidemic of this nature, it's almost impossible to avoid coming into contact with H1N1 in spite of all precautions. Contact with H1N1 is not so much of a problem as proliferation is.
While you are still healthy and not showing any symptoms of H1N1 infection, in order to prevent proliferation, aggravation of symptoms and development of secondary infections, some very simple steps, not fully highlighted in most official communications, can be practiced (instead of focusing on how to stock N95 or Tamiflu):
1. Frequent hand-washing (well highlighted in all official communications).
2. "Hands-off-the-face" approach. Resist all temptations to touch any part of face (unless you want to eat, bathe or slap)..
3. *Gargle twice a day with warm salt water (use Listerine if you don't trust salt). *H1N1 takes 2-3 days after initial infection in the throat/ nasal cavity to proliferate and show characteristic symptoms. Simple gargling prevents proliferation. In a way, gargling with salt water has the same effect on a healthy individual that Tamiflu has on an infected one. Don't underestimate this simple, inexpensive and powerful preventative method.
4. Similar to 3 above, *clean your nostrils at least once every day with warm salt water. *Not everybody may be good at Jala Neti or Sutra Neti (very good Yoga asanas to clean nasal cavities), but *blowing the nose hard once a day and swabbing both nostrils with cotton buds dipped in warm salt water is very effective in bringing down viral population.*
5. *Boost your natural immunity with foods that are rich in Vitamin C (Amla and other citrus fruits). *If you have to supplement with Vitamin C tablets, make sure that it also has Zinc to boost absorption.
6. *Drink as much of warm liquids (tea, coffee, etc) as you can. *Drinking warm liquids has the same effect as gargling, but in the reverse direction. They wash off proliferating viruses from the throat into the stomach where they cannot survive, proliferate or do any harm. |
The above was written by
Dr. Vinay Goyal is an MBBS,DRM,DNB (Intensivist and Thyroid specialist) having clinical experience of over 20 years. He has worked in institutions like Hinduja Hospital , Bombay Hospital , Saifee Hospital , Tata Memorial etc.. Presently, he is heading our Nuclear Medicine Department and Thyroid clinic at Riddhivinayak Cardiac and Critical Centre, Malad (W).
Thanks for the good advice! I'll have to dig out the Neti-pot and start rinsing out my head again.
ReplyDeleteThey say we should avoid touching our nose but I have a chronically itchy, red nose. I guess I'll have to wear a face mask over it to fight the impulse!