Understanding the Flu
Everyone must have had the flu. This disease is caused by a viral infection that attacks the respiratory tract.
The incubation period for flu is short. You will experience symptoms within just a few days of being first infected. The period when the flu is most contagious is the day before symptoms appear and about six days later.
Symptoms of the flu that are commonly felt by sufferers include fever, headache, cough, aches, loss of appetite, and sore throat. Flu symptoms will get worse for 2-4 days before finally improving and recovering.
Many think the flu is the same as the common cold because of the resemblance, but this assumption is not correct. The flu tends to have a shorter incubation period with more severe symptoms that can hinder sufferers' routines. Meanwhile, colds generally appear gradually with milder symptoms so that they do not have much impact on the patient's routine.
Treatment Steps For Flu
You usually don't need medical attention because the disease usually goes away on its own. Some of the treatment steps that can be taken are adequate rest, drinking lots of water, and keeping the body warm.
You can also take paracetamol or ibuprofen to reduce fever and reduce pain and soreness. You are not recommended to take antibiotics because these drugs work to kill bacteria, while the flu is caused by a virus.
Complications Due to Flu
The flu rarely causes serious complications, but there are some groups of people who should be aware because they have a higher risk of complications. Among them:
- Children.
- Pregnant mother.
- seniors.
People with serious or chronic illnesses such as heart failure, lung disease, or diabetes.
People with weakened immune systems, such as people with cancer and HIV.
Flu Prevention Steps
The spread of the flu virus is generally through sneezing and coughing from the patient or from objects that the patient has touched. The main step to prevent this disease is to maintain cleanliness. Don't forget to wash your hands before eating. For users of public transportation, it is recommended to wear a mask when traveling.
Another preventive measure is vaccination. But this method is only recommended for those who are more prone to flu complications.
Flu symptoms
Some of the flu symptoms that sufferers usually experience are:
- Fever.
- aches.
- Dry cough.
- Headache.
- Fatigue.
- Shivering.
- Sore throat.
- Sneezing, stuffy nose, or runny nose.
- Loss of appetite.
Flu symptoms will get worse for about 2-4 days before finally starting to get better. Even so, a dry cough accompanied by fatigue is usually still there, so flu sufferers need about 14-20 days to fully recover.
You should exercise caution and see a doctor if:
- You belong to the category of people who are prone to flu complications, such as pregnant women, the elderly, people with chronic diseases (lung or heart disease), and people with weakened immune systems.
- Your flu symptoms do not decrease at all, get worse, or don't go away after seven days.
Causes of the Flu
The main cause of the flu is a virus. The spread is very easy because it can occur through the air when the patient sneezes, coughs, through objects that have been splashed with saliva, or through direct contact such as shaking hands with an infected person.
Flu Treatment
Overcoming the flu usually does not require special treatment. You can treat it yourself at home. Simple treatment steps that you can take include adequate rest, maintaining body fluids by drinking regularly, eating fruits and vegetables, and maintaining a normal body temperature.
Increasing fluid consumption is an important step to avoid one of the complications of the flu, namely dehydration. When you have a cold and are dehydrated, your body loses sugar, salt, and fluids. You can try drinking fluids that contain sugar and electrolytes/ions to restore fluid balance in the body.
Medicines that you can take if needed are paracetamol or ibuprofen. Both work to reduce fever and reduce aches. You should not take antibiotics because these drugs only work to kill bacteria and not viruses that cause the flu.
There are several groups of people who are prone to experiencing complications from the flu, namely pregnant women, the elderly, people with weakened immune systems, and people with serious illnesses such as heart failure. Therefore, doctors will usually give antiviral drugs.
Two types of antivirals are generally given by doctors, namely oseltamivir and zanamivir. The purpose of administering these drugs is to reduce symptoms, reduce the risk of serious complications, and reduce the duration of the patient's flu.
Flu Complications
The flu generally resolves without causing complications.
But you are advised to remain careful because the immune system when suffering from the flu will decrease so that it is easier to catch other diseases. Likewise, people are more prone to complications, such as pregnant women, the elderly, people with weakened immune systems, and people with chronic diseases (lung disease).
The most common complication is pneumonia or lung infection. In addition to this disease, there are several other types of complications that are also caused by the flu, including swollen tonsils (tonsillitis), ear infections, bronchitis, severe dehydration, and meningitis.
In people with the flu, dehydration also has the potential to occur due to a reluctance to drink due to a sore throat and fever. In addition to adults who have a weak immune system, children are also susceptible to this condition, especially those under the age of two.
Flu Prevention
Steps to prevent flu and its spread are to:
- Maintain cleanliness.
- Always wash your hands, for example before eating or after traveling.
- Cover mouth and nose when sneezing or coughing.
- Wear a mask when traveling (especially for users of public transportation) or when around people with flu.
- Ensure that the body receives an adequate and balanced intake of vitamins and nutrients.
- Enough rest.
- Exercise regularly.
- Maintain fluid intake.
Flu can be prevented through vaccination, but this method is only recommended for people who are prone to getting flu, such as children, pregnant women, the elderly, people with chronic diseases (lung disease, liver failure, or diabetes), people with cancer, and HIV sufferers.