Last week my children have been suffering from cold, cough and flu for almost a week now. It started with Sam (Summer) having fever for two days, then my eldest daughter Thea, and lately my eldest son and youngest daughter Gelo and Anaya. Ever since, I’m often the first one they (people from my home) call to deal with this kind of problems.
I’ve learned these simple remedies from my sister-in-law when I’m sick or someone in the household is ill. I stayed with my brother’s house for almost the whole of my childhood years. In which, I became independent and learned a lot of things from them like cooking, household chores, and nursing with these kind of illnesses in which what I’m today. Anyways, here’re some simple tips and remedies I wish to share in handling this common household illnesses:
Colds
The common cold is one of the most commonly household occurring illnesses at home. The common cold produces mild symptoms usually lasting only 5-10 days. For this common illnesses I usually do the following remedies before I seek for medical help.
Care & Treatment Tips
1. Make sure to drink plenty of fluids to help break up the nasal congestion and prevent dehydration.
2. Fluids might include water, sports drinks, fruit drinks, or ginger tea. My sister-in-law used to cook us “sopas” or macaroni soup when we have these symptoms. It really can help rehydrate those lost fluids from mucus secretion rather preparing fried chicken or dried dishes.
3. Inhaled steam may also ease your congestion and drippy nose.
4. Most of all take plenty of rest.
Don’ts
1. Avoid strenuous activities.
2. Stay away from places with high temperatures such beaches or your kitchen.
Fever & Flu
If common colds will not be contain immediately it may lead to fever or flu. I take extra precaution in managing fever because this may lead to convulsion if not monitored or managed properly. Because normal body temperature is only between 35.5–37.0 °C, if my children’s temperatures reaches 40°C or above, I seek for medical help right away. I would suggest to have a clinical thermometer handy at home.
Care & Treatment Tips
1. Same with colds, make sure to drink plenty of water to rehydrate the lost fluid from the body heat.
2. I often take oral medicine such as paracetamol to manage the temperature. Tablets for adults and drops or syrups for my children.
3. Manage body temperature by giving cold compress to head .Sponge or towel bath will help lower the temperature, emphasizing on armpits, bikini and head.
4. Make sure to change into fresh clothes after your sponge or towel bath.
5. Bed rest is a must.
Cough
Cough for adults I often or suggest to take herbal medicines. The two common herbal medicines that I often use for cough are Lagundi and Oregano.
Lagundi is one of the ten herbal medicines endorsed by the Philippine Department of Health as an effective herbal medicine with proven therapeutic value. It’s good for relief of asthma & pharyngitis. It is also a good treatment of cough, colds, fever and flu and other bronchopulmonary disorders.
Oregano is another herbal alternative. The most useful parts of this plant are its leaves. The extracts and juices of the leaves are used for asthma, dyspepsia, chronic coughs, bronchitis, and rheumatism. I usually used its leaves for treatment of my asthma when I was in elementary and high school.
I would say that although herbs are generally safer than chemical, but one really should also be careful when putting herbs and herbal supplements to medicinal use. Herbal medicines are ideal for preventive and home care remedies, but we can’t just ignore or disregard the effectiveness of synthetic medicines when taken properly.
For my children, I tried giving them Oregano but often became a tag-o-war between me and my children. If you don’t have any trouble with children taking herbal medicine I would suggest you continue to do so. Otherwise if you intend to give cough syrups or chemical medicine to your children I would advise to take extreme caution on these kinds of medicines.I would suggest you ask for a prescription first before giving it to them even though is available over the counter. Chemical medicine may have side effects on your children. Don’t just rely on others advised or what you see on TV. Advertisement today can be deceiving and exaggerating, regarding of its effectiveness, and safety of its medicine.So if you gonna asked me what to give my children for cough... herbal or synthetic? I would suggest to consult your doctor before you give them cough medicine. But if you will have no trouble giving them herbal medicine go with the herbal medicine.
I hope the above home treatment tips will help you in dealing with these kinds of problem. These are only first aid tips and should symptoms persist please consult your doctor. Thanks for reading my tips and If you have something to not listed above don’t hesitate to join the discussion.
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