A Seasonal Flu Survival Guide
By admin • Sep 7th, 2009 • Category: Health & Fitness
Treatment of seasonal flu
As flu is caused by virus infection, we do not usually require antibiotics. Instead we treat the symptoms eg antihistamines for running nose and decongestants for blocked nose; and rely on the body’s immune system to treat the viral infection. Most people recover from flu without developing complications.
Antiviral drugs can be taken to reduce the severity of the symptoms and reduce the number of sick days and these drugs should preferably be taken within the first two days of infection. The two commonly antiviral drugs in Singapore are oseltamivir (Tamiflu®) and zanamivir (Relenza®) and they can be given to children one year old and above and 7 years old and above respectively. These medicines are usually given to people with higher risk of developing flu.
Health supplements
The two common health supplements that are believed to manage cold or flu symptoms are Echinacea and vitamin C. Nonetheless, their efficacies are controversial and further studies
are required.
The author is a member of Pharmaceutical Society of Singapore.
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