With the holiday season quickly taking hold, I interviewed, Payam Hakimi, D.O., American Board of Family Physicians, Medical Director Body of Harmony Institute of Health & Healing, Teaching Faculty Center for Education & Development of Clinical Homeopathy. Dr. Hakimi suggests that everyone have a flu plan, allowing them to be prepared should they be hit with influenza, whatever type.

Dr. Hakimi:

The most important thing a person should know is what actions to take in case they have the signs and symptoms of the flu, which are outlined below.  It is important to know that most of these signs and symptoms are also shared by the common cold viruses; however, the high severity and the suddenness of the symptoms differentiates the flu which is caused by the influenza virus.

First, here are the signs and symptoms of the flu to watch for:

• Fever of 100 to 103 with chills
• Headache
• Flushed
• Sweaty or clammy skin
• Body aches and joint pains
• Fatigue and weakness
• Nasal Congestion
• Sneezing
• Sore Throat
• Cough
• Decreased appetite
• Nausea
• Diarrhea

What treatments should you undertake?

Dr. Hakimi: As soon as you feel the above symptoms start the following approach to boost your immunity.

• Start taking Multivitamins.  It is a good way of decreasing the stress on your organ systems.  Vitamin C and B have been shown to help with immunity as well and are included in your multivitamin.
• Taking Echinacea increases levels of chemicals that activate the part of immune system responsible for increasing defense mechanisms against virus and bacteria.
• Drink plenty of water; it helps to eliminate the toxins from your body.
• Get plenty of rest and sleep.  Your body heals and repairs itself during sleep and rest.
• Start taking Oscillococcinum – a homeopathic medication from Boiron proven to shorten the duration and the severity of the flu – used widely in Europe.  It will decrease the symptoms and the duration of the illness.
• Cold Calm Remedy, a homeopathic medication from Boiron, decreases the symptoms and their severity and duration.
• Antiviral drugs (oseltamiviror zanamavir) within 24 to 48 hours of onset – if prescribed by your doctor.
• Drink Green tea; studies have shown it has antiviral and antibacterial properties.
• Eat garlic raw or cooked or take garlic supplements.  It is nature’s most efficient antibiotic and will increase immunity.
• Ginger in the form of tea or soaked in hot water is another natural antiviral.
• Goldenseal is antiseptic and immune stimulating.
• Elderberry is a strong remedy for colds and flu.  It is a natural anti-viral agent.
• Gargle twice daily with warm salt water (may also use Listerine but it is drying).  Influenza virus replicates in the nasopharynx and washing the throat and nose with salt water decreases the viral load.
• Nasal saline rinses or cleaning nostrils with salt water twice daily.  Blowing the nose or using Q-tips soaked in warm salt water to clean nostrils.
• Use Chestal, a homeopathic medicine by Boiron for cough.
• Continue with the rest of the flu plan as mentioned below.

If your symptoms last more than 5 days and they are not improving or if you feel worsening of the symptoms you should seek the advice of your physicians. Sometimes the body gets weak as it is fighting a viral infection and a bacterial infection can start or co-exist with the viral illness.  If any signs or symptoms of bacterial infections start, which are usually yellow-green nasal discharge or cough with yellow green phlegm, you should visit your physician for prescription of antibiotics.  If you have severe diarrhea and vomiting which is not resolving and causing dehydration or if you have changes in skin colors or the white of your eyes you should seek the advice of your physician.  Urgent cares and emergency rooms are to be used in case your symptoms are worsening and getting very severe and you have no access to your physician in a timely manner.

What exactly do you mean by a “flu plan?”

Dr. Hakimi: A Flu Plan involves certain behavioral and dietary changes that will decrease you exposure to the flu and if infected will decrease the duration and severity of the symptoms.  It allows you to feel secure that you have taken all the measures necessary to be ready in the event that you or your family become ill.

Do flu plans vary from person to person?

Dr. Hakimi: There is a general flu plan to help the body to increase immunity and fight the infection.  However, it should be personalized for the following group of people who are at higher risk of complications with the flu.  The following group of people need to be seen and evaluated by their physicians.  Others can use the plan as described.  Make sure you seek the attention of your physician if your symptoms do not resolve or worsen.

Who is at risk?

Dr. Hakimi:

• Adults and elders with chronic health conditions such as COPD (emphysema), asthma, cancer, heart disease, cigarette smokers, kidney disease, diabetes, HIV, Hepatitis, etc.
• Pregnant women (women who are pregnant suppress their own immune system to harbor a “partial foreigner” – their baby’s father’s genes, therefore making them immuno-compromised throughout their pregnancy.
• Infants and their care givers
• All children age 6 months to 4 years
• Children with health problems aged 4 years to 19 years
• Health Care Workers, care givers, people who work around patients

What is in your personal flu plan?

Dr. Hakimi: Prevention

• Frequent hand washing for 20 seconds multiple times a day. To kill germs, infectious-disease experts recommend washing with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.  Dry your hands with a paper towel, then use the towel to shut off the faucet and open the restroom door.  If soap and water aren’t available, use hand sanitizers containing at least 60% alcohol.
• Turn your head and cough or sneeze into a disposable tissue or the inside of your elbow if no tissue is available. Don’t cough or sneeze into your hands. Dispose of the tissue and wash your hands with soap and water or use a hand sanitizer immediately.
• Use a disinfectant to regularly sanitize commonly touched surfaces, such as telephones, door handles, light switches, computer equipment, etc. Try to apply the same practice at home by sanitizing door handles, light switches, toilet handles, and restroom and kitchen counters.
• Try not to use other workers’ phones, desks, offices, or other work tools and equipment.
• If meeting in a group setting, avoid close contact with others and ensure that the meeting room is properly ventilated.
• Eat 5 servings of fruits and vegetables daily.

• Resist all temptation to touch your face!
• Stay away from people who cough or sneeze.
• Prepare your own food.  Make it healthy!  Less sugary and more organic foods. Even small amounts of sugar can significantly impair your immune function, making you more susceptible to a flu infection.
• Make an appointment with your doctor and get prepared: do you have all your medicine refills?  Do you have any emergency medicine you will need?
• Have a flu plan: your entire family or workplace may have the flu at the same time.  Stock up on Oscillococcinum, Coldcalm, and other supplements mentioned.  Stuck up your refrigerator with herbs mentioned and ingredients for organic and freshly made soup or canned soups.
• Carry a hand sanitizer in the car, in the house and at work.
• Call your doctor if you feel like you have any flu symptoms.
• Drink plenty of clear fluids, i.e. water.
• Drink plenty of warm liquids, i.e. hot tea, green tea.
• Stay home!  Avoid work and school if you have the flu! Wear a mask if you go out.
• Get plenty of rest and restful sleep.
• Moderate exercise to increase heart rate, breathing rate and to sweat is recommended.  Do not make your body tired.
• Gargle twice daily with warm salt water (may also use Listerine but it is drying)
• Nasal saline rinses or cleaning nostrils with salt water twice daily.  Blowing the nose or using q-tips soaked in warm salt water to clean nostrils.
• Boost your natural immunity.
• Reduce Stress. Too much stress has a highly negative impact on your overall health and, over time, it will make you much more susceptible to a flu infection.

Thank you Dr. Hakimi. You’ve reinforced a lot of what we’ve heard, but you also introduced some new information to help our Blisstree.com readers.

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Images: PhotoXpress.com

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Influenza Q&A with Dr. Payam Hakimi

Researchers in Toronto, Canada, investigated the differences between 58 children with H1N1 who were admitted to the Hospital for the Hospital for Sick Kids, in Toronto, and 200 who had been admitted to the same hospital with complications from the seasonal flu, between 2004 and 2008.

The researchers found that 22% of the children who were admitted because of H1N1 had asthma, while only 6% of those with seasonal influenza were asthmatic. In addition, about 50% of those children with H1N1 who had to be admitted to the intensive care unit had asthma (study).

Other differences included:

• Older children were admitted with H1N1 than with the seasonal flu
• 84% of the H1N1 admissions presented with cough and fever only
• 37% had other symptoms, like vomiting and/or diarrhea
• Both influenzas resulted in an average 4-day hospital stay

The good news is that none of the children who were admitted with H1N1 died, while there was one death over the five years among those children with the seasonal flu.

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Image: iStock.com

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Asthma May Lead to H1N1 Complications

A detailed report released by the CDC, and reported today by the North County Times, puts the condition into perspective, but hardly puts my mind at ease. According to the report, unlike the usual seasonal flu that kills half or more of children age 4 and younger, the swine flu is taking a higher toll on school-age kids. At least 40 – or about one in 13 U.S. swine flu deaths – are in children between the ages of 5 and 17. Some epidemiologists say that may be because school-age kids are more apt to be around other kids at camps and school than younger children. That may also explain why the Southeast is seeing more cases of swine flu than other regions, because our schools tend to start earlier.

Other differences between the ordinary flu and N1H1 detailed in the CDC report include secondary conditions. For example, two-thirds of the children who died from swine flu had an underlying neurodevelopmental condition such as epilepsy or cerebral palsy, compared to one-third with ordinary flu. And, other germs, such as a bacterial infection, on top of the swine flu proves more deadly to otherwise healthy children. Of the 10 children who were healthy before they got N1H1 but died from the virus, eight had a bacterial infection, such as bacterial pneumonia, along with the flu.

The CDC doesn’t track the usual seasonal flu so it is hard to say whether the swine flu is more prevalent than the ordinary flu. But there is some good news. The virus doesn’t appear to be mutating to become more deadly than it is now, as some scientists have feared.

Photo, JWJourney

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CDC Report: School-Age Kids At High Risk

Developing a vaccine is intense work that can go in the wrong direction at any time. The many steps involved in developing the vaccine and ensuring  its safety and efficacy takes time. The WHO has outlined how this is done in their posting  Pandemic influenza vaccine manufacturing process and timeline . It’s interesting to read how the development occurs.

At this point, the process is in the clinical trial phase for some of the manufacturers and once the results of the clinical trials are released, if all is well, the vaccines may be approved for general use.

The H1N1 flu vaccine isn’t the same thing as the seasonal flu vaccine. This vaccine will be in addition to the annual seasonal flu vaccine, which means an extra injection.

Will you be getting the H1N1 vaccine when it becomes available? Do you get the seasonal flu vaccine?

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Photo courtesy PhotoXpress.com

Post from: Blisstree

H1N1 Vaccine Approvals Coming, WHO

Here in northern hemisphere, seasonal flu season is ending. It runs from late fall to spring, with the peak usually being in January and February. But, with the advent of the H1N1 virus, people are talking more about the flu than usual.

There seems to be two distinct camps of people when it comes to influenza and it’s hard for anyone to fit in the middle. Either you’re one of those people who feel that you’ve been sick enough in the past and you survived, so what is everyone whining about or you’ve had the flu and you don’t ever, ever, ever want to experience that again.

First, let’s get one thing straightened out: The flu and a cold are NOT the same thing. The only thing they have in common is that they are caused by viruses. That’s it. Nothing else. A bad cold isn’t a flu. A stomach upset that makes you vomit, isn’t a flu. Diarrhea isn’t a flu.

This is the flu:

Fever (between 38 and 40 degrees Celsius or 100.4 to 104 Fahrenheit) – colds don’t give high fevers; aches and pain – colds don’t cause aches and pains; sudden intense headaches – not usual for colds; nausea and vomitting in children under the age of 6 years – not for colds.

On the other hand, this is a cold:

Runny nose – not with the flu; congestion of the nose – not with the flu; sneezing – not with the flu; sore throat – not with the flu, and sneezing – not with the flu.

Both the flu and colds can have a cough, but it’s longer with the flu (2 weeks +). As well, chest pain is common with the flu, but it can also happens sometimes with a cold.

A flu wipes you out. Badly. If you have symptoms of the flu, the best thing is to stay home. Unfortunately, you were contagious for 24 hours before you realized you were sick, and you’ll be contagious for about 7 days after. You can’t do anything about the 24 hours before, but you can prevent the spread of the virus by staying home and – if you absolutely must leave the house – following the simple hygiene rules:

• You can also use a tissue, but then dispose of it immediately and wash your hands right away.
• Cough or sneeze into your elbow, not your hand.
• Wash, wash, wash, your hands. Whether it’s with soap and water (preferred) or hand sanitizer, that’s the only way to keep from spreading your germs.

Flu virus stays alive for:

5 minutes on your hands

12 hours on your clothing

up to 48 hours on objects

We all get sick. Sadly, for some people, getting sick means that predisposing illnesses can rear their ugly head and cause severe complications, even death. It’s up to everyone to try to limit the spread of these viruses because, next time, you might not get off so easy.

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Images: Stock.xchng

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Is it a cold…. or the flu?

Now it is Relenza and Symmetrel.

The Japan health ministry revealed that 16 cases, two of them leading to death, have been linked to the use of two more anti-flu drugs – Zanamivir (sold as Relenza) and Amantadine (sold as Symmetrel).

A Japanese panel looking into the causal relationship between Tamiflu and abnormal behavior found the disturbing incidents in influenza patients taking either Relenza or Symmetrel.

[Source: asahi.com]

Tags: tamiflu, relenza, symmetrel, anti-flu drugs, abnormal behavior

Post from: Blisstree

More flu drugs linked to abnormal behavior

According to the FDA website, the vaccine appears to prevent influenza in children as young as six months. Currently, the nasal spray is only recommended for children and adults age 5 to 49. However, clinical testing results also showed that children on FluMist were more likely to develop wheexing problems when compared to children treated with an injectable vaccine.

Honestly, I don’t know how well received this will be by young children. It’s hard enough to get my daughter to use a saline nasal solution sprayed into her nostrils. I think an injectable vaccine should work just fine. Besides, I recall her pediatrician telling me children ages 6 months to 3 years old have a pediatric-dose vaccine appropriate for their age. I wonder if FluMist formuation is the same.

Tags: FluMist, vaccine, influenza

Post from: Blisstree

FluMis effective for young kids, but may cause wheezing

Influenza epidemics are associated with a rise in autopsy-confirmed coronary deaths.

An 8-year study found that coronary deaths due to acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and ischemic heart disease (IHD) coincided with peaks of influenza epidemics. Published April 17 in the European Heart Journal, the team of Dr. Mohammad Madjid of the University of Texas studied autopsy reports in St. Petersburg, Russia and found that the odds of an AMI and chronic IHD death increased by 1.30 during weeks of flu epidemics.

Influenza is believed to destabilize atherosclerotic plaques in arteries of the heart, which can lead to an acute heart attack. People with the flu also tend to be dehydrated with high fever, causing the heart to work harder.

Unfortunately, a third of heart-disease patients don’t conside themselves a high risk for cardiac-related flu complications, and Dr. Madjid asserted that up to 90,000 coronary deaths a year in the USA can be prevented if every high-risk patient received an annual flu vaccination.

The CDC recommends vaccination for people with chronic medical problems, such as heart disease, diabetes, asthma, COPD and HIV/AIDS.

[source: Eur Heart J 2007 epub April17. Madjid M, Miller CC, Zarubaev VV, et al.; CIDRAP; image]

Tags: flu, vaccination, chronic medical conditions, heart, disease

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Flu is linked to heart attack, research says

Today, Japan took that warning one step further and ordered doctors not to give Tamiflu to teenagers, after a total of 15 teens taking the drug either killed or injured themselves since 2004. In the past two months alone, two 12-year old boys taking Tamiflu jumped out of their houses in separate incidents. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has also reported that it received more than 100 cases of delirium, hallucinations and other unusual psychiatric behavior, mostly in Japanese children treated with Tamiflu, in the last two years.

However, Swiss drug-maker Roche still denies any causal relationship between their flu drug and psychiatric symptoms, even though ads that I saw on TV for the drug carry warnings that such abnormal behavior could occur.

As a parent, I would heed this warning seriously and NOT give Tamiflu to my children, and maybe even think twice about taking it myself. But as a scientist, I do want to see solid proof that there is a link, and the first questions I asked myself -

1. Why only in Japan? Isn’t Tamiflu already in use in most other Asian countries with bird flu outbreaks? I haven’t heard reports yet on cases outside of Japan, or in the United States.

2. Both Roche and the FDA also know that abnormal behavior may be displayed by patients with severe flu symptoms, but is there data to suggest that those taking Tamiflu have higher risk?

3. And if there is no causal relationship, as Roche suggests, what other possible interacton might Tamilfu have with neuropyschiatric behavior that’s triggered by influenza?

This drug is still the most effective treatment we have around at the moment, so it’s important for the the U.S. health department to come up with some good answers as quickly as possible.

[News Source: China Post]

Tags: Tamiflu, suicide, flu drug, Roche, FDA, Japan

Post from: Blisstree

Is Tamiflu linked to Japanese teen suicides?

So read how a busy mom like Hsien managed the family when she got sick.

I was sick for almost the entire month of January and almost nothing changed routine-wise. I just sucked it up and moved on. Although I have to say that I wish I had started taking the OTC cold/flu meds sooner because it was amazing how much better they made me feel once I succumbed.

My son and husband were kind enough to let me lie on the sofa a bit more than I usually do (which is NEVER). I even got a few afternoon naps in on the weekends. And, I made sure not to stay up too late. I pretty much crashed whenever my son did. Getting enough sleep is key to getting better sooner.

Take home message for us? Take it easy for a while. Us moms really do need to learn to take care of ourselves more. And I preach to myself first.

Tags: flu, influenza, illness, colds, viral disease, health, medicine, motherhood

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Moms’ survey: how a scientist-blogger got by when she got sick