Summer Health Tips & Remedies
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We hope you are having a fulfilling summer!
A lot of questions have been circulating regarding summertime post-food/party/concert gatherings and mild (albeit miserable) symptoms, such as dehydration, stomach bugs, cough/respiratory congestion, fever, and other flu-like symptoms. While not a pleasant blog topic-certainly questions abound, and nobody likes to be ill!
Here we will briefly look at some self-care suggestions and resources.
Like all illness, prevention is the best cure. Being aware of general health and lifestyle factors can be the best preventive maintenance and can help with identification and avoidance of food-borne pathogens, potentially contagious exposures, and reduction of symptoms.
General lifestyle guidelines: maintaining a regular sleep schedule (quality and quantity), general movement and exercise daily-however that works best for you, staying hydrated-especially in the summertime (with electrolytes), quality food intake (seasonal, local, organic if/when possible), awareness of hygiene-particularly in public places and group gatherings, and of course a high-quality multivitamin! Such as Marz Nutritional’s Omnivite, and preventive antimicrobial supplementation with things like Virmunity.
Common symptoms of exposure to food borne pathogens include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fatigue, irritability, brain fog, etc. The most prevalent pathogenic food borne exposures include:
If prevention did not work, many at-home remedies can ease discomfort while your body fights off an infection, these include broths, baths, fasting, juices, rest, immune supporting nutrients, herbs, spices, supplements, and overall hydration. Common over the counter (OTC) treatments can be helpful, including: Pepto Bismol, Alka Selzer, Imodium, etc.
A few common herbs (and foods) that can be helpful for both prevention-in dietary sources- and treatment in higher dose supplement forms include:
If OTC interventions are not helpful, you should consider seeking care from a healthcare provider, who may offer pharmaceutical-grade interventions, based on what you are experiencing, and after a diagnostic evaluation, that could include bloodwork, allergy testing, stool testing, EKG, IV electrolytes, etc., again based on the severity of your condition and medical history. Generally, viral GI infections are self-limiting, the above suggestions can prevent, ease symptoms, and decrease the severity of viral food borne illnesses. Be advised, however, co-infection with bacteria may cause symptoms to worsen, and always seek out a health care provider if you have any concerns.
Finally, another alternative intervention that is becoming increasingly common, mostly in urban areas, is at-home intravenous nutrients (IV’s), such as a Myers Cocktail, with additional ‘ad-ons’ that may include anti-nausea medication such as Zofran, Pepcid, an antihistamines, e.g. Benadryl, and pain medication, such as ketorolac.
We hope you enjoy the rest of the Summer, and that some nugget(s) from this blog helps keep you and yours healthy!
Please send us a note if you have any questions or comments!
In Health,
-The Reasonable Remedies Team