This Flu Season, Don't Mess Around
with Strep Throat
ByJessica Deets
Strep throat is a bacterial infection caused
by the Streptococcus pyogenes (strep) Group
A bacteria. You see it more in children than
in adults, but adults do get it sometimes.
This flu season may turn out to be one of
the worst seasons for strep throat.
With strep throat, you'll see a fever
and sore throat pain, usually with a headache
(but not always) and sometimes a stomach
ache. There might be swollen, tender glands
in the neck, or sores around the nose.
You might also see a loss in appetite
and tired looking eyes.
Scarlet fever is actually strep combined
with a rash, and there is also the sore
throat along with some general symptoms,
such as fatigue, and a red rash and skin
blotches on the body (that feel like a
rough sandpaper). If left untreated for
one to two weeks, it can turn into rheumatic
fever.
We normally encourage natural cures,
such as oil of oregano, orange juice,
vitamin C, colloidal silver, pau d' arco,
garlic, and other types of natural cures
you can find at the health food store.
However, this flu season I did some checking
around and found that (according to the
opinion of my source) this latest strep
is more severe and can hit a person really
quickly... and that antibiotics are necessary
in this instance.
This week my son got a sore throat one
night. We just thought it was a cold...
although his tongue was white and had
a texture like a strawberry. We got him
taking vitamin C and garlic caps. The
next day his eyes looked really tired,
he was lethargic and he had bumps on his
chest and stomach. We thought the bumps
were from laying directly on the carpet
(that's what it looked like).
We decided to take him to the doctor
and the doctor swabbed his throat and
the results came back as strep and his
rash was scarlet fever. Just the mention
of scarlet fever made us cringe, then
the doctor said it just means a combination
of strep throat and rash. My son is allergic
to penicillin, so the doctor prescribed
Erythromycin. My son took his first dose
and within about 6 hours, most of the
rash was gone and he was feeling lots
better.
I heard it's common for the strep symptoms
to be relieved very quickly when first
taking the antibiotics, although it's
very important to finish the entire course
of antibiotics that the doctor prescribes.
If the doctor wants you to take the antibiotics
for 10 days, even if you feel better after
a day or two, don't stop the antibiotics.
Keep taking them, and finish them according
to the doctor's instructions.
Although we like to recommend the natural
cures, this is the one season that if
a person gets these strep symptoms they
should see the doctor soon. If antibiotics
are recommended, get them and take them
all. You'll get very fast relief with
antibiotics even as soon as a half day,
and you'll minimize the risk of scarlet
fever and rheumatic fever.
Copyright 2006. This information is not
to meant replace medical advice. If you
feel sick or have other related symptoms,
see your doctor or other medical professional.
Jessica Deets specializes in information
to help people and has a passion about
helping people to not get ill. The website
at http://www.bestfluinfo.com
has news and information about the flu
including avian flu (H5N1).
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jessica_Deets
