Dr. Magryta: Influenza

Published 12:00 am Sunday, October 15, 2017

Influenza season is starting in the United States. Last year’s flu season was particularly rough in North Carolina. We had long lines of patients waiting to be seen. Influenza claims tens of thousands of lives a year in this country among the elderly.

There were 107 pediatric deaths last year, primarily among young children and children with chronic health conditions of which the majority were not vaccinated.

Every year, I blog about this virus primarily to keep it fresh on your mind in order to prepare, and secondarily because it causes so much morbidity and mortality.

There is never a good time to ignore this virus and its potential to cause havoc. Influenza comes back to annoy us every year and it is hard to completely avoid by quarantining yourself.

Preventing the virus from taking root in your body is the key to avoiding a bad outcome.

Things that I think of as critical to avoiding or preventing this infection:

1) Keeping your vitamin D level greater than 50 ng/ml is an important way to prevent influenza infections. Get tested and supplement accordingly.

2) Get adequate sleep based on your age to keep your immune system in great shape.

3) Take a good quality probiotic daily. I have a couple of favorites: HMF Neuro, There Biotic and Ultra One Daily. Dose based on provider recommendations.

4) Wash your hands throughly for 20 seconds with soap and water multiple times a day. Especially in high risk areas like schools.

5) Eat lots of fresh citrus and colorful yellow, red and orange foods for adequate vitamin C.

6) Maintain adequate zinc levels in your body for a healthy immune system. Zinc is commonly found in beef, lamb, wheat germ, spinach, seeds, mushrooms, nuts, beans, pork and cocoa.

7) Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth. This helps you avoid viral transmission.

8) Take elderberry syrup as directed if you feel that you have been exposed to the virus.

9) Stay well hydrated and keep your system stout by drinking one ounce of water per kilogram of body weight a day.

10) Stay positive mentally and be happy.

Consider getting the flu shot, as it can significantly reduce your risk of mortality even if it does not entirely prevent everyone from getting sick.

All high risk groups should definitely get a flu vaccine and avoid the risk.

Who is high risk?: pregnant women, children less than 5 years old, people with lung diseases, neurodegenerative disorders, immune defects, heart disease and more.

If you contract the virus, then what should you do?

Medicines that are antiviral for the influenza virus seem to be of limited value in the average healthy adult or child over age 5 years according to the published research. High risk groups can still benefit from these medicines to control a potential bad outcome.

Follow 5 / 6 / 8 / 9 above and rest.

Dr. M

Dr. Chris Magryta is a physician at Salisbury Pediatric Associates. Contact him at newsletter@salisburypediatrics.com