It's the rainy season once again.
For us mums, it meant that we have to be extra vigilant kasi uso na naman ang sakit. Flu, cough, colds and most of all, that thing we all dread - DENGUE.
Our #ReigningTatay contracted dengue several years ago, so like me he's also a bit paranoid when it comes to dengue-proofing our home. With all the horror stories left and right, talaga nga namang nakakabuang.
So when I was invited by our friends from GlaxoSmithKlein on the #AlliedAgaintsDengue launch, I immediately said yes.
I always believe that knowledge is power. Knowing about it and understanding everything about dengue would help me fight it and win over it.
And since I'm a mum and I'm sure a lot of my readers are mums too, I am sharing what I learned from the event. Anyway, that's the battle cry of GSK and their partners - that we all become #AlliedAgainstDengue to help fight off dengue in the Philippines.
What is Dengue?
Dengue Fever is a virus infection transmitted by the Aedis mosquito. To this date, there are 4 known types of dengue viruses. All of them are transmitted by the affected aedis mosquito.
These aedis mosquito live in clear stagnant waters and like any regular mosquito, they multiply fast. One mosquito could lay like hundred and thousands of eggs.
Dengue is a rising health problem not just here in the Philippines but around the world.
What the Common Dengue Symptoms?
- high, continuous fever that lasts 2- days
- skin flushing
- loss of apretite
- nausea
- vomiting
- nose/gum bleeding
- rashes
- abdominal pain
- weakness
Major thing to note is that all of these symptoms can be easily mistaken as a regular flu. That's why if we encounter ANY of these symptoms, the first thing we do is rule out dengue by having our child tested right away.
Kahit ako, if I have fever running for 3 days already, doctors would immediately test for dengue to rule it out coz we all know that this virus is deadly.
What To Do When We Suspect Dengue?
- Bring your child to the doctor if your child has high continuous fever of more than 2 days specially if the other symptoms mentioned above are present.
- For fever management, it is recommended that we give PARACETAMOL as this is the safest. Avoid Aspirin or Ibuprofen because both could trigger bleeding that would worsen the effects of dengue.
- Bed rest is a must and give lots of fluids.
- Bear in mind that there's no medicine that treats dengue. Still no direct cure.
That's why at home, I always give paracetamol for fever management. That's the safest and pedia-approved, plus according to WHO, it is the best 1st line of treatment for infants with fever.
We use Calpol, the fever medicine recommended by our pedia!
And on that event, I also learned that Calpol is the best in dengue fever management because they are proven to relive 6 types of pain and fever, even headache and muscle ache. It can also be taken with or without food. Plus, it's so easy make children drink Calpol because it comes in kid-friendly flavours. I should know, it's the only paracetamol brand my daughter would drink without throwing a fit.
How To Be #AlliedAgainstDengue?
First, is to remove all potential breeding places of mosquito. Change and clean water planters, clean all the places with stagnant water. Clean your homes. Mosquito loves dark places so keep your house well-lit.
I also read somewhere that we should avoid black storage boxes that we keep under our bed coz it attracts mosquito. We also always make sure that we spray mosquito repellents around the house. And we keep a bottle of anti-insect spray on our bags. I'll give a review our favorite anti-insect spray soon.
I'm just so happy that GSK has came up with this idea. They partnered with government agencies like DOH and private companies to launch this fight against dengue - #AlliedAgainstDengue.
On the event, they also showed several statistics about the dengue cases here and abroad and we noticed that it's really becoming a bit alarming already.
This movement aims to lead change and create an impact on the society. We cannot fight dengue alone. And most of all, prevention is always better than cure. So educating parents and the society about the dangers of dengue what we can do to fight it off is a huge start.
As parents, we must always be vigilant. Kaya halika na, maglinis na tayo ng bahay! Hehehe!
Post a Comment