Beware of Seasonal Illnesses: Symptoms, Prevention, Cure

Seasonal illnesses like dengue, chikungunya and malaria are on the rise and have affected thousands of people. Not only Jaipur but many other regions in the country are affected by these viral illnesses. These illnesses have caused losses to trade, tourism, hospitality industry, aviation companies and almost all businesses which report low attendance of employees.

While the monsoons brought relief from the scorching heat, it left behind puddles and stagnant water, which are a perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes. These mosquitoes then become medium of spreading the virus and causing diseases including dengue, chikungunya and malaria. A bite of the Aedes aegypti mosquito infects you with the virus.

Symptoms: What happens when you get infected?

Dengue: severe joint and muscle pain, swollen lymph nodes, headache, fever, exhaustion, rashes or red spots, serious bleeding (in severe cases that can be life-threatening), loss of appetite, nausea

Chikungunya: high fever, severe joint pain mainly in the arms and legs, headache, muscle pain, back pain rash (in about 50% people).

Most people start feeling better in 7-10 days. However, joint pain may persist longer.

Malaria: high fever, feeling chills, lots of sweating, headache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, muscle pain

Prevention: Keeping Mosquitoes Away

The best way to protect yourself and your family from diseases like dengue, chikungunya and malaria is to keep mosquitoes away. Here are 5 effective tips on how you can keep mosquitoes away.

Get yourself a mosquito repellent

Apply a good mosquito repellent lotion on the open areas of your body. The mosquito repellent that you use must contain DEET and Picardin. One good mosquito repellent is Odomos, which is a trusted brand in India.

Enjoy a safe sleep with the AC on

Ensure to sleep with the air-conditioner of your room turned on as it not only saves you from the heat but also keeps the disease-spreading mosquitoes away. AC prevents mosquitoes from entering into your home.

Other insect repellents

Place other insect repellents such as coils or electronic machines or sprays at all corners of your home to keep the mosquitoes away. Do ensure that whichever repellent you use must be effective on insects.

Avoid stagnant open water

Ensure that you do not store any open water inside your home or any stagnant water around the place you live in because aedes mosquitoes breed in open water and especially in the dark. Keep all your stored water covered and put essential medication in the tank you use. Turn over all empty buckets to drain away the remaining water in them. Also ensure that no rain water remains collected in broken boxes, old tires or other such discarded objects in your surroundings.

Wear full-sleeved and light coloured clothes

When moving out of home wear light coloured clothes that cover most of your body nicely. Take care of this especially when going for a stroll in the garden. It is also important for kids to wear full sleeved clothes when they go out to play.

Keep your doors and windows closed after evening

Keep your doors and windows closed after evening to prevent mosquitoes from entering the house. Or you can apply some mosquito screens on your doors and windows.

Keep your trash bins covered

Always keep your trash bin or dustbin covered to keep mosquitoes and other insects away.

Natural remedies for keeping mosquitoes at bay

Natural products such as neem oil also help in keeping mosquitoes away. You can apply neem oil on your open body area or burn a piece of camphor in your room and then close all doors and windows for 15 minutes. Crush a few pods of garlic, boil them in water and sprinkle that water in your room.

Diet Tips: What to Eat during Dengue and Chikungunya?

Dengue and chikungunya patients must pay special attention to what they eat. Here are some diet tips to follow.

Take more fluids

Patients must increase their fluid intakes instantly. Include nutritious fluids like instant energy liquids, coconut water, lime juice, fresh juices and lots of water as they help in removing toxins from your body.

More of Vitamin C

Vitamin C also helps in improving cellular immunity so have more of vitamin C rich fruits such as oranges, pineapple, strawberry, guava, etc. These lead to more production of lymphocytes that fight viral infections.

Avoid spicy and oily food

Spicy and oily foods are difficult to digest so avoid consuming any such food. Instead have raisins and dates that give energy and are also easy to digest.

No caffeine and no alcohol

Caffeine and alcohol are also a big ‘NO’ as they lead to dehydration.

Protein rich diet

Protein rich diet helps the body to regain essential nutrients and improves recovery time so have more protein rich foods such as low fat curd, fish, egg whites, chicken, etc.

So, this is all about how can you prevent and cure seasonal illnesses of Dengue and Chikungunya. Do take care of yourselves and stay safe.