Every parent often has a thing to say when it comes to their kid's health. Some are facts, but a lot are mere theories and personal beliefs handed down through generations, which we now call "myths". It is sounusual how myths have become deeply rooted, and influenced one's disposition concerning certain health concerns when a lot of it weren't even found to be true.
Let us look into some of these well-known myths about childhood illnesses and learn the fact behind them.
1. Limit water consumption to cure watery diarrhea
This is a lethal myth for the reason that it can literally kill the child. In my practice, I have had a lot of pediatric patients admitted in the hospital for severe dehydration. At times, the child is already lethargic, or even worse-comatose. And each time I asked the mother why rehydration was not given at home, a lot answered what they feel was correct. They felt withholding drinking water from the kid would stop the diarrhea with a straightforward reasoning that, if the baby doesn't take in water, he doesn't have water any longer to expel from the body, and therefore the watery diarrhea must cease. But this is not true, even if it may sound like common sense.
There are a lot of pathologic causes of diarrhea. It can be triggered by infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses or parasites which change the intestinal lining milieu, enabling body water to flush back to the intestines. Or it could be that, water from the body is osmotically pushed into the intestine by undigested foods. Whatever the reason, only the medical doctor can say. The most important thing to do though, is to keep the baby hydrated by offering oral rehydrating solutions. It is vital to replace the total amount of water loss by the kid because this could lead to dehydration and electrolyte imbalance, resulting to seizures, shock, and death.
2. It is typical for the infant to get fever and oftentimes diarrhea, as soon as he starts to grow teeth.
Some mothers and fathers don't seem concerned when their child gets fever and mild diarrhea at the time when their kid is beginning to grow teeth. For them, that is a natural phenomenon that comes along with teething that should resolve spontaneously. It ought to be understood however, that once the child starts to grow teeth, he has tendency to put anything into his mouth, introducing viruses and bacteria. When these are swallowed, they lead to infection to the gastrointestinal tract creating milddiarrhea and fever. But because the most typical offending organisms are viruses, the problem will usually resolve without treatment. Viral infection is self-limiting that could normally resolve after 7-10 days.
3. Children are more likely to transmit colds and flu just before the symptoms appear.
Viruses that bring about colds and flu are passed through oral or nasal droplets which are coughed-up or sneezed-out. Therefore, they distributemost easily when symptoms of coughing and sneezing are at their worst.
4. Having chickenpox confers a lifetime immunity to the virus that causes it.
If the child has chickenpox, the virus known as Varicella zoster develops a latent infection in his sensory neurons. That virus may get reactivated usually at an adult age. If reactivated, shingles develops. Although shingles is uncommon in youngsters, immunocompromised kids still remain vulnerable to it.
5. Exposure to measles does not warrant isolation.
Measles is a very contagious viral infection characterized by high quality fever and a macular pinkish rash that starts in the head, spreads downward, and fades in the same manner. To prevent the spread of measles, sufferers should be isolated from the 7th day after exposure till 5 days after the rash appears.
6. It is very best to treat mild fevers right away
At times, it is best not to deal with mild fevers right away especially if the child is reasonably joyful and energetic. Fevers helpbattle infections by killing viruses and bacteria which can not endure higher than regular body temperatures. Fevers also stimulate the body's immune system eliminating infectious organisms which have specialized forms of resistance. Therefore, one may forego offering Acetaminophen to a feverish but lively child, except if the family has a strong background of benign febrile seizure. But if the baby is miserable and weaker even at low grade fever, it is therefore far better to treat it right away.
There are countless of myths that surround us. Myths vary fromvarious places and cultures. Many are simply misinterpretations of science, or a product of one's creative imagination. Perhaps, other people are still based on outdated science. But wherever they come from and how sensible they may possibly sound, lots of them simply aren't true.
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