We all get fevers once in a while due to many reasons. The first thing we try to do is to bring down the fever. But is it so bad for our body to have a fever? Fever is an essential immune system defense response of our body which helps us to fight disease and kill pathogens. Scientifically, getting a fever is a good sign and it actually means that our body is properly coping up with the disease. We reach out to take antipyretic pills as soon as we have a mild fever, but that can be bad as we are halting the natural response of our body to fight disease. Not bringing down a mild fever by antipyretics will not do us any harm.
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Fever can be classified as good fever and a bad fever. While it can have damaging effects on our body, most of the times mild fever help our body build more strength and protect us from diseases by creating B cells or Memory cells in our body. Not getting feverish for a long time is considered as a bad sign, because to some extent it shows that our immune system is not very active. Just like crying is bad, but doctors advise people to cry if they haven’t ever cried because it's somewhat essential to our health.
As fever builds memory against disease in the body, it could be beneficial to improve body’s resilience to infections and allergies in future. It improves our defense system and fights the infection, as the pathogenic microorganisms grow in our body at optimum temperature. By raising the body temperature, fever seizes their growth and aids in killing the infecting pathogens. As a result, they don’t multiply in our body, and the remaining ones are ingested by the defense soldier cells of our body. By letting the fever complete its course, we allow it to efficiently fight the infections like flu and help our body recover fast.
When to treat Fever?
Our brain has a wonderful mechanism to limit our body temperatures to 106 degrees at max, which is the threshold that our body can endure without any damage. However, in exceptional cases, the body temperature goes beyond 106 degrees with should be dealt with antipyretic treatment on urgent basis. In mild fever cases, it may be a good idea to let fever stay for a while as fever is a symptom, not a disease.
If the fever doesn’t make us uncomfortable, it should be allowed to run its due course. However, it’s recommended for keeping monitoring the temperature readings regularly. Bringing the fever down with antipyretics will not make things normal for our body. The physical appearance of the sick person is a better indicator of patient’s condition than temperature readings.
At a point we need to treat fever urgently. If the patients show symptoms of skin rashes, allergies, severe headache, stiffness, body pain, cognitive impairment, stomach ache, excessive vomiting, breathing issues, or seizures, they must be addressed on urgent basis.
So, we need to look at many factors while treating what apparently seems to be only a fever. Determining the cause of fever helps a great deal to effectively treat it. With this knowledge, we can benefit our body and improve its strength against diseases by deciding what to do in which condition. Communicating with the patient visually and verbally gives a great outlook to understand the severity of the condition. As a general rule, it’s okay to not treat the fever under 103 degrees if the patient is comfortable and shows no severe signs. Fever should only last for a few days, and it’s important to keep an eye on other symptoms and signs as an urgent treatment could be necessary.
Conclusion
Fever is an essential weapon of our body to kill and get rid of bacteria, virus, fungus, foreign pathogenic microbes, and other antigens from our body. Many people fear the occurrence of fever and attempt to quickly treat it due to their susceptibility to dangerous non-communicable diseases. However, it’s just another process to heal our body and should not be terminated every time.
Disclaimer
Please note that individual results will vary from person to person. All and any information and statements contained in this article are not intended to replace your doctor’s advice or treatment. We do not provide medical advice, prescription, or diagnose illness. Therefore, our views and nutritional statements are not intended to replace your doctor’s medical advice. If you have a health concern or condition, see your doctor before starting anything on your own.