That Darn (but essential) Fever!
That Darn Fever
At the height of cold/flu season, and as I am currently recovering from a viral illness and recent fever, here are some true naturopathic insights on the fever and why it is an important function in our healing response.
Let a Fever Ride
Rule number one: Do not suppress a fever! Though contrary to popular belief, a fever is actually GOOD for us. It is a major tool our immune system uses for killing disease-causing microbes, destroying toxins, and cleaning out the body. Some researchers are experimenting with inducing fever in patients with chronic fatigue, incurable cancers, and other severe illnesses and are finding that fever can be effective in the treatment of these disorders. During a fever, your immune system is essentially re-balancing it’s pathways and becomes more effective at dealing with the external environment. Traditional societies around the world have known this for centuries, where increasing body temperature on a regular basis was done as a prophylactic measure- many studies have shown that regular use of sauna/traditional bath house practices from different cultures prevents many chronic illnesses from developing in the first place and can be helpful in healing from those illnesses.
I know from personal experience that refraining from suppressing or reducing a fever is easier said than done, especially when a fever is interfering with sleep! I have reached for acetaminophen (Tylenol or fever reducing medications) during some rough fevers in my life, but I recently began to trust the process and lean on some supportive tools to get me through a fever which I will explain in the next section. Just remember that if your immune system is not allowed to use fever properly, such as when taking fever reducing medications, the body cannot properly clear pathogenic material and the ground could be laid for developing ongoing chronic inflammation, allergies, and chronic infections which can lead to more serious illnesses.
There are many natural and supportive therapies we can utilize when enduring a fever. I touch on some basic concepts in this post below and will go into more depth about herbs, nutrition, and hydrotherapy in the next post.
SO, what do we need to do when we develop a fever?
Stay in bed, keep warm, and keep sweating. Sweating is very healing and allows your body temperature to come down naturally. Keep a few sets of pajamas/sheets which you can change regularly as you absorb sweat. Try to use cotton if possible.
Stay hydrated. Drink warm water with lemon (provides minerals and vitamin C). Drink hot water with added organic honey and organic butter or coconut oil and a pinch of salt. A fever can make us really dehydrated and it is important to replenish hydration with electrolytes. You can also boil or simmer ginger root to make ginger tea. Ginger has diaphoretic properties that help the body to sweat.
Follow the old saying: “Starve a fever, feed a cold”. When we have a high temperature, avoid eating as food becomes a burden for the body to deal with when it needs to spend its resources on fighting the illness. Drink plenty of hot/warm water with lemon and the honey/butter/salt mixture.
When the temperature starts to come down, start eating food. It is important to start with food that is easy to digest and which will feed your immune system. This includes foods providing protein, fats, and fat-soluble vitamins, necessary for your immune system to be healthy. The following foods will be great sources of these nutrients:
Homemade organic meat stock, organ meats, fatty meats, cooked vegetable soup with homemade meat stock or vegetable stock (cooked with plenty of fat from organic butter or coconut oil), oily fish, eggs, butter, full fat yogurt, and kefir.
Avoid anything made from flour and sugar as these foods will undermine your immune system.
Majority of fevers are caused by common colds/viruses which generally do not require a Doctor’s attention. However, there can be cases that are more serious and require emergent care. If a temperature is >105 and you experience vomiting, trouble breathing, severe pains, or seizure, pleas seek emergent care as an IV and other emergent intervention maybe necessary.
In Summary:
So, what to do when we come down with the inevitable cold/flu? The important thing is to trust your body and allow it to do it’s thing! Try to avoid OTC cold medications and do not reduce a fever or any other symptoms of your cold. They are the tools your immune system is using to cleanse your body and reset a healthy platform- allow your body to do this process unimpeded. While you have a fever, stay in bed and warm, and drink only warm or hot water with lemon, ginger, and the organic fat(butter/coconut oil) and honey mixture. Once the fever dissipates, eat foods which will nourish the immune system, not undermine it (see above). More on the foods that feed our immune system in the next blog post, stay tuned!
References
1. Campbell-McBride N. Gut and Physiology Syndrome: Natural Treatment for Allergies, Autoimmune Illness, Arthritis, Gut Problems, Fatigue, Hormonal Problems, Neurological Disease. U.S. edition. Med inform Publishing; 2020.
2. Evan SS, Repasky EA, Fisher DT. Fever and the Thermal Regulation of Immunity: The immune System: the immune system that feels the heat. Nature reviews immunology. 2015 Jun; 15 (6): 335-49.
3. Hussain J, Cohen M. Clinical Effects of regular Dry Sauna Bathings. A systemic review. Evid based complement alternative medicine. 2018 Apr 24