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In a busy world full of duties, we don’t have time to properly treat colds or infections. We believe that they will pass by themselves while we go to work. Stop! Not the way. Ignoring the infection may result in a very long treatment.
Meanwhile, in the near or distant future, we will probably pay a high price for an unhealed runny nose or colds. The organism cannot withstand the pace of life that we impose on it, and when burdened with untreated infections, it will become seriously ill. The price will therefore be even longer absences from work, treatment costs, our suffering and the permanent weakening of certain internal organs or systems.
So if the doctor diagnoses a cold, let’s ask ourselves for a few days off and go to bed, allowing the body to defend itself. Lying down regenerates and sleep is the best medicine. During sleep, new cells are produced to replace the old ones, and a number of white blood cells, i.e. those that constitute the immune system, catch toxins and bacterial deposits, cleaning the body. Do we have a fever? Even better. Studies have shown that at 38oC the activity of white blood cells increases several times, which facilitates the fight against viruses and bacteria, and this, in turn, reduces the duration of the disease.
Therefore, when we do not fall over from weakness, do not take any pills that reduce the increased temperature, but let us help the body fight the disease by providing it with decent conditions for rest.
However, if the doctor determines that we have a developed infection and prescribes an antibiotic, take it and go to bed before we develop even worse complications and complications.
What exactly is threatening us?
Untreated or neglected diseases lead to more serious illnesses which, unlike a runny nose, cannot be cured within 7 days.
It is dangerous to disregard not only bacterial infections, but also viral infections. The flu, which caused an epidemic in 1918, is a good example. 550 million people fell ill then, 20 million of whom died.
Today, the mortality rate due to influenza is low (only 0,1%), but it does occur as a result of complications, such as influenza pneumonia, myocarditis or exacerbation of asthma symptoms due to damage to the bronchial epithelium by the influenza virus. The most common serious complication is bacterial influenza pneumonia, and the rarest, but with high mortality, is encephalitis and meningitis.
So when we get infected, we’d better stay home before it turns out whether it’s the flu virus or some other type of cold that causes the common cold. There is no point in risking complications at the cost of a few days of less-paid leave.
In addition to colds and flu, other diseases that we underestimate, this time caused by bacteria, can secondarily become a reason for several months’ absence from work and seriously threaten our health.
For example, strep throat, when the antibiotic is not treated or the antibiotic is not appropriate, can allow streptococci in the throat to enter the bloodstream. It happens that they cause sudden and, in addition, much more difficult to heal rheumatic heart inflammation, which involves damage to all layers of this important organ (endocardium, pericardium and the heart muscle itself).
Streptococci can also become lodged in our joints, causing streptococcal arthritis, and rheumatic fever in people with an abnormal immune response. Again, it turns out that we gain a day or two at work and then lose a few weeks or months to heal the effects of our recklessness.
The situation is similar with the famous golden staphylococcus (Staphylococcus aureus), which is classified as a pathogenic bacteria. In some people, it lives for years on the mucous membranes of the throat without causing any symptoms – but only until the body weakens, when it attacks with double force, even leading to death.
One post-mortem study found that the cause of some heart attacks in apparently completely healthy non-smoking patients who maintained a healthy diet, weight, and cholesterol throughout their lives was the multiplication of staphylococci that had not been eliminated for years in the heart muscle. They led to a disturbance in work and a sudden stop of this organ.
Staphylococci or streptococci can also settle in our joints, causing them painful septic inflammations, as well as in the ear canal. If we do not use an antibiotic, initially we will not notice the effect of the infection in the form of perforation of the eardrum. After some time, it will turn out that we have partial hearing losses, which, to some extent, will be irreversible, even after the cause of the disease has been eliminated.
To sum up – when the doctor detects the initial stage of the “guttural” infection, and additionally (after taking an antibiogram) it turns out that it is a dangerous strain of bacteria, let us not neglect the treatment, even if we are in no pain or the symptoms are trivial and not very bothersome.
On the way to the toilet …
A large group of infections hits the lower parts of the body instead of the respiratory tract: the bladder, kidneys or, at best, only the urethra. The bacteria are almost always to blame: Escherichia coli, Chlamydia trachomatis or the previously described Staphylococcus. These bacteria (coliform and staphylococcus) like to travel up the ureters from the bladder to the kidneys, or enter the body through sexual intercourse (Chlamydia trachomatis).
Again, history repeats itself, because if we ignore the initial symptoms of infection, such as going to the toilet more often than usual or a burning and stinging sensation while urinating, we risk serious infections that can lead to, among others, for pyelonephritis. Not only does it require long-term treatment, it also has a tendency to recur.
In addition, we should know that the symptoms of kidney disease are often delayed or poorly visible, which should make us even more sensitive to any warning signal coming from the body. So we don’t even have to have an elevated body temperature. As you can read in pathophysiology textbooks, protein appears in the urine when 1/3 of the kidney is not working. Unfortunately, it is only at this stage that most patients start to think about going to the doctor, because so far they could comfort themselves that “they are still not in pain” or “still bearable”.
Chlamydial infections are often more difficult to detect and treat, because initially they may not give any warning symptoms apart from burning while urinating. It is only when they have spread through the bloodstream to the limbs and spine that they cause painful inflammation and reactive arthritis (Reiter’s syndrome), which must be treated with antibiotics for 3 to 6 months.
In addition, a frequent complication of chlamydial infection is also conjunctivitis, which is very dangerous for children, as it can even lead to blindness. In adults, chlamydia can cause infertility: in men, as a result of epididymitis, and in women, as a result of inflammation of the fallopian tubes and their obstruction.
However, while against infections with chlamydia, or “sex bacteria”, we can protect ourselves by avoiding casual sexual contacts, streptococci and staphylococci can attack without our direct participation.
Mr. kitten was sick and was lying in the crib
Summing up, it should be repeated that any disease, even a trivial one, always causes some microdamages in the body and contributes to the weakening of its balance and immunity.
Compare this situation to a car: we may not immediately notice the presence of holes in the rusty chassis, but minor scratches on the body will appear, paving the way for more serious diseases. These in turn, like rust, will roll weakened places for years, until their effects are not revealed.
Research shows that chronic diseases always appear in the weakest parts of the body. And the strength of the entire chain depends on the strength of its weakest link. That is why we should not underestimate minor infections, but treat them from the beginning, allowing ourselves to slow down the pace of work and regenerate at home.
Text: mgr farm. Rafał Jabłoński
Source: Let’s live longer