Fever and lemony goodness!

Hellooo everyone! hope March has been a great one for you all so far!

Mine is ok alhamdulillah. Except maybe the fact that Yusuf was down with fever for a week! But thankfully he pulled through. Apparently he's teething again. As much as the medical peeps would deny teething or any major developmental milestone is associated with fever, i have to agree with the folklore on this one.

And i thought i'd do a bit of sharing on how i'm managing Yusuf's fever since he was born. As a  friendly warning, it might not appeal to some of you for it is definitely different than the conventional method  (in current times) of approaching fever in children. But if you have an open mind ( or just plain curious) then read on.

FYI, till now, i have not administered any medication to Yusuf whenever he's sick. Not even the paracetamol. *gasp!* i know right? trust me. I was worried too and had a heavy heart to do without it, (since i'm a doctor and all!). but somehow the thought of putting his natural immunity to practice was much more appealing to me than popping drugs. Of course, close monitoring is very crucial as well. So excuse the prominent eyebags if you see me the next time. He has had more than one episode of fever you know.

To lower his body temperature, besides the religious tepid sponging and intermittent bathe, I came across the technique of using a lemon wrap. Yeap! Interesting indeed! And apparently very simple too!

You just need lemons (obviously!), cotton cloths and towels. You squeeze the juice out of the lemons, (hubby actually likes doing this!) and mix it with lukewarm water. then soak the cotton cloths in it. I use the Anakku lampin for this, but u can also use cotton strips or long socks. Squeeze them so that they won't be too wet (as in dripping wet), and wrap this around the legs. Make sure you cover the feet completely and only until below knees. Then wrap a towel loosely around the wraps. Leave these on for 20 -25 minutes and repeat if necessary.

How does it work? Apparently the lemon has the property to seep the heat away from the head and body. The loose towels prevents rapid cooling of the body. So does it work? Alhamdulillah for Yusuf it did! I couldn't believe it at first too! Altho it does require more effort than just feeding medicine or pushing a pill up his tush. But at the moment, i'm avoiding the use of medication unless it is deemed necessary. But if fever is above 40 degrees and baby looks really unwell, by all means pls visit the doctor ok? And may Allah protect Yusuf from dangerous illnesses Nauzubillah. 

What's interesting now is, studies have shown that having a fever during sickness is actually a good thing! Raising the body temperature helps strengthens the immune response by increasing the production of certain types of antibodies to combat the offending germs! (Journal of Leukocyte Biology). Subhanallah!  How awesome is God creating our bodies eh? super awesome!!! So go easy with the panadols and trying to quickly eliminate fever on your children mommies! Adults included!

So i hope to share with you on other more interesting alternative ailments to the conventional medicine insyaAllah. if i happen to read on any that is. Or even have the time to blog about it. Mostly i end up sharing with people through daily chats or casual meet up with friends. To those who are interested (and open minded enough) to know about it of course. Another reason why i'm interested is because i'm currently hooked on this old korean drama series called Dae Janggeum or Jewel in the Palace. It's a historical fiction based on the true story of the first appointed royal female physician to the Emperor back when women had no or low social status. I tell you, i'm fascinated at how medicine was practiced back then! Using fresh herbs like their own backyard medicine! and the drama is wayyyy better than Grey's anatomy and slightly closer to House in terms of technicality. But minus the sarcasm, ego-trippin and explicit doctor-must-be-gatal scenes of course.

Although, i have to admit her love interest in this drama is handsome lorrr! ;P

Janggeum , the doctor

A Korean man with facial hair! *macho alert!* ;P

And why is it people back then had a natural air of sophistication to them? the way they speak, filled with romantic poetry and aristocratic demeanour! *sighing dreamily!* 

OK. tak boleh puji lebih-lebih. Nanti Mr B marah. hehe.