I saw Oz for the first time a few weeks ago, and he is very good at what he does, a true showman. Too bad he sold his soul to the devil.
I saw Oz for the first time a few weeks ago, and he is very good at what he does, a true showman. Too bad he sold his soul to the devil.Agreed. If only he used his talents for good rather than evil. he's been given a golden opportunity to do good and he has squandered it for his own enrichment. About 2 weeks ago i put up a poster in my exam rooms with Oz picture and a red circle with a line through it and the headline "Oz not spoken here" There is a paragraph below explaining that much of the information seen on Dr OZ is not based on good science and that patients should not follow his advice without talking to their doctor first. I did it for two reasons. i wanted patients to understand that Oz is not admired in the medical community the way he is in the lay community and I also thought it might be a way to start discussion that patient might otherwise not bring up. It has turned out to be effective on both counts. Surprisingly I have had more than a few patients congratulate me for saying what they have been thinking for a long time.
Good for you, macgyver.
As a chemist Linus Pauling was my hero when I was younger so I took 8 grams of C a day for a number of years. I had a problem and passed a kidney stone. I was sent to a urologist who had an ultrasound done. My kidneys appeared to be a rock quarry with quite a few oxalate kidney stones. The urologist flipped when he saw my C intake. He explained that many people metabolize excess C into oxalic acid which precipitates out as calcium oxalate stones. I went down to 1 gm a day of C and other than periodically having had one of the stones break loose, which was always fun as it passed through my ureter, I’ve not grown any new ones.
Ignoring my yearly flu shots, I haven’t had the flu ever since I reduced my C consumption so, using alternative medicine logic, reducing the amount of C one takes will prevent the flu. :lol:
Occam
Surprisingly I have had more than a few patients congratulate me for saying what they have been thinking for a long time.Wonderful! And the poster helps to back up their argument with more gullible family members.
I haven’t done a comprehensive survey, so I’m not sure if it has been replicated or contradicted, but there is at least one old paper ]suggesting smoking both decreases your desire for Vitamin C-rich foods and reduces your Vitamin C levels directly.
skuld, by this time, I do hope you have visited a physician for appropriate treatment, and are on the mend.
Thanks Mac. I should have asked my doctor more detailed questions about the vaccine; I just assumed that it was nearly100% effective. It's disconcerting to know that we can expect 65% but it's better than nothing! I assume that us old farts ( over 60) were factored into the 65% as to effectiveness at that age but I do follow all of your suggestions. The classrooms are furnished with hand sanitizers and even though I'm only a sub now I do use them often as I can and wash my hands whenever possible. And I've seen first hand the ravages of pneumonia as it slowly killed my mother-in-law at 83. Sorry about your mother-in-law, but they used to call pneumonia the old person's friend. Sometimes it is. I've heard that when you wash your hands you should sing Happy Birthday twice (preferably to yourself). That's how long it takes for handwashing with soap to be effective. If you have contracted the flu there is nothing you can do but wait it out and take OTC drugs. If you're otherwise healthy, it should pass with no ill effects. But if you're susceptible to pneumonia you shoukd consult your physician. Pneumonia can and should be treated with anti-biotics. Anti-biotics have no effect on flu. There is now a pneumomia vaccine. Everyone over 60 should get it. Cap't Jack
No, singing ‘Happy Birthday’ once while washing your hands is quite enough to clean them. And when using Purell, rub them until they are dry, but wash with soap and water if there is any obvious dirt on your hands or if you have used it 5 times without washing your hands.
Since all the medical people seem to be on this thread, I’ll try for a little free advise.
I probably had a norovirus last Saturday. Spent the night camped out in the bathroom, emptying everything out. Death seemed very appealing. Felt like hell Sunday, fever Monday night. I’m better, but totally off my usual garbage diet, living on banana’s, tea and rice, real food makes me queasy. How long am I contagious? I’m trying very hard not to spread the misery, but I"m getting very lonely. I’d love to be in the same room with my wife, but if I’m still spreading this and she gets it could be the end of a beautiful relationship.
Since all the medical people seem to be on this thread, I'll try for a little free advise. I probably had a norovirus last Saturday. Spent the night camped out in the bathroom, emptying everything out. Death seemed very appealing. Felt like hell Sunday, fever Monday night. I'm better, but totally off my usual garbage diet, living on banana's, tea and rice, real food makes me queasy. How long am I contagious? I'm trying very hard not to spread the misery, but I"m getting very lonely. I'd love to be in the same room with my wife, but if I'm still spreading this and she gets it could be the end of a beautiful relationship.I hope you have plenty of Purell in the house, and all of you use it LIBERALLY. Our hospital policy is that you cannot come back to work until you are symptom free for 48 hours. You still need to clean off all of the hard surfaces you've been touching to avoid infecting the others in the house after you have recovered. That bacteria is tenacious. Good luck. I've had rotavirus (from a patient) and that was crappy (literally), I can imagine how bad you feel!
I mostly agree with what Asanta said but to clarify one thing. Such illnesses may be caused by several different viruses and bacteria. Most bacterial GI illnesses are food borne where as viral causes of gastroenteritis can be transmitted by the oral fecal route ( hands get contaminated with your feces, you touch something, someone else touches it and puts something in their mouth). Because all of these illnesses are generally self limited and its difficult to tell a viral gastroenteritis from a bacterial one we usually refrain from using antibiotics which can sometimes make the diarrhea worse.
if this is Norovirus, and there is no way to know, you need to be sure to wash with soap and water since alcohol based products like Purell don’t kill this particular virus. In addition, surfaces should be cleaned with chlorinated cleaners. Keep in mind that Norovirus can remain viable on surfaces for 2-3 weeks after the surface becomes contaminated if it hasn’t been cleaned so you should try to clean any surface you may have touched from 1 day prior to your symptoms until 5 days after the illness
Addendum: I wasn’t aware of this until just now but while Norovirus is most contagious form the day before symptoms develop until several days after you can still find virus in the stool for up to 2 weeks after the illness begins so keep washing after using the bathroom ( but you should always be doing that anyway). Every episode of viral gastroenteritis and most bacterial enteritis means that you got someone elses feces in your mouth. That yuck factor alone is enough of a reason to be compulsive about washing your hands and washing food before you eat it.
Here’s a link] to a helpful page on the CDC website if you want to know more
Every episode of viral gastroenteritis and most bacterial enteritis means that you got someone elses feces in your mouth.I am sure this is stupid question, but could it be airborne? I mean, if I smell the poop, it won't make me sick, right?
Every episode of viral gastroenteritis and most bacterial enteritis means that you got someone elses feces in your mouth.I am sure this is stupid question, but could it be airborne? I mean, if I smell the poop, it won't make me sick, right? I'm not sure this reduces the yuck factor, but there is a small chance of catching norovirus through the airborne route if a person were to vomit violently and you inhaled some of the airborne particles of vomit ( Yum). Smelling feces will not allow transmission of the virus however since the smell is transmitted by volatile compounds in the feces rather than an actual transmission of fecal material to the person's nose. Viral particles generally won't become airborne from the feces unless someone is splashing around in it. Aren't these fun images to have floating around in your head? Nauseous yet?
I mostly agree with what Asanta said but to clarify one thing. Such illnesses may be caused by several different viruses and bacteria. Most bacterial GI illnesses are food borne where as viral causes of gastroenteritis can be transmitted by the oral fecal route ( hands get contaminated with your feces, you touch something, someone else touches it and puts something in their mouth). Because all of these illnesses are generally self limited and its difficult to tell a viral gastroenteritis from a bacterial one we usually refrain from using antibiotics which can sometimes make the diarrhea worse. if this is Norovirus, and there is no way to know, you need to be sure to wash with soap and water since alcohol based products like Purell don't kill this particular virus. In addition, surfaces should be cleaned with chlorinated cleaners. Keep in mind that Norovirus can remain viable on surfaces for 2-3 weeks after the surface becomes contaminated if it hasn't been cleaned so you should try to clean any surface you may have touched from 1 day prior to your symptoms until 5 days after the illnessThanks for the clarification. I didn't want to mention the fecal 'issue' Lol! The answer is wash, wash, wash, and clean clean clean! As well as washing your hands after toileting, you should wash your hands before picking up any food to eat, so if you have touched a contaminated surface, you won't reinfect yourself.
Wow, thank you very much, macgyver and asanta.
Four of five days before I became ill I took my car to have it inspected. The mechanic was talking about the terrible time he’d had with the “stomach flu”. It was his first day back and he said he still didn’t feel well. He was, of course, in the car checking lights and paperwork, etc… I know there’s no way of being sure that I contracted it there, but from what you say it well could be. Routes of infection I wouldn’t have thought of. I’ll be spending a lot more time in front of the sink, and I’ve got a lot cleaning to do.
Anyone see the Mythbuster’s episode where Adam has a tube attached to his nose that leaks a fluorescent fluid at the rate of the nasal secretions from a cold? It’s pretty amazing, both by the large amount of casual contamination they can show and by how effectively they are able to reduce contamination.
Anyone see the Mythbuster's episode where Adam has a tube attached to his nose that leaks a fluorescent fluid at the rate of the nasal secretions from a cold? It's pretty amazing, both by the large amount of casual contamination they can show and by how effectively they are able to reduce contamination.One of my favorite episodes!