The flu is one of the more common ailments that affect people of all ages today. Whether you’re a child with high fever, cough, a runny nose and a sore throat or an adult with the same symptoms coupled with muscle and joint pain as well as unexplainable feeling of weakness, you’ve probably been hit by the influenza virus. This highly contagious virus is spread by coughing and sneezing, and has the ability to escape detection by the body’s immune system. Many people suffer from flu complications, but these days there are ways to treat flu effectively.

Recognizing flu when you see it

Before talking about how to treat flu, you must first understand how to detect flu when you see it. One to three days after infection, some symptoms can occur. And more than the common cold, flu symptoms can last up to a week. These include the following:

• High fever that usually goes with chills, shivering and sweats
• Watery or reddened eyes
• Nasal congestion or a runny nose
• Cough
• Weakness and fatigue
• Joint and muscle aches especially in the legs and in the back
• Sore throat

Home remedies

How to treat flu effectively? There are many home remedies that can help arrest flu once the symptoms appear. These home remedies can treat flu even without medication, especially if the symptoms are still mild:

Fluids, fluids, fluids

Dehydration is one of the most common effects of having the flu, especially because when you get the fever, it’s usually accompanied by nausea, diarrhea and vomiting. Drinking a lot of fluids is definitely an answer to the question how to treat flu, especially water, broth and sports drinks with electrolytes. Drinking hot liquids like chicken soup or honey lemon tea can also help you store up the fluids at the same time relieve your sore throat and nasal congestion.

Get some rest

This may seem like such a simple remedy, but it’s often one that people take for granted. When the body is battling the flu, your immune system’s energy is all geared towards fighting the virus. You can help your body fight the virus simply by getting under the bed covers and giving your body the rest that you need. In the first place, you wouldn’t have gotten the flu if your immune system was not down, and your immune system wouldn’t have been down if you gave yourself enough sleep.

Hot or cold compress

Applying a hot or cold compress around your sinuses can help relieve the congestion. Putting a warm compress around your forehead can also help relieve the headache that comes along with it.

Steamy showers

Taking a hot shower is effective not because of the shower itself, but because of the steam it emits. Even if you’re just sitting down and taking a sponge bath while the hot shower is running and emitting steam, the steam will help soothe your nasal passages by moistening and thinning the mucus. It can also relieve your sore throat.

Humidify

You can do so much simply by using a humidifier or vaporizer that can add moisture in the air. When the air has moisture, this can help ease the congestion in the nasal passages and in the chest. It also makes breathing easier for you.

Gargle

You can’t get any more basic than gargling with old-fashioned salt water. Dissolve a teaspoon of salt in warm water and gargle at least four times in a day. This helps relieve sore throat effectively. There are also other solutions you can try for gargling, and it’s not just necessarily salt. You can mix honey with apple cider vinegar for instance and use this to soothe your throat. You can also mix lemon juice with hot water, a tablespoon or raspberry leaves, and add honey.

Medication

When you ask how to treat flu, home remedies can be effective, yes. However, there are times when the symptoms are so bad that you really need the help of medication. Fevers, discomfort and pain are more effectively treated with the aid of medication, and this is where antiviral drugs like Tamiflu come in. You should see your doctor about how to treat flu most effectively, but antiviral drugs have already been tried and tested by many patients.

Tamiflu (oseltamivir) is approved by the FDA and recognized to be effective in treating flu right at the source. Unlike home remedies, Tamiflu attacks the flu virus itself and this prevents the virus from spreading like wildfire. Home remedies can help relieve the symptoms, but Tamiflu arrests the virus at its source and prevents these symptoms from getting worse. Tamiflu is also safe for children, and it has been clinically proven to help people get better around 1.5 days faster than other medications.