I think my son has whooping cough ?!


Question: I think my son has whooping cough .?
If he does I know he will need antibiotics, but before than what should I do.? Any over the counter meds help.?
(there are many cases of whooping cough in my city even though babies are given the vaccine go figure...)Health Question & Answer


Answers:
Yes, there is a great over the counter supplement called sodium ascorbate. It is a powdered, buffered form of vitamin C. When taken in large quantities throughout the day, it neutralizes the toxins that the pertussis bacteria release. It REALLY works! You just mix it with water or other liquid, and drink. It has a slight salty taste. The only side effect is slightly loose stools once the body is saturated with the vitamin C. At that point, you know you've had enough for the next several hours. Here's a link to it. There are several brands, but this is the one I used when my 2 1/2 year old daughter and I had whooping cough a few years ago. As far as I know, all brands are the same, so you can shop around for price. .?c=1&pid=-7152293197697039798&utm_source=y&utm_medium=s" rel="nofollow">http://www.iherb.com/productdetails.aspx...

Sodium ascorbate works best when you start taking it at the beginning of the pertussis illness, and continue taking it until symptoms are gone. So I strongly suggest you start giving it to your son even before you know for sure he has pertussis. The sodium ascorbate will not hurt him. In fact, my family takes it daily as a supplement, although in smaller amounts than are needed for pertussis.

The antibiotics will make the pertussis symptoms worse, and delay recovery. The reason antibiotics are given is that they shorten the contagious period. So if you give your son antibiotics, you are making the choice to sacrifice his recovery for the benefit of others. I know many mothers would be okay with that, but at least they should be given the information of what they are doing, so they can make an informed decision.

If he is diagnosed with whooping cough, the doctor by law must notify the health department. They will want your son and your family to take antibiotics. I suggest you fill the prescription even if you have decided not to take them. They will have no way of finding out you aren't taking them, so don't worry.Health Question & Answer

Both of my kids (ages 8 & 6 at the time) had whooping cough in the summer of 2007. It took a while to figure out what they had because they had both been vaccinated for it as babies. Even the Health Department called me because there had been so few cases of it around our area (we're in Canada).

As far as I know, there are no over-the-counter drugs that can help. We had tried everything. The antibiotics helped, but it still took a good 3 weeks after we started them for the cough to finally settle down. It took my oldest a good few months to be rid of the symptoms and it she eventually got walking pneumonia. The earlier you catch it, the better, so get to the doctor as soon as you can. My younger daughter had a much easier case of it because we caught it earlier with her. The doctor even gave us an extra-strong cough supressant for nighttime so they could finally get some sleep. I spent many hours cleaning up after they would cough so hard that they would throw up.

Good luck. It is hard - but it gets better :-).Health Question & Answer

get him to the ER.Health Question & Answer



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