The 8 Most Effective Flu Medications

The flu is a problem that most of us face or have faced one or more times throughout our lives.. It is a disease that has the potential to be fatal (in fact throughout history it has been times) but that currently in societies like ours is not usually more than a nuisance in most cases. cases.

However, treating a flu is more complicated than it seems. In fact, there are no medications that actually "cure" the flu, the treatment being doctor mainly dedicated to reducing the affectation and symptoms caused by the fact of suffer it What flu medicines are there and what are they for? In this article we will briefly explore this issue.

Defining the flu

Before going into what medications are used to alleviate your symptoms, perhaps it would be useful to define what the flu is, which at the popular level is often confused with a cold.

The flu is understood as a viral infection of the respiratory tract, generally caused by the influenza virus. Although we generally talk about the flu as something general, the truth is that the influenza virus mutates easily and different strains and subtypes can be found that generate different types of flu. Specifically, there are three main types: A, B (these two are the most frequent and the so-called flu seasonal) and C, although from time to time new strains may appear as occurred with swine flu or bird flu.

The main symptoms of most flus usually include fever, headache, sore throat, runny nose, muscle pain, altered thermal perception and chills. It frequently causes respiratory disturbances, such as difficulty inhaling and coughing. In fact, its most important and dangerous complication is usually pneumonia.

The contagion of this disease can occur through different routes, which generally include contact with fluids from a sick person through the nose, mouth or conjunctiva. For example, it can be transmitted through saliva or even through the air, such as after a sneeze or a kiss.

Main medicines used in people with flu

As we have indicated previously, the flu still does not have a curative treatment today, and the body must overcome it on its own. The medical intervention will be based on the fight against the symptoms and discomfort generated by it.. In this sense, in most cases you can get to prescribe a series of medications for the flu that we will mention below.

1. antivirals

Zanamivir and oseltamivir (better known as tamiflu) have been considered drugs with some effectiveness in preventing the virus from reproducing within the body, being inhibitors of the enzyme neuraminidase (which allows the release of the virus from infected cells to others). The first of them is used by inhalation, while the second is administered orally.

Although it does not eliminate the infection, in principle it allows its spread to be controlled and can also serve as a prophylaxis. They produce some improvement and can shorten the time the virus is in our body, but they are not capable of curing the condition. Neither have they shown a real effect in the prevention of respiratory complications.

Because the improvement they provide is limited and in some cases they can cause problems and side effects, they are not usually recommended or prescribed. In fact, their effectiveness is considered to be low and many people consider them a fraud.

2. Analgesics

Since generally the pain caused by the infection at the level of the throat, head and joints is usually one of the most annoying symptoms, one of the main medications prescribed in case of flu are painkillers. Highlights the paracetamol as one of the most popular.

3. antipyretics

Controlling body temperature and fever is also necessary when we are suffering from the flu, so that the group of drugs known as antipyretics have also been used to reduce it.

4. antihistamines

Improvement of nasal symptoms such as runny nose, although it usually occurs on its own in a few days, can be induced from the application of antihistamines.

5. Analgesic-non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs

If we hear this name, it may seem strange to us, but the truth is that This is the group of medicines that includes ibuprofen.. They serve both as an analgesic and antipyretic, reducing fever and pain. It also has some anti-inflammatory effect.

6. antitussives

Respiratory conditions are very common during the flu, with coughing being one of the most common symptoms. For this reason, an antitussive can sometimes be prescribed to reduce this symptom, although it often has little effect.

Syrups or creams are usually used to apply to the skin so that they release vapors that will be inhaled over time. There are other products for this, being one of the most powerful (and reserved for cases in which the cough is very annoying and causes pain) codeine. At a more natural level, foods such as honey can be used.

7. flu

Despite his name, flu medicines do not actually fight the flu viral infection but focus on relieving its symptoms. As a general rule, it is the combination of an analgesic, antihistamine and antitussive. They are not usually prescribed clinically, but are still very popular and reduce a large number of symptoms or discomfort. They are usually the type of product that we see advertised on television (specifying that they are dedicated to combating the symptoms), and there are widely known and used brands.

8. antibiotics

Although it is not usual In some cases, the flu can be complicated if, in addition to the virus itself, you have a bacterial infection. In these cases it may be necessary to use antibiotics such as amoxicillin. However, the effect is only on bacterial infection, not on the flu itself (which is a viral infection on which antibiotics have no effect).

The vaccine as real prevention

Although the treatments that are applied for the flu are not curative but merely palliative, the truth is that we have ways to avoid its spread. Specifically, we are talking about the flu vaccine, which must be applied annually. An inactivated sample of the virus is injected into the body so that the subject's body generates antibodies that prevent future infections. However it must be taken into account that they are multiple and that the flu virus is very mutable, making it easy for new strains to appear.

Although a large part of the population does not wear it, it is essential for those populations for whom contracting the flu can pose a danger. This is the case of the population that has reduced defenses, as occurs with the elderly, children and the chronically ill and/or immunosuppressed (for example, people suffering from HIV infection or diabetes).