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Conventional doctors today do a great job of scaring people out of their minds about the possibility of rheumatic fever/heart damage from allowing the body to deal with a strep throat infection unmedicated. However, the truth is, the risk of complications from strep throat is very small for healthy people who have no issues with their immune system. Even WebMD used to state that strep throat will go away on its own with or without treatment in 3-7 days.
Ive written before about the one and only case of strep throat I ever had. It occurred when I was 15 and I am ever so grateful my MD father loved me enough to let me fight through it and win without antibiotics. The result? Ive never ever gotten strep throat again despite repeated exposures. One exposure was in very close quarters a college roommate had strep throat and I still didnt contract it! Whats even more interesting is that none of my children have ever had strep either despite multiple exposures from friends and classmates.
I obviously built up a strong resistance to strep throat at a young age and have been blessed with never having to suffer with it again by allowing my body to fight through it naturally. Its also quite possible I passed on my immunity to my children via breastfeeding, although that is obviously just an educated guess on my part.
For others, the article triggered an aha moment with more than just a few deciding once and for all to stare down the strep throat demon and win!
Is Strep Throat Overmedicated
Mmmm.
Sounds like the idea of not administering antibiotics for strep throat may not be as crazy as it first sounds. Are doctors overmedicating strep throat just like they overmedicate ear infections, colds and sinus/respiratory infections?
A round of antibiotics has the potential to cause permanent damage to the gut flora. This, in turn, has a lifelong impact on overall immunity to both chronic and acute illness. Skipping those antibiotic pills altogether may prove in the long run to be the smartest approach of all.
What Happens If A Baby Gets Strep Throat
The short answer is that babies rarely need to be treated for strep throat. In children over the age of 3, the bacteria that causes strep throat can cause significant complications if untreated. The bacteria can cause trouble in a childs kidneys, skin, and heartthe infection should not be missed!
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Is Strep Throat More Common In Kids Than Adults
Yes. Strep throat is most common among children ages 5 to 15. Its rare in children under the age of 3.
While strep throat is not very common in adults, some adults can be at higher risk of catching the illness. This includes parents of school-age children and adults who have a lot of contact with children and those under high stress.
Children And Certain Adults Are At Increased Risk
Anyone can get strep throat, but there are some factors that can increase the risk of getting this common infection.
Strep throat is more common in children than adults. It is most common in children 5 through 15 years old. It is rare in children younger than 3 years old. Adults who are at increased risk for strep throat include:
- Parents of school-aged children
- Adults who are often in contact with children
Close contact with another person with strep throat is the most common risk factor for illness. For example, if someone has strep throat, it often spreads to other people in their household.
Infectious illnesses tend to spread wherever large groups of people gather together. Crowded conditions can increase the risk of getting a group A strep infection. These settings include:
- Schools
- Up to 3 in 10 children with a sore throat have strep throat
- About 1 in 10 adults with a sore throat has strep throat
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What Happens If Strep Throat Is Untreated Is Strep Throat Serious
Generally, strep throat occurs very mildly in children and goes by itself in a week. But sometimes, due to certain environmental factors, the infection can become worse.
Untreated strep throat results in various complications in children. These complications can be mild or severe. Although, the complications which occur due to untreated strep infection are rarely experienced, it may be possible that the complication may occur because of an infection or bodys immune response to the strep infection.
Strep Is A Bacterial Infection
Most sore throats are caused by viruses, or are side effects of infections in other parts of the nose or sinuses. However, strep throat comes from a common bacterial group, Group A Streptococcus, also known as Streptococcus pyogenes.
Group A strep bacteria are some of the most common disease-causing bacteria in humans. About 5% to 15% of all people have the bacterium in their bodies without showing any signs or symptoms of infection. Only humans carry group A strep bacteria.
Group A strep can cause a whole range of health problems, from strep throat and scarlet fever to skin diseases like impetigo and cellulitis. It can cause the devastating flesh-eating disease necrotizing fasciitis, too, which kills about one quarter of its victims.
It is important to determine if your infection is caused by strep, as antibiotics are prescribed to decrease the chance of complications.
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How Long Does Strep Throat Last
Strep throat will only last 3 to 7 days with or without treatment. Doctors usually treat strep throat with antibiotics even though they will not make you well any faster. Strep throat contagiousness will continue for 24 hours once antibiotics are started. With no treatment, strep throat continues to be contagious until symptoms resolve.
In response to the persistent overuse of antibiotics for strep throat, the journalCanadian Family Physician states:
symptoms caused by a bacterial sore throat fail to clear much faster when treated with antibiotics than they would if left alone.
It is certainly easier and quicker to hand out prescriptions every time than to explain and reassure. Each time we do this, however, we reinforce patients fears.
Do family physicians have to declare a conflict of interest in answering these questions? If we were to lower ourselves to examining the vulgar subject of money, it is certainly in our financial interest to keep many patients scared enough to rush to our offices whenever they get sore throats.
In view of the large number of antibiotics prescribed for sore throats, perhaps it is time to review whether we should be using such treatment for strep throat infections at all.
Home Remedies For Strep Throat
Sore throat is not the same as for strep throat, as strep is a bacterial infection, yet many sore throat remedies can also help ease the symptoms of strep throat.
In addition to getting plenty of rest and drinking lots of water, you can try the following home remedies, which are aimed at killing the bacteria that causes strep throat. Keep in mind, however, the only way to cure strep throat is with antibiotics.
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Strep Throat Easily Get Contagious
Because it is a kind of bacterial infection, the situation will get worse if you let it disappear on its own.
If you have signs that show you get strep throat, you should be urged to protect yourself immediately from being severely affected by its complications and other health risks. Places such as schools, offices or daycare centers help strep throat bacteria spreads in a rapid speed.
You will be more vulnerable to strep throat when you suffer from droplets brought from infected people via cough and sneezing. You can be susceptible to it through direct contact between people. Some actions including kissing, and sharing cups or utensils can make it you to be more prone to strep throat.
It Is Likely For The Body To Build Its Natural Immunity To Fight Off Strep Throat
We would say yes if you ask does strep throat go away on its own?. It is just because we can develop an immune system to combat strep throat so that it can disappear on its own. The only controversial issue is that not everyone can have a healthy immunity. This system varies from one person to one another. It is still possible for this bacteria infection to go away on its own, though.
It will take around 3 to 7 day for strep throat to disappear with or even without antibiotics. Although strep throat can be healed quickly with antibiotics, especially amoxicillin or penicillin, the one with a proper function of immunity can still skip antibiotics to get over from the infection.
In some cases, you could witness people recovering from strep throat without using antibiotics. Nevertheless, the truth is that its symptoms go away whereas, the strep throat itself which is left untreated will keep contagious. And, it will take much time to get back at a good health condition.
Get back to the crucial point here. How our body will develop its immune system to heal itself when being confronted by bacteria and viruses.
Have you noticed the fact that some people taking antibiotics still get strep throat after just a short time? It will happen over and over again without any warning. This point is a drawback of using antibiotics for so many times. However, using it to fight against strep throat will minimize the risk of being infected, contagious, or getting complications.
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Strep Throat Can Leads To Severe Complications If It Is Left Untreated
Every coin has two sides. This means that strep throat could go away on their own. But, do you imagine that how terrible it is if you have a weak immune system? The case will be much horrible because strep throat will be contagious and causes some severe complications if we just leave strep throat untreated.
Those who are weak in immunity or dont have a good gene, the complications will be triggered if strep throat is left unattended. The most worry problem is that strep throat can lead to rheumatic fever. Thats why although it can SOMETIMES go away on its own, it is still necessary to treat it with antibiotics to reduce the risk of getting this kind of fever.
In case, antibiotics are your choice to combat strep throat, and you havent decided which is the best antibiotics for you. Please read our BEST ANTIBIOTICS FOR STREP THROAT IN ADULTS then you can make up your mind which is the most suitable one for you.
Why is rheumatic fever so dangerous? It is because if you experience it, your heart can be damaged. As reported, most of the cases with rheumatic, the patients hearts suffered from valves which then forces our hearts to work harder than usual to pump enough blood. If this condition lasts for a quite long time, the chance is that you will be attacked with a severe health state called rheumatic heart disease.
The Potential Cause Of Your Sore Throat
When you have a sore throat, strep is probably the first thing that comes to your mind. Yet strep only accounts for 5% to 15% of all sore throats in adults and 15% to 30% of all sore throats in children. The main cause of sore throats, or pharyngitis, is usually viral. Strep throat, on the other hand, is caused by bacteria, typically group A beta-hemolytic streptococcus. Group C and group G streptococcus can also cause strep throat, and group B streptococcus can cause infections in newborns.
Northwestern Medicine Otolaryngologist Riddhi Patel, MD, answers common questions about strep throat.
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Antibiotics Get You Well Fast
Doctors treat strep throat with antibiotics. Either penicillin or amoxicillin are recommended as a first choice for people who are not allergic to penicillin. Doctors can use other antibiotics to treat strep throat in people who are allergic to penicillin.
Benefits of antibiotics include:
- Preventing the bacteria from spreading to others
- Preventing serious complications like rheumatic fever
Someone who tests positive for strep throat but has no symptoms usually does not need antibiotics. They are less likely to spread the bacteria to others and very unlikely to get complications. If a carrier gets a sore throat illness caused by a virus, the rapid strep test can be positive. In these cases it can be hard to know what is causing the sore throat. If someone keeps getting a sore throat after taking the right antibiotics, they may be a strep carrier and have a viral throat infection. Talk to a doctor if you think you or your child may be a strep carrier.
My Experience With Untreated Strep Throat
My serious doubts about the wisdom of using antibiotics for strep throat go back to my one and only experience with this infection the summer I turned 15. Strep was by far the worst sore throat Ive ever had and the pain when I swallowed was almost unbearable to endure.
My Father, a Family Physician, made the decision not to put me on any antibiotics and let me ride it out under my own power. My Dad wasnt into herbs or anything so I didnt have any alternative treatments administered either.
The infection lasted over a week my memory remembers a full two weeks but it might have been a few days shy of that.
I lost several pounds during that illness as I could only endure swallowing liquids the entire time. I pretty much subsisted on vanilla milkshakes from the ice cream shop down the road for the duration of that awful infection and I still got well under my own power with no complications.
The interesting thing is thatI seem to have developed an immunity to strep ever since. Ive never had strep throat ever again in 35+ years. This is despite repeated exposures at close range. During college, I even had a roommate with strep and didnt get sick. This despite eating pretty rotten cafeteria food and lots of sugary foods. This no doubt suppressed my immune function considerably.
Is it possible that allowing the body to fight off strep throat naturally on its own confers partial or total immunity?
Why?
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What Is Strep Throat Caused By
Strep throat is a painful infection in the throat caused by streptococcal bacteria. This type of bacteria is extremely contagious and can be spread by coughing, sneezing, or sharing food and drinks. If your child touches a surface with the bacteria, like a doorknob, and then touches their mouth or nose, the bacteria may also spread this way. Often, a person may be carrying strep without exhibiting any symptoms.
How Long Is Strep Contagious For
When you get infected, you typically start to show symptoms about 2 to 5 days after you were exposed to the bacteria. You can stay contagious for up to a month if you dont get treated. Antibiotics can prevent the infection from spreading. People who take antibiotics stop being contagious after about 24 hours.
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How Long Does It Take For Strep Throat To Go Away
When youre knowledgeable about does strep throat go away on its own you will reckon how long does strep throat last without antibiotics or how long it will last with medications.
To be more specific, symptoms of strep throat tend to become visible around two to five days after you are in contact with the bacteria which causes this infection.
Those with a strong immune system: The symptoms of strep throat, as previously mentioned, will soon disappear even without medications after three to seven days.
Those with a weaker immune system: The symptoms can last up to six months without any signs of recovery.
In some cases, if you just leave the strep throat untreated, that person could be contagious during a period of around two or three weeks. However, the thing we worry is that you could have to undergo undesirable complications. Only by taking antibiotics or proper prescription, you could reduce the risks and get over the disease quicker.
As regards using antibiotics to treat strep throat, you are advised to remove the tonsils to prevent the strep infection from occurring again. To understand why you should do that, then this useful article is for you WHY DO PEOPLE GET THEIR TONSILS REMOVED.
Moreover, sometimes you find tonsil stones in your throat. If youre in that situation, you want to know whether you could get tonsil stones when you have no tonsils, lets spend time discovering CAN YOU GET TONSIL STONES WITHOUT TONSILS.
Recovery How Long Does Strep Throat Last
If you receive strep throat antibiotic treatment, your illness may only last for one to three days. If left untreated, recovery will take longer, and your risk for developing complications will increase. Additionally, without treatment, you can still be contagious for several weeks, even after you stop feeling sick.
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What Is The Best Home Remedy For Strep Throat
While there is no known cure for strep throat with home remedies, there are ways to treat the symptoms of sore throat. Some options to help alleviate the symptoms of strep throat at home include:
- Drinking plenty of warm liquids, such as hot tea, soups, or broth. This will alleviate some of the irritation of the sore throat and keep you hydrated. Adding honey, peppermint, licorice root, or ginger to your tea can also help soothe your throat.
- Eating something cold, like a popsicle, or sucking on hard candy or lozenges can also help relieve some of the throat soreness.
- Gargling with warm salt water may reduce swelling and irritation in the throat. Mix ¼ to ½ teaspoon of salt in 8 oz of warm water and gargle . This can be done every hour for relief.
- Getting plenty of rest to help your body fight the infection.
- Avoiding acidic foods that may irritate your throat, such as citrus fruits or tomatoes.
- Taking over-the-counter medications and pain relievers, such as Tylenol, Motrin, Aleve, or Advil may be used to help reduce fever and pain associated with strep throat.
- Running a humidifier can help keep mucous membranes moist and decrease some of the irritation caused by a strep throat infection.
