wht precautions should be taken so that other family member will not get infection ....which is sufferimg from gastro
Answers
"The best way to reduce your chances of getting viral gastroenteritis is to wash your hands thoroughly with soap and running water for at least 10 seconds before handling and eating food, and always wash your hands after using the toilet." (Tip: Suggest children sing the entire "Happy Birthday" song before stopping handwashing.) "It is vital that if you or your family contract gastroenteritis, you stay home from work or keep a child home from school if they are sick." You should also avoid visiting settings where people are especially vulnerable such as hospitals or aged care facilities. The symptoms can take between one and three days to develop and usually last another one or two days, sometimes longer. In most cases, spread occurs from a person who has symptoms. But some people can pass on the infection without symptoms, particularly in the first 48 hours after recovery, or in the window between them becoming infected and developing symptoms. If you are a parent with a young child in a childcare centre where other children have had gastro, Bill Rawlinson advises being proactive. "Be extra careful with your own child that they're not sharing spoons and food with their brother or sister or you because they may well be incubating it." He says outbreaks occur every two to three years when viruses mutate in ways that make them better able to infect people. The good news is if you've been laid low this year, you might have a breather the next few years. "The group of people who have it then become immune and don't tend to get it for the next two or three years." TOP Dealing with gastro There is no specific treatment for viral gastroenteritis except rest and drinking plenty of fluids. Replacing lost electrolytes, salts and minerals, is also important. Previous advice that recommends keeping children off solid foods for some time after gastro is no longer the case (For more info see "Don't starve gastro".) The ideal way to replace lost fluid is a commercial rehydration drink, available from a pharmacy. It has the correct amounts of electrolytes such as sodium and potassium, as well as glucose for energy. This can help with two of the major gastro symptoms: headache and fatigue. Be sure to use at the recommended strength because if it's too concentrated, it can actually promote further diarrhoea and dehydration. "People think 'oh it says one teaspoon per cup, I'll put in two, that'll be better'," Rawlinson says. While you can make your own rehydration fluids from fruit cordial, soft drinks or fruit juice , diluting these is particularly important for children: Fruit cordial should be diluted one part to 20 of water (1:20) Soft drinks or fruit juice should be diluted one part to five of water (1:5) Do not use sugar-free or low-cal ("diet") versions of cordial, soft drink or juice The loss of as little as 10 per cent of a child's body weight by fluid loss can be fatal (this equates to just one litre for a 10 kilogram child). Older people are also more prone to dehydration because their kidneys "aren't quite as good at handling changes in salt and fluid," Rawlinson says. And elderly people often have other health conditions such as "hardening of the arteries" – thick and inflexible arteries caused by a build up of fats and cholesterol. In those cases, a sudden drop in fluid levels in the body can trigger a heart attack or stroke, he says.