As part of its advocacy to educate the public about dengue fever through mainstream and digital media, Bell Kenz Pharma hosted forums in cities of Iloilo, Roxas, and Bacolod recently.
Dubbed ‘Dengue Alert: Beware, Be Aware, Understanding and Fighting Dengue’, the forums were headed by Dr Daisy Tagarda, Fellow of the Philippine Society for Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Dr Allan Jake Dela Cruz of the Department of Medicine at Saint Louis University of Sacred Heart, and Christine Joyce Aguinaldo, Registered Nutritionist and Dietician.
A virus that belongs to the family ‘Flaviviridae’, dengue has four strains namely DENV1, DENV2, DENV3, and DENV4. The severity of the disease depends on the virulence of the virus and host factors.
Signs and symptoms to watch out for include fever, headache, retroorbital pain, nausea, rash, aches, leukopenia or a low white blood cell count. Meanwhile, warning signs include abdominal pain, persistent vomiting, fluid accumulation, bleeding, restlessness, liver enlargement, hematocrit and platelet count anomalies.
The forum reiterates the importance of the ‘4S Kontra Dengue’ – seek and destroy breeding places, secure self-protection, seek early consultation, and support spraying to prevent an impending outbreak.
It was also indicated that persons more susceptible to bleeding due to dengue include persons with low blood pressure, persons taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories such as mefenamic, persons with peptic ulcer disease, and persons taking anticoagulants.
Aside from the 4S, Dr Tagarda also introduced a revolutionary way to help prevent/treat the disease. The immunoglobulin colostrum, bovine colostrum, has bioactive components and proteins that help improve the immune system.
In a research study spearheaded by Dr Allan Jake Dela Cruz, Department of Medicine at Saint Louis University of Sacred Heart entitled ‘effect of standard hydration therapy with immunoglobulin colostrum versus standard hydration therapy with placebo in hospitalized patients with dengue fever with warning signs’ – it was found that immunoglobulin colostrum has beneficial effects.
Immunoglobulin colostrum serves as a safe adjunct – decreases fever clearance time, incidence of headache, and mucosal bleeding.
As such, a product was developed that contains immunoglobulin colostrum: IgCo Skim Milk Powder with Natural Colostrum.
IgCo Natural Colostrum Skim Milk is a natural health product extracted from the colostrum of New Zealand dairy cows. It is a highly nutritious functional food that not only possesses all the goodness of milk but contains immune factors, growth factors and other health-promoting substances. One box of IgCo contains 30 sachets and each sachets contains 150 mg Immunoglobulin G.
For more information about the product and its benefits, visit IgCo Natural Colostrum Skim Milk website.
