Egypt’s Ministry of Health and Population announced on Saturday a number of important pieces health tips to citizens in conjunction with warnings from the General Meteorological Authority that the country is expected to experience some unstable weather throughout the autumn season.
Hossam Abdel Ghaffar — Official Spokesperson for the Ministry of Health and Population — explained that the autumn season is characterised by fluctuations in weather in the form of hot mornings and cold nights, along with other instances of windy or rainy weather, adding that these fluctuations can lead to complications in patients with allergies and sinusitis.
Furthermore, Abdel Ghaffar said that the symptoms of sinus infections intensify in autumn and spring due to fluctuations in temperature throughout the day, as well as increased wind and dust activity. He noted that sinus allergy patients need to follow some advice to protect against any complications.
Sinus allergy patients may show some symptoms that indicate acute sinusitis such as thick discharge from the nose — usually yellow to green — nasal congestion or blockage, facial pain, a body temperature of 38° Celsius, fatigue, coughing, difficulty or inability to smell, ear pressure or fullness, and headaches.
The spokesperson advised sinus patients to wash their nose with saline solutions or sprays to reduce secretions, get rid of irritants and allergies, drink enough water daily, put warm compresses on the face to relieve pain, and avoid causes of nasal irritation such as smoking inside the house and household cleaners that cause fumes, stressing the readiness of the ministry’s hospitals to receive any patients.
He also pointed out that exposure to cold weather outside or inside the house can lead to a variety of pathological symptoms that occur as a result of the inability of the body as a whole, or parts of it, to adapt to low temperatures and cold waves that may lead to multiple health damages.
Therefore, it is necessary to warm the body and prevent the repercussions of cold weather by wearing heavy clothes suitable for cold or rainy conditions and not being outside the house in the cold, wind, and rain for a long time.
The ministry also called on citizens to get the coronavirus vaccine and the booster doses to protect themselves and reduce infections, as well as the need to receive the influenza vaccine in the fall, as it reduces the risk of infection with influenza and protects against simple respiratory infections.
Additionally, Abdel Ghaffar advised citizens to eat healthy meals and drink plenty of fluids even before going out in cold weather, because this will help maintain the body’s temperature, stressing the importance of exercising physical movement in the hands or feet to facilitate the body’s blood flow.
