tiph12 OP t1_jdyy7sn wrote on March 28, 2023 at 5:23 AM

Reply to comment by mikeber55 in ELI5: why is it ok to take paracetamol to break a fever? by tiph12

That's when the fever gets too high, I get that -- but does that mean as long s it's safely below 40°C (or the adequate threshold for elderly, infants, etc.), it is better to keep it going?

Arquen_Marille t1_jdyzo98 wrote on March 28, 2023 at 5:40 AM

The problem is that fevers can suddenly spike dangerously high with no warning, and there’s a limited amount of time to try to get it under control before there is harm to the brain. So it’s good to try to control the mechanisms that could cause that by taking medications that lower the temperature. Fevers are designed to try to kill infection, but it’s an imperfect biological response that could kill the person instead of help them. Especially in babies.

torama t1_jdzv3h3 wrote on March 28, 2023 at 12:24 PM

It is not like the body announces "yeah I am going to be a nice warm 38 degrees for afew hours now" It can spike and get really dangerous.

tiph12 OP t1_jdzv7hj wrote on March 28, 2023 at 12:25 PM

Wouldn't that be lovely though!