Living With HPV: How To Take Good Care Of Yourself
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HPV is a DNA virus that comes from the papillomavirus family. The term papilloma refers to the wart that results when you are infected with HPV. HPV lives in the body’s epithelial cells. Some of the excellent examples of epithelial cells are the ones found on the surface of the anus, vulva, penis head, mouth and throat.
The virus is mainly spread via sexual contact. You should note that although a condom aids in protecting you from getting the virus, you should ensure that you use the condom properly.
This means that you should ensure that all the skin is covered by the condom before you have sex. You should also ensure that the condom does not break during a sexual act.
You should note that the virus has no cure; therefore, you should take care and ensure that you don’t get the virus.
Some of the best ways of protecting yourself from getting the virus are: through vaccination and using a condom every time you have sex. You should also avoid having sex with more than one partner.
Having the virus does not mean the end for you. Once you know that you have the virus you need to take good care of yourself.
By taking good care of yourself you can easily help your body fight the virus. Some of the best ways of taking good care of yourself are: making healthy choices, visiting a healthcare provider and considering your needs.
Making healthy choices
The best healthy choice that you need to make is to eat a nutritious diet. Here you need to eat foods that are rich in beta-carotene and folic acid. Some of the best beta-carotene foods that you can eat are: tomatoes, collard greens, and squash.
Some of the best foods that contain a lot of folic acid are: whole grains, broccoli, and beans.
You also need to stop smoking. This is because smoking tends to weaken the immune system. Smoking has also been shown to increase ones risk to different cancers such as cervical cancer in women.
Another healthy choice that you should make is to get plenty of sleep every night. It’s recommended that you get at least eight hours of sleep every night. This is because by resting you ensure that your immune system is better equipped to fight HPV.
Visiting your healthcare provider
Health care providers are the ones who have the skills and knowledge to manage your condition; therefore, you should regularly visit them. For example, you should regularly visit your doctor for PAP smear tests.
Genital warts are usually problematic to treat. This means that you can treat them with a number of medications and fail to respond.
This means that you need to make several trips to the doctor so that he/she can take a look at your condition and if the condition is not responding to the prescribed medications he/she can go ahead and prescribe others.
Even after the warts have cleared you need to schedule follow-up visits to the doctor to see if there are any complications. Doctors recommend that you should also perform self-examinations between the doctor visits and if you notice anything wrong you should visit your doctor immediately.
Considering your needs
One great way of taking good care of yourself is considering your condition. For example, if you are pregnant you need to know that you need special medication for your condition.
You also need to know that you need to live a lifestyle that is different from other people who are not pregnant.
You also need to know that if you have low immunity you are prone to more frequent outbreaks; therefore, you need to stay away from situations that might provoke the outbreaks from coming up.
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Source by Rey Villareal
