Test positive for COVID? Valley doctor shares best home remedies

PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) -- As respiratory viruses circulate, there’s a chance you could catch COVID-19 this winter even if you’ve never had it before.

“I do think that there are people within our population that have not had COVID that may end up getting it now that have not previously had it before,” Dr. Michael White, Chief Clinical Officer with Valleywise Health said.

Dr. White also says even those who have had COVID-19 in the past are, “susceptible to being able to contract it again as the virus changes.” With that in mind, Arizona’s Family enlisted the help of Dr. White to go over the best COVID-19 home remedies in case you or a loved one catches the virus over the holidays.

“The first thing is to consider how you’re going to be able to manage being isolated or staying home, and minimizing the contact or the opportunities that you may be able to transmit this to other individuals or other people within the community,” Dr. White said.

He also said to call your doctor to go over your symptoms and determine if you should start taking Paxlovid, an antiviral treatment for COVID-19. “For a certain population, that’s at high risk for progressing to have severe disease or where having COVID-19, you know, they have other medical conditions where they may end up in the hospital or needing you know, accelerated support to be able to recover from the virus, Paxlovid is likely going to benefit,” Dr. White said.

But, what if you have a mild case with little to no symptoms? “I’m not sure that we know enough to say, ‘oh, absolutely, it benefits everybody in that patient group,’” Dr. White added.

What else you can take? Dr. White says acetaminophen like Tylenol might help with aches, pains and high fever but there’s one over-the-counter medicine you might want to avoid.

“Paxlovid itself, you can take ibuprofen along with it. You have to be careful if you take ibuprofen and other cold medicines that the cold medicine itself does not also contain ibuprofen so you’re not getting big doses. So certainly talk about that with your healthcare provider,” Dr. White said.

The Valleywise physician also stressed the importance of drinking fluids and avoiding sugary beverages. He says if you do catch COVID-19, you should also avoid alcohol, tobacco and marijuana.

The guidance about isolating is still the same. The CDC recommends staying at home for at least 5 days if you test positive and masking from day 6 to 10 if you are out and about.

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