Thursday, January 19th is National Popcorn Day and one of the world's most recognizable popcorn brands is right here in Sioux City. "We're available in about 99% of all major grocery stores in all 50 states in over 40 countries across the world." They are one of the most recognizable names in popcorn and have built their empire in Sioux City. "We've been in Sioux City since 1914. It started in my great-grandfather's basement," said Alex Smith, 5th-generation in Jolly Time Popcorn. "I think the next year it moved to his garage, and then in 1916, we moved to this plant where we're at right now and we've stayed here ever since." Located at One Fun Place on the north side of Sioux City, Jolly Time Popcorn is a family business through and through. "There's a lot of pride in it and not only you know with myself, my brother works here and he has a lot of pride," Smith said of the family business. "We just all have a special bond of what you know, jolly time and what family means to us because we have this cool story that we can all share together." And that story has really popped since its first batch. "We started in you know, selling on selling in the streets with street vendors and then you go to an old school can where you pop it now to kernel bags, and jars that you pop over the stove," Smith said, "but then microwave is just very easy to use and most convenient and you can do a lot of fun stuff with it." While corn is one of the midwest's biggest commodities, not all are used for ethanol. Most of their popcorn is sourced within 200 miles of Sioux City. "We've used the growers the same growers for a very long time," Smith said. "I think there are multiple growers that have been growing popcorn for three generations on their family farm." With regionally grown white and yellow kernels, what type makes the best batch of popcorn? That may be a matter of opinion. "The perfect patch of popcorn is probably the yellow kernels," Smith said. "There are two types of kernels white and yellow. Yellow is a little bit bigger and has a kind of a natural butter taste to it. And so I think the best batch is in the microwave just because it's a lot easier for me to make. But when it comes out hot and you can smell it. There's nothing better than that." To find a full list of Jolly Time products, you can check them out online here. SEE THE VIDEO
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It may seem like the latest thing in health trends but for many, being gluten-free is not a lifestyle choice but a medical necessity. Celiac Disease is an immune-mediated response to gluten and affects 1 in every 100 people worldwide. "And what that causes a lot of inflammation in the small bowel and this can lead to atrophy of the tissue" said Dr. Jeff Michalak, a gastroenterologist at MercyOne Siouxland. Celiac Disease is an immune response to gluten that can lead to damage in the small intestine and if untreated, more serious complications. So gluten is an allergy and so it causes inflammation specifically in the upper small bowel," Dr. Michalak explained. "And when that happens it can lead to pain, bloating, looser stools, and so from that standpoint, it should be avoided." But what is gluten exactly? Common items like bread and cereals are typically full of gluten. "So specifically your wheat, your barley, your ryes," Dr. Michalak said. "There's a lot of cereal even certain malts that can be in beer and alcoholic beverages." Jackie Kuchta was diagnosed with celiac disease 8 years ago."The GI complaints along with migraines," she said of her major symptoms leading up to diagnosis, "almost a month-long migraines before we realize what was causing them." She says finding foods that won't make her sick can sometimes be a challenge. "For true celiac disease, it is difficult to manage especially if you're the only one in the household that has the celiac disease," she said. "Then trying to ensure that you have an adequate nutrition level to ensure that you don't lose your the necessary vitamins and minerals that you need." Most are diagnosed between the ages of 10 and 40 and Jackie says looking back, the signs she had an aversion to gluten were always there. "(My) symptoms really hit about eight years ago, but looking back at childhood going out to eat on like Sundays or holidays, a lot of times I would end up with bloating abdominal pain after eating," she explained. There is no cure for Celiac Disease, like many other immune disorders, but it can be managed by a careful diet and proper nutrition and lifelong adherence to being gluten-free. To learn more about Celiac Disease, visit Celiac.org. SEE THE VIDEO Woodbury County Auditor Pat Gill held a news conference Friday morning to discuss what he says is the biggest case of voter fraud he's seen in his 27 years after the wife of Woodbury County Board of Supervisors Vice-Chairman Jeremy Taylor was arrested and charged with multiple counts of voter fraud. 49-year-old Kim Taylor made her initial appearance in Federal Court Thursday on 52 voter fraud-related charges including 23 counts of "fraudulent voting". The court documents themselves claim that Taylor launched her scheme in April of 2020 to create more votes for her husband, Jeremy Taylor, in his failed bid for the Republican nomination for the 4th District Congressional seat in the June 2020 primary and for his successful bid for the Woodbury County Board of Supervisors in the November 2020 general election. Following her initial appearance in court, Kim Taylor was released on a personal recognizance bond. READ MORE: Wife of Woodbury Co. Board of Supervisor vice-chair charged with voter fraud At Friday's news conference at the county courthouse, Woodbury County Auditor Pat Gill provided more details about the case and the role his office played in the investigation. "I care about the process. The integrity of the process, and that's what drives me and that's what I was very concerned about when I saw this start to take place." Gill was first alerted about an issue during the primary election in 2020 when precinct officials noticed irregularities in the absentee ballots. "So I was called down during the primary and two precinct election officials called me over and said, 'take a look at these ballots,'" Auditor Gill said, "and they were write-in ballots that were cast in the Republican primary. What they had was a stack of ballots that were written in, and this is the first time I've ever seen this where you could tell by looking at them that they were all filled out by the same person." During the 2020 Primary election, Jeremy Taylor was running for the Republican nomination for Iowa's 4th Congressional District against incumbent Steve King and eventual winner and current representative Randy Feenstra. "Jeremy Taylor was on that ballot for the congressional seat, but written in were 150 primary write-in votes for District 3 which was open at that time," Gill explained. "And then there were also 135 write-ins for Jeremy Taylor for auditor." Two poll workers, a democrat and a republican working with the absentee ballots noticed the similarities in the write-in votes the day of the primary election. "It was a precinct election official who was at the absentee precinct that called it to my attention," Gill said about the primary election ballots, "so they wouldn't see the signatures." Auditor Gill says it wasn't just the write-in ballots that looked the same but come the general election, many of the signatures also seemed to be done by the same person. "My staff was telling me for a long period of time, that during the primary election and the general election of 2020, there were a lot of signatures that were coming in on those affidavit envelopes that looked like they were signed by the same person," Gill explained. "That is a fact. That's what occurred." Because Iowa is not a signature verification state, there was nothing the county could do until a voter raised a concern about their ballot. That concern came from a student at Iowa State University. Our office received a call or staff took the call and a person said that they had requested an absentee ballot and they went to the Secretary of State's website where we all enter that information. And when they looked at the Secretary of State's website this person told me, you have a ballot from me, and I didn't vote that ballot," Gill said. Further investigation revealed that it wasn't just that student, but their sibling as well. And their names and ballots were cast in the 2020 primary, 2020 general election, and a special Board of Supervisors election held that year as well. None of which the two siblings had voted in themselves. Gill informed Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate's Office and the County Attorney's Office about the irregularities, who escalated it to the FBI. "When I was visiting with the FBI, they told me that they would like to see those, and I asked him if they were interested in seeing the other affidavit envelopes that had the same signature, and they said yes," Gill said at the news conference, "and so I had my staff go through every affidavit envelope." "That was during the primary election and during the general election and had them pull all those ballots or affidavits that look like they were concerned with that they'd brought to me initially." Gill says his office had received complaints about Mrs. Taylor in 2020 but says he wrote them off as her campaigning for her husband. "I had received complaints about Mrs. Taylor but I kind of wrote them off as the same thing as anybody else does because you know how campaigns are people are very active," said Gill of the initial complaints. "They work with people to get them to the polling place. They'll take them to satellite sites. And there were complaints about that before, but I never thought that any of that was actually occurring until I saw those ballots that were actually filled out and they looked like they were filled out by the same person." But he also remembers something else about that year. "One fact that I can say is that when I would leave sometimes in the evening, I would see Kim Taylor putting ballots in the box and Supervisor Taylor was in the vehicle when that was taking place. That's a fact I can tell you." Earlier in 2020, Jeremy Taylor's place of residence was brought into question after voters challenged his seat on the board, after purchasing a home outside his elected district. READ MORE: Taylor questioned about residency after buying home outside elected district READ MORE: Challenge filed against Woodbury Supervisor Jeremy Taylor "Yes, in January 2020 is when I think that was first filed, the voter registration challenge," Gill confirmed. "It was during that period of time that took place." Election officials have also looked back at the 2014 and 2018 election ballots where Jeremy Taylor was also listed but did not find any irregularities. In 2020, the bulk of the ballots in question came in absentee but Gill says were not part of the pre-filled absentee ballot request forms sent out that election cycle. Gill said these ballots didn't just impact the local vote, "obviously if somebody's filling out those ballots they're filling out all those contests," Gill said. Siouxland News reached out to Jeremy Taylor and Kim Taylor for comment on the charges but have not received a response. Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate told Siouxland News Friday: “Election integrity and security is paramount in what we do on a day-to-day basis. At this time, our office cannot comment on an ongoing investigation.” SEE THE VIDEO On main street Le Mars alongside the coffee and ice cream, you'll find hidden gems with gifts galore. "We always have our customers in the back of our minds when we are looking for that special something to bring into our store." Jill Mescher and Cary Penning have a clothing boutique, well, a few actually! And they are all under one roof. Penning has Shop Cary Boutique, with clothing and gifts for women in all stages of their life. Mescher has Sugar and Spice Children's and Tween Boutique and Lily Zita Teen Boutique, with items for kids and teens of all ages. "Everything is hand-picked," Penning said. "We go to markets and we sourced the items and if we love them we know that everybody else will love them too." Down the block, sits Simpatico Decor, a "cool, funky store" as described by owner, Jennifer Scholten. Here you can find new and vintage pieces of decor, and many one-of-a-kind items you'll likely not find anywhere else. "I don't like to buy a lot of any one thing I tend to be a one-and-done store," Scholten said while looking around her boutique. "There are a few things that I do like a lot and that I will order and bring back in. I have and my joke is it's David Bowie." While there is a Bowie portrait hung on the wall for sale, Scholten also gives space for local artists around northwest Iowa. Each of these shops brings shoppers a unique experience, and they aren't the only ones that do. "We have everything from birth to 106 and we can prove it in writing!" Domingo Torres has built one of the biggest toy stores in the Siouxland area. Thinker Toys sits inside a castle in Sioux City's Singing Hills and he really does have something for everyone of every age. "When somebody comes here, we are supposed to and we do know more about our toys than anybody that walks through the door," Torres said. "So, therefore, you can touch, feel and you know what exactly that toy or that item does or doesn't do." Torres and his team, who have been in business for over 30 years, pick out every toy they sell, attending vendor shows nationwide, ensuring everyone who comes into the castle will walk out with the perfect item. "Come on and just let us show you what store we have," Torres said, "because of the fact that we will try to make you look good when you get that precedent." And during the season of giving, shopping locally doesn't just help you find the perfect gift. Supporting small businesses helps your hard-earned dollar go farther. "I do hear people saying 'well downtown used to be this or used to be that'. Well, buying online depletes from the sales downtown," Scholten explained. "If you want a vibrant downtown that's going to support your community and attract people to your community, you should be down here shopping." According to sustainableconnections.org, local businesses donate more per sales dollar to local nonprofits, events, and teams compared to national chains, keeping money in the local economy. "I feel like there's a lot of small pieces that paint a big picture and with shopping small businesses, we paint the bigger picture of creating a community more like a home rather than somewhere just to live," said Mescher. 'Small businesses will donate to your charitable thing," Scholten said, using the town's little league team as an example, "I would be hard-pressed to see if Amazon's going to do that." Shopping local also helps you find the right gift for your friend or family member, or even yourself, with help from those who hand-picked the items in their shop. "We get to know the likes and dislikes of our customers and seek things out for them," said Scholten. "I'm always I always have a list of things that I'm hunting for someone's looking for a specific kind of a chair or they're looking for a piece of art or that sort of thing. So that's a personal touch. You definitely don't get in the in the big box stores." "We always have our customers in the back of our minds when we are looking for that special something to bring into our store," said Mescher. Keeping money in the local economy means a better community overall," which is something the Le Mars Chamber of Commerce sees first-hand. "One of the reasons I love shopping local is because you can't get the experience of walking into a shop being greeted by a community member who not only loves the community, but they want I mean their whole livelihood depends on it," said Michaela Brown, President of the Le Mars Chamber. "And so you're gonna get the best shopping experience when you shop local and come to your local shops." "I think the community is seeing the benefit of that," said Scholten. "There's a lot of new businesses coming in downtown Le Mars and a lot of nice new growth with people buying buildings and wanting to bring in new businesses." And when checking out a local shop for the first time, you may just find the perfect gift, maybe something you didn't know you were looking for. "You're going to find some great gems," Brown said. "You're going to have a wonderful experience meeting the shop owners and some good food along the way. So you just can't beat shopping local." "All we ask is that people give us a chance just look here first," Scholten said. "We're not going to have everything this is a nice little boutique. And if they give us a chance they might be surprised by what they would find." "We're very proud and pleased to be here," Torres said. To find a list of local businesses in your area, check your community's Chamber of Commerce website. And to learn more about each store listed here, you can find the links in their names within the story above. SEE THE VIDEO Dozens of Siouxlanders are left without a home just weeks before the holidays after a fire broke out at the Ida Apartments late Thursday night. Sioux City Fire Rescue was called to a structure fire at the Ida Apartments located at 1901 Pierce Street. The fire was reported shortly before 9 p.m. As of 11 p.m., the fire had not been contained and crews were still throwing heavy streams of water on flames coming from the roof and third-story windows. "We had crews go in and try to they went up to the top floor to get into the attic space and try to make an initial attack," said Sioux City Fire Captain, Dustin Johnson. "The attic space was well involved at that point. So at that point, we withdrew all of our personnel after we made sure everybody was out of the apartment from top to bottom." The building was evacuated and Sioux City Police and Sioux City Fire tell Siouxland News they believe all residents are out. Firefighters were able to do a thorough search of the building when they arrived on the scene. Sioux City Transit buses were called in to help keep evacuated residents warm and out of the snow. Volunteers were setting up a church for the more than two dozen residents to stay for the night until more permanent housing could be arranged. Two displaced residents tell Siouxland News that having this happen just before Christmas makes it hurt even more. "Now we ain't got no place to live. I lost everything in my apartment, all my Christmas gifts. I lost everything. Can't go get my money and stuff too," said Roy Wagner. "I lost everything," said Richard Hull. "I'm talking about. I got like at least $10,000 worth of stuff up in there." "I don't know at this point," Wagner said, "they're talking about having us live in a church for a little bit. But I have a medical dog and I just don't know what to do anymore. Sioux City Fire Rescue says they won't be able to determine a cause until the fire is out and they will remain on the scene throughout the night until everything is extinguished. They don't know the extent of the fire damage to the entire building at this time but did say that the attic and third-floor apartments are heavily damaged. "Some of the top floor apartments and that attic space are going to have heavy damage to it from the fire and also from the water," said Captain Johnson, "and so with the amount of gallons per minute that we're putting in this building right now we're gonna have a significant water damage." Johnson said it could have been much worse had the residents not been able to evacuate quickly and safely. "The big thing I just want to stress to just make sure everybody has, especially this time of the year is to have working smoke alarms inside your apartment units or houses," he said. "If you need them. We can definitely come onto your house and install them it's free of charge. We just want to make sure everybody's safe." SEE THE VIDEO Backers of Summit Carbon CO2 Pipeline tour Ida County corn processor as plans move forward11/30/2022 Just off Highway 20 outside of Galva, Iowa in Ida County, Quad County Corn Processors is one of 32 facilities partnering with Summit Carbon Solutions’ proposed carbon capture and storage project. Wednesday morning they invited stakeholders and members of the media to the facility for a tour to see how this partnership could benefit Iowans. In operation since the 2000s, QCCP is a leader in ethanol production in Iowa. They've partnered with Summit Carbon Solutions and their proposed pipeline to capture the CO2 the plant creates. "We actually use every piece of the kernel of corn all the way from protein to converting the fiber to cellulosic, so low carbon intense ethanol and also now the co2 value," said Delayne Johnson, CEO of Quad County Corn Processors. Currently, about 60% of that CO2 is released into the atmosphere. Johnson wants to change that. "This is going to bring our carbon intensity of our fuel down," he said. "And it really just brings more to our bottom line and allows us to have a good bid for our farmers for the corn that they produce." During our tour of the processing plant, we had the chance to see the corn processing systems up close. Johnson says capturing their CO2 instead of releasing it will help Northwest Iowa's Ag community in the future. "If there's lower demand for ethanol at times when people have to produce less, it'll be the plants that are not connected to the CO2 pipelines that will actually reduce their run rates or have to shut down," said Johnson, "so we see this as a way to add competitiveness to quad county value proposition which also adds value to the farmers in the local communities." "But these proposed CO2 pipelines aren't being well received by some landowners in their path. There are lawsuits against Summit and Heartland Greenway, the other proposed CO2 pipeline in several Iowa counties. Summit says they are still pushing forward. "There are about 170,000 miles of pipelines across the five states in which we operate. There are over 5000 miles of co2 pipelines in operation in the US currently," said Jim Pirolli with Summit Carbon Solutions. "And a lot of these projects have been in service for many, many years." Summit says they have almost 52% of the easements needed from landowners for the entire project. "Across the entire project, we're about 52% of the easements have been signed. That's over 2,050 miles," said Pirolli, "so well over 1,000 miles of voluntary easements had been signed almost 60% in Iowa, and that's over $100 million spent paid to landowners for those easements just in this state. About $240 million of easement payments across the entire system." Summit is confident in its pipeline and Quad County Corn Processors are eager to get started with the project ultimately capturing 100% of their CO2 emissions. "We see this as adding about $4-5 million to our bottom line every year as we go forward. And that's a very unique opportunity," Johnson said. "We don't get those types of opportunities often. We also believe that being on a pipeline is critical to be part of the future. Summit Carbon Solutions hopes to have the permits needed by next summer with construction beginning fall of 2023. Their goal is to be fully operational by the year 2024. SEE THE VIDEO The Sioux City Police Department Citizen Police Academy has been part of the department since 1995 with the 44th class graduating earlier this month after 11 weeks of training. This fall, Siouxland News Anchor Katie Copple went through the citizen academy to learn a little more about the work our brothers and sisters in uniform do. The academy is held each fall, and after a pause for COVID-19, the 44th academy class met in August for the first of 11 weeks of hands-on training. "It was very eye-opening to learn all the process they had to go through and we only got a glimpse of it." Kristen Sweeney is one of roughly two dozen Siouxlanders who took part. "It was just so exciting to go through some of the steps they went through in the training and it just really opened my eyes to the whole process together." Each week brings a different lesson.. sometimes multiple in a night. We drove police cars through an obstacle course. Officers took us through firearm training giving us a chance to fire several different weapons. The Department's SWAT team suited up for a breaching drill at the training facility. They even showed us some of the equipment they have on hand for any scenario they may face. And yes, we had the chance to try it all ourselves. Department veterans teach specialized classes. Each one is tailored to give a first-hand look at how the men and women in uniform keep the community safe. Trust is everything. "In any relationship, the foundation is going to be trust and we have to have trust amongst each other of course, but if the police can't do the job of the public, it's the foundation of that relationship. The foundation of being able to operate in our society together. So we can't do without the citizens and the citizens from time to time need us and we need them and it's just a reciprocal relationship." Lieutenant Ryan Bertrand led several courses throughout the academy. He and the other department leaders put us through scenarios officers could face showing how even a call that may seem minor can turn in an instant, making you think on your feet, trust your training and your gut. "When we do the scenarios where we give a person like a fake gun that makes noise and we give them a scenario that they've never encountered before, it's so awesome to see like the genuine reactions to "how I would handle this" and sometimes it's over the top sometimes they don't do anything and sometimes they do way too much," Lt. Bertrand said. "But it's, either way, we all learn from it. That's the exact same process the police go through." When we first gathered in August we were all strangers, but at graduation in November we left as friends with a new understanding of law enforcement. "I think learning a lot about everything Police Department does I think we don't think about all the processes they go through and all the extra programs they do to help the community," said Sweeney. "So it really opened my eyes and realize that there's a lot that we can also volunteer to help it really out." On the last week of class, I along with 5 others volunteered to be tased. You can see a video of that here! The citizen police academy is a truly eye-opening experience and gave this journalist a new respect for our brothers and sisters in blue. The Sioux City Police Department holds the academy each fall. Watch their Facebook page for when registration opens. SEE THE VIDEO Verizon "Call for Kindness" brings a gift of groceries to Siouxlanders this holiday season11/22/2022 Verizon is highlighting kindness this holiday season with local surprises that are set to be the talk around the Thanksgiving table and one of those surprises happened right here in Sioux City. Verizon teamed up with Siouxland News and Hy-Vee to give out 25 $100 gift cards to unsuspecting customers at the local grocery chain. On Thursday, November 17th, Steve Van Dinter, Siouxland News Anchor Katie Copple hit the aisles of the Gordon Drive Hy-Vee to hand out those gift cards to those grabbing groceries. This was all part of Verizon's nationwide Feeds the Love, Call for Kindness campaign, and the wireless retailer is stopping in cities all over the U.S. to spread a little holiday cheer. Earlier this year Verizon and NextDoor conducted a research study with kindness.org to reveal the most appreciated and cost-effective ways neighbors can spread kindness in their communities. It turns out the #1 kindest act someone can do is buy groceries for a neighbor. In the Kindness.org kindness project, Iowa ranked 47th out of the 50 states for the kindest people. Nebraska and South Dakota both were in the top 15. Read more about the project here. Special thanks to Verizon, Hy-Vee, Siouxland News Anchor Diana Castillo, Siouxland News Reporter Taylor Deckert and Siouxland News Creative Services Producer Angel Morrow for their dedicated work in making this happen. SEE THE VIDEO Bring V Home: Educators work to bring boy who captured their hearts back home to Siouxland11/4/2022 Efforts have been launched to bring a beloved 9-year-old boy back to Sioux City after he abruptly disappeared earlier this year. Several staff members of V's former school are raising funds to bring him back to Sioux City. A little boy from Africa captured the hearts of his teachers at Perry Creek Elementary a few years ago. "He came to us in 1st grade and didn't speak any English because he was new to our country," said Amy Denney, who was the Principal at Perry Creek at the time. "He quickly soaked up everything, he was a little sponge." In April 2022, when V was in 3rd grade, he and his family moved back to their home country in Africa. But then his family returned to Siouxland and V wasn't with them. Then one day this August his school got a message from someone who had V. "I'm looking for Mrs. Denney. I have V and I need to get him back to you. He needs to continue his studies in America. Can you help him?" Denney says a good samaritan had found V alongside the road took him in and was taking care of him. But V recently contracted malaria and because of a lack of resources where he is, has become malnourished. "He's had a rough time there and he needs to get back here as soon as possible," Denney said it took her and others some time to verify the person they were talking to was real and had V. Since fall, she's been in contact with the good samaritan, and with V himself. Now Denney and a few others who love V are working to get him back home to Perry Creek Elementary. They've launched a GoFundMe to help get him the paperwork he needs to come to the US and also the medical care and everyday items he will need once he comes home. "The outpouring of love and support from Siouxland is overwhelming to me," Denney said. "I've been emotional about it because they don't know him. No one wants to see a child struggle and go through the trauma he's gone through." Denney has been working with others in the community to get him back to Siouxland, to the family who will care for him, and get him into 4th grade at Perry Creek where he dreams of being. "We're going to get him back here," Denney said. "And I want him to be able to be a happy, healthy boy who can go to school and someday he is going to do great things. I am certain. He is going to do great things someday." To learn more about V and to help bring him home, you can find the GoFundMe here. Denney says V will need help once he is back in Siouxland, from medical and dental care, to emotional support and more and says the help she's already received from the Siouxland community will help give this little boy the life he dreams of and deserves. Those working to bring V home are doing so on their own time, out of love for a little boy who captured their hearts just a few years ago. SEE THE VIDEO As the weather gets colder, illnesses start appearing including RSV. It's a common illness among infants and the elderly but for some can be very serious and require hospitalization. The frustrating thing about RSV and a lot of these respiratory viruses is there's no effective treatment to kill it or shorten the course Dr. Jeremy Granger is a pediatrician with UnityPoint Health. "Even without knowing for sure that it's RSV. The things to look out for are the same things you would look for in general with any respiratory virus, primarily, difficulty breathing, rapid breathing, labored breathing, and signs of dehydration." Dr. Granger has been seeing a rise in cases of RSV in Siouxland over the last few weeks. "About two weeks ago, it seemed to really pick up for us," he said. "September we saw a lot of just regular respiratory viruses and hand, foot and mouth. And then the last two to three weeks we're seeing RSV, influenza, Rhinovirus which is kind of always around. And then for the last two weeks a lot of para-influenza virus and adenovirus." Dr. Granger says most babies with RSV can be treated at home with nasal saline, suction, and Tylenol. Some infants might do well with a nebulizer or a breathing treatment, but that's not the case for all. "Sometimes we will use breathing treatments, but not all children need breathing treatments and in fact, sometimes it can make it worse," Dr. Granger said. "So if your kid is breathing comfortably, even if they have a little bit of wheeze, many times we will not do any medicine because you know, we first want to do no harm." "When we see children in clinic, we're making sure that they're breathing comfortably and that their oxygen is good," he continued, "but we don't routinely order x-rays. And those are national guidelines that come from national studies that have been done." For babies with a fever, Dr. Granger says sometimes a high and fluctuating fever is a good sign. "Fevers can make you feel uncomfortable. It will make your breathing hard and heavy and make your heart beat fast, but it's also a way that our body uses antibodies to kill off viruses," he said. "But if your child's 101-1-2 and they don't seem in much discomfort, you can let them simmer at that temperature. The body will bring that temperature back down and they'll cycle up and down every few hours. And that's the nature of fever. And that's not necessarily a bad thing. It's kind of like Last Man Standing. Our cells can tolerate temps around 106 without damage and viral particles start to kind of break down the protein at higher temps." But if the fever does get too high, it's best to see a doctor. "If they have a fever, and they're uncomfortable, treat it. If they're over 104-105, they probably need to be seen." When it comes to nighttime care, have your child sleep on their back, or even in your arms, because nights can be scariest for parents. "So nighttime is the worst and generally days 3-5 are going to be your worst nights with RSV. So if you've made it past those nights, you're usually on the downhill slide." During the winter months, it's also not uncommon for kids to have several viruses at one time. 'And it's not uncommon to find them positive for three to five viruses all at the same time," said Dr. Granger. "We call it viral stalking. You just get one illness after another." Dr. Granger says RSV is so common, it's almost impossible to avoid. "With RSV, you're probably not going to avoid it. Everybody gets it at some point and adults can get it too." "If you've had a cold through the winter, you probably had it so I wouldn't let the name scare anyone too much. Just pay attention to the symptoms and the child in front of you. And if your guts telling you it doesn't look right, bring them in and we'll take care of her from there. But everybody under the age of two gets RSV at least once so even if you don't know that your child had it, they probably did at least once through the winter." Those who have RSV, even if they don't know it, can still shed the virus from 8 days to three weeks which makes this virus so contagious for everyone from infants to adults. SEE THE VIDEO |
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