Mumps diet and taboos

Give priority to foods that are warm, cool, soft, do not require excessive chewing, and will not stimulate large amounts of saliva secretion. Strictly avoid acidic, spicy, hard, and heavily seasoned foods to minimize the burden on the parotid glands and avoid aggravation of swelling and pain.

Not long ago, a 7-year-old neighbor's boy suffered from scabies. At first, the parents were inexperienced, so they cut the child's favorite oranges to replenish vitamin C. The child squatted on the ground and cried covering half of his face after taking a bite. The parotid glands were only slightly swollen in the first place, but after a long time they became bulging like small buns. In fact, he stepped on a typical pitfall of "acidic food stimulates saliva secretion". It should be mentioned here that there has been a widely circulated saying among the people, saying that if you have mumps, you should eat more sour foods to "release the poisonous gas". This statement is currently not supported by clinical evidence - when the parotid gland is inflamed, the parotid duct itself is in a state of edema and blockage. , the more saliva is secreted and cannot be discharged, the more bloated and painful it will be, which will delay recovery. Current mainstream clinical guidelines clearly indicate that acidic foods should be avoided. Whether it is oranges, lemons, yogurt, or cold dishes with a lot of vinegar, try not to touch them during the disease.

Three days before the onset of the disease, the pain often makes it difficult to open the mouth, and it is even difficult to swallow. At this time, do not force solid foods. Warm pure milk, sugar-free soy milk, boiled millet porridge, pumpkin porridge are all suitable. You can even give the child a small mouthful of sugar-free popsicles. Low temperature can temporarily relieve swelling and pain, which is more convenient than applying a cold towel. Just don't buy the ones with fruit pieces or sour taste. A little patient I cared for before had to rely on popsicles to relieve the pain for two days. Even the porridge he drank had to be cooled to room temperature before he would drink it. On the contrary, he recovered faster than a child who was forced to drink hot porridge. After the acute stage is over and the pain is no longer so severe, you can add some steamed eggs, soft boiled thin noodles, stewed winter melon, mashed yam, etc. It can be swallowed without much chewing and will not stimulate saliva secretion. Just transition slowly.

I encountered a very unfortunate case in the outpatient clinic last year. A 16-year-old high school student contracted bacterial mumps. After three days of infusion, he felt that he was fine. He secretly ate hot and sour noodles with his classmates and gnawed on two fried chicken legs. That night, the fever reached 39 degrees, and his parotid glands were swollen as if he had a ping pong ball in his mouth. When he came back for a follow-up visit, he couldn't speak well. It was caused by the double stimulation of spicy and hard food. In addition to spicy and sour foods, those that require hard chewing such as nuts, crisp apples, and raw carrots, as well as those that are too salty such as pickled vegetables and sauced meats, try not to touch them. Even if you feel that you are almost healed, it is best to wait until the swelling has completely subsided for 3 days before slowly returning to normal eating, so as not to suffer for a few more days because of your greed.

There is another point that is easily overlooked. Many parents feel that they need to take supplements when they are sick, so they specially stew thick bone soup or old hen soup for their children to drink. In fact, it is completely unnecessary. Digestive function will also be affected during the onset of mumps. Soup that is too oily will easily increase the burden on the gastrointestinal tract, and may cause stomach upset. Just keep it light. It is not too late to supplement nutrients after you are completely healed. By the way, whether it is viral mumps or bacterial purulent mumps, it is best to rinse your mouth with light salt water after eating to avoid food residues remaining in the mouth and causing bacterial growth, especially for patients with purulent mumps. This is particularly important.

In fact, mumps itself is mostly self-limiting and will be cured in a week or two. There are not so many complicated rules on diet. The core is not to "add work" to the parotid glands. You can feel comfortable as long as you feel comfortable. If you really can't help but eat something and feel uncomfortable, rinse your mouth in time and apply a cold compress. If it is serious, see a doctor. Don't be too anxious.