Causes

Your body’s temperature is an important indication of how well you are dealing with germs, stress, exertion, or extreme changes in weather. By itself, a high temperature is not necessarily cause for concern. It can actually be a perfectly normal way for your body to defend itself against infection. Your body shivers to help produce the heat it needs to fight germs and sweats to regulate the rise in temperature.

Symptoms

Symptoms of a fever can include:

• Shivers
• Shakes
• Sweating
• Aches

Self-Care

A fever is a special cause for concern in infants under 3 months of age, the elderly, and individuals who are taking medications that suppress the immune system. But for most people, there is no medical reason to try to reduce a fever unless it is accompanied by other symptoms of illness.

• With no other symptoms, medications are not necessary. But if fever makes you uncomfortable, take aspirin, acetaminophen (Tylenol or a generic), or ibuprofen (Advil or a generic). For children, use acetaminophen, not aspirin.
• Drink eight glasses of fluids a day. When you have a fever, you lose body fluids, so it’s important to prevent dehydration.
• Call your doctor if fever lasts longer than 3 days or if you develop other symptoms.