Thermometer

[Totterdown]

I tried to buy a thermometer today. First chemist was out of stock of the conventional "in the mouth" ones but offered me one you could put over the forehead. I declined thinking I could get another one elsewhere. Second chemist said exactly the same and said they could not get any supplies of the mouth ones anywhere and had only four left of the forehead ones. So I bought one. It is very easy to use, but do you think they give a completely reliable reading? Everyone is going mad to get a thermometer since the swine flu scare.

[Greedyfly]

My mum always used the head ones on my sister and I - we could never hold the mouth ones in lol. They seemed to work fine.

[Richard1966]

But....

Its JUST FLU!!!!!

No worse and probably less severe than the normal annual flu that hits us every single year. Do you worry about a thermometer for that?? Why worry about it for this then.

I blame the media for all this panic.

[Totterdown]

I never said anything about ME getting it because of the swine flu scare. Nothing wrong with keeping a thermometer in the house. I just chose the wrong time to decide to get one. I am quite aware of the media hype, thank you very much.

[Totterdown]

But.......thank you Greedyfly for your words.

[daffy654]

Same problem here Totterdown.I have all the symptoms of swine flu but as I can't take my temp they won't prescribe me Tamiflu at my GP surgery.
I am off to bed now as I feel like death.

[daffy654]

Before I go......richard,you may think there is nothing to worry about,but as I have emphysema if I do have swine flu it could be very serious for me.

[Totterdown]

Right Daffy. If people want to get a thermometer to check for swine flu or anything else they should do so without having to explain their reasons for people like Richard. In any case, I was enquiring about the reliability of the forehead ones, not asking his opinion about whether I was being over cautious about swine flu.

[slinkycat]

Hi totterdown
Read something in a national newspaper the other day about various thermometers ( in an article about swine flu - what else!)
It said that forehead thermometers have to be left on for about 5mins, and even then you have to add something like 5 degrees (please don't quote me on that!) to the reading, because they don't take your core temperature as an in the mouth thermometer would.

[Totterdown]

Thanks for that slinkycat. On the instructions with the forehead thermometer it says keep on head for 15 seconds. I have my doubts about this kind of thermometer and think I will get a mouth one when I can (probably when the swine flu scare is over!). According to your 5 extra degree rule, I well and truly would have swine flu!!

[carlton23]

Forehead thermometers are used in hospitals, so go by that.

[ethandron]

forehead ones are better than nothing, but in my experience aren't very accurate. have you tried aldi for a thermometer? we got a digital one there on wednesday. it's aimed at children and has a frog on the end of it but it's a proper thermometer.

[Mohne]

Richard....are you Little Richard?"...LOL

Now.....if you think that you have H1N1 and you haven't taken your temperature....rightly or wrongly....you don't get tamiflu.

No it is NOT just FLU. It is a virus that affects the younger age group and children, also at risk are the people with underlying diseases.

You blame the media...don't shoot the messenger....the reason is that the public by and large in the UK have filthy habits and this adds to the spread of the virus.

[KRUSTYMAN]

I haven't got flu. I have no intention of getting caught up in all the hype even though my own brother has 'supposedly' got swine flu and has the medication but I went out and bought a thermometer so that I don't get caught up in all this is it/isn't it rubbish. I dare say there are a lot of cases of genuine swine flu but I think there are just as many misdiagnosed by people wanting to play safe. It's a big bad world but you just have to keep your head and be sensible (and Clean!).

[carlton23]

Hand disenfectant in small bottles are for sale in all chemists for 99p, cheap at 1/2 the price

[Totterdown]

You are right carlton, and even cheaper in Tesco. But this is nothing to do with thermometers and the reliability of the forehead ones which is what my original question was all about. I never even mentioned the swine flu panic. But the thread seemed to drift into it................

[Totterdown]

When I said I didn't mention swine flu, I meant the original question was nothing to do with swine flu. Swine flu somehow took over the question.

[bushbaby_de]

I had to go into every shop in Reading to find a thermometer. Nowhere had the normal ones but oddly enough had the all-singing-all-dancing ones for about �35. I finally tracked down a digital one for a tenner at Mothercare of all places. We had the same issue of not being able to get a diagnosis without a temperature reading. Maybe they should have posted one to every home along with the swine flu leaflets if they're going to be so strict about it!