Hi Freckled ,
the last poster " brownelephant " has hit the nail on the head !
Your daughter needs to have a good vitamin D level. It will help fight off Epstein-Barr virus. ( Infectious mononucleosis - i.e. GF ) .
At the end of this post I link to a scientific explanation , somewhat more complex , but the gist of that research paper is as follows:
Vitamin D is a regulatory hormone , which is part of the control mechanism for over 2000 genes, that is 10 % of the entire human genome. It has effects on many bodily systems , not only bones, but inflammation , bacterial and viral defence mechanisms, growth, foetal development, etc. Vitamin D , is the ONLY hormone that is limited by the environment. By that, I mean, food and sunlight on skin will determine how much of the vitamin D hormone is available to all the cells in the body. Without sufficient Vitamin D hormone , those cells cannot work properly. In this instance B and T immune cells might not be able fight off GF.
Every other hormone is made as required from within the body from existing plentiful compounds, hormones such as cortisol, growth hormone, progesterone, estradiol, aldosterone etc. The point I am making is that without sufficient Vitamin D , your girls immune cells will be hampered in fighting off that infection. Sufficient Vitamin D will enhance immune cells ability to react and so eliminate the pathogen. ( Epstein-Barr virus ).
Throughout the world , infection by Epstein - Barr is common. In third world countries , many children have been infected asymptomatically, and fought it off by 5 years old. Generally they have no after effects. Their immune systems cope with it. However , here in the West , the situation is different , although about 90 % of us become infected within our lifetime , it is more commonly at a later age and can cause a symptomatic illness.
My suggestion would be , to make sure that she has a good level of vitamin D , supplement her if necessary. You could ask her doctor to make the necessary test , or you could send off for a test at this NHS Lab here . <a class="break-all" href="http://www.vitamindtest.org.uk/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.vitamindtest.org.uk/</a> ,
I have written on a few threads here on Mumsnet , and explained that here in the UK , we cannot make Vitamin D in our skin , from sunlight, between mid-Oct and mid-April. sunlight does not have UVB radiation , and cannot generate Vit D. It is for this reason that many of us are deficient. I would be very surprised if your daughter had a sufficient level at this time of year.
If your daughters level is below 100 nmol/L then she could very well be helped by a supplement . That supplement should aim to raise her blood level to over 100 , preferably to 120 - 140 , ( the common human level , found in a sunny, healthy environment )
To achieve those kind of levels in a teenager , your daughter will probably need to supplement by about 3000 to 6000 IU per day for a couple of months at least. Without measuring her current level , you will not know the best dose. Although 3000 IU per day is well below the USA Institute of Medicines ( I.O.M ) Tolerable Upper intake level , TUIL of 4000 IU .
I hope this information is helpful. If you need any more info then please get back to me.
best of luck
BTBH
P.S. I have posted quite a bit here on Mumsnet about Vitamin D . search my user name.
PPS . The link to that medical paper
www.hindawi.com/journals/ad/2012/189096/