Ask anyone what normal body temperature is and they'll surely respond 98.6°F. But that is only an average taken from a normal range that the majority of the population falls into. There are some exceptions. The normal temperature range for most people is 96.0°F - 99.6°F
It's very important to understand that a fever is a NORMAL response of the body to foreign invaders like bacteria and viruses. The body recognizes a foreign invader and the brain acts to increase body temperature to make things unsuitable for the foreign invader. Most bacteria can only tolerate a certain temperature range and once outside of it, do not survive. It's important to understand that fever is not the result of damage to the body by germs; the body creates fever in response to exposure to germs. Fever has been shown to increase levels of antiviral substances the body produces and also minerals like copper and zinc, the combination of these and other changes help the body's immune response ward off infection.
A fever is any temperature between 99.6° - 105°F.  Many people have a fear that if a fever gets too high from an infection that brain damage can occur, but this concern is not warranted.  Only in rare cases is there a risk of febrile seizures and in these cases there is a “short circuit” in the hypothalamus of the brain which acts like the body’s thermostat.
Any treatment with a main objective of lowering a fever is generally a mistake if the fever is not very high (over 105°F.)  The public, through media outlets and false health care information, have been lead to believe that if you have a fever you need to reduce it.  Studies have shown that people who take a fever reducing medication on average take longer to recover than those who took nothing!  Bringing down a fever is like a fireman who tries to turn off the fire alarm rather than fight the fire.  The fever is your body’s NORMAL response to foreign invaders. Let the body do its own work!  Drink plenty of fluids, feed yourself good food and rest...the body will take care of itself. This article is intended to be educational purposes and is not a substitute for medical evaluation and examination.