- Beat the Winter Bugs:
How to Hold Your Own Against Colds and Flus
- By: Michelle Meadows
Practice healthy habits.
Eating a balanced diet, getting
enough sleep, and exercising can help the immune system better
fight off the germs that cause illness. Because smoking interferes
with the mechanisms that keep bacteria and debris out of the
lungs, those who use tobacco or who are exposed to secondhand
smoke are more prone to respiratory illnesses and more severe
complications than nonsmokers.
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If you've been feeling run down,
some stress management might not be a bad idea. David Skoner,
M.D., chief of allergy and immunology at Children's Hospital
in Pittsburgh, has studied the effects of chronic stress on susceptibility
to cold and flu infections. "We've found that people who
experience more stress are more likely to get sick and experience
worse symptoms," he says. Examples of chronic stress are
personal crises such as going through a divorce or feeling stuck
in a bad job.
"Research has also shown
that the more social you are, the less likely you are to get
sick," Skoner says. It could be because having more social
contacts and support is less stressful than keeping to yourself,
he says.
Safe Relief from Symptoms |
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Drink up and rest.
Fluids such as water, juice,
soup, and non-caffeinated beverages can help loosen mucus, keep
you hydrated, and make you feel better, especially if you have
a fever. Alcohol and drinks containing caffeine may have a dehydrating
effect. To help others stay healthy, limit your exposure to them
and promptly throw out tissues rather than letting them pile
up on your nightstand.
Gargling with salt water can
help relieve a sore throat. A cool-mist humidifier, which breaks
water into droplets and releases them into the air, may help
relieve stuffy noses.
Keep the humidifier clean to
avoid a buildup of mold, which could be harmful if inhaled. Saline
nasal drops and suctioning with a bulb syringe can help infants
and small children breathe better. But be gentle because aggravating
the nasal passages could make swelling worse. Also, dress sick
children comfortably--like you would dress yourself, Pickering
says. "Some parents bundle them up if they have a fever,
but that can make it worse."
Choose over-the-counter (OTC)
medicines that are appropriate for your symptoms.
With all the choices on the shelves,
it can be hard to know what medicine to pick. It may seem easier
to grab a multi-symptom medicine that promises to take care of
everything, but it's better to take a product specific to your
symptoms, says Jeffrey Delafuente, a professor and director of
geriatric programs at Virginia Commonwealth University's School
of Pharmacy.
"If your only problem is
a runny nose, why take a cough suppressant?" he says. Taking
medicine for symptoms you don't have may not be harmful, he adds,
but it unnecessarily exposes you to medicine and the accompanying
side effects. "Multi-symptom medicines can be useful if
you truly have many symptoms."
If you want to unclog a stuffy
nose, then nasal decongestants may help. Cough suppressants quiet
coughs; expectorants loosen mucus so you can cough it up; antihistamines
help stop a runny nose and sneezing; and pain relievers such
as acetaminophen can ease fever, headaches, and minor aches.
Check with a pediatrician or your family physician first before
treating children suffering from cold and flu symptoms with medicine.
Don't give aspirin or aspirin-containing
medicines to children and teen-agers.
Children and teen-agers suffering
from flu-like symptoms, chickenpox and other viral illnesses
shouldn't take aspirin because of the possibility of Reye's syndrome.
Some medicine labels may refer to aspirin as salicylate or salicylic
acid. Be sure to educate teen-agers, who may take OTC medicines
without their parents' knowledge.
Children with Reye's syndrome
start vomiting and become drowsy within a few days of becoming
sick. The disorder, which is now rare, can affect all body organs
and lead to brain damage and death. Reye's syndrome occurs almost
exclusively in children 4 to 12 years of age and is rare in adults,
Pickering says.
Read OTC medicine labels carefully
and follow directions.
Use the dosing device that comes
with the medicine and don't exceed recommended dosages or length
of use. Taking a nasal spray for too long during a cold could
result in an even stuffier nose, for example. Always check with
a doctor first if the correct dose for a child isn't listed on
a label and before giving a child more than one medicine at a
time.
Delafuente says he tells older
people, who often take multiple medications, to check with a
doctor or pharmacist before taking a new OTC cough and cold medicine
because some can worsen underlying health problems, such as high
blood pressure or heart disease. Decongestants can speed up heart
rate, for example, and antihistamines can cause urinary retention
in men with prostate problems. For both young and old, antihistamines
can make you drowsy, which could affect driving.
Be sure to check expiration dates
and get rid of old medicine. The FDA has warned consumers against
using OTC and prescription drug products containing phenylpropanolamine
because the ingredient has been associated with an increased
risk of hemorrhagic stroke (bleeding in the brain). This ingredient
was commonly used as a decongestant in OTC and prescription cough
and cold medicines before the warning.
Be careful not to double up
on ingredients.
If you take more than one medication
at a time, be careful not to duplicate ingredients, says Marina
Chang, a pharmacist with the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation
and Research. "Look at the active ingredients of every medicine
you take," she says.
For example, you don't want to
accidentally take two different medicines that both contain acetaminophen.
The same goes for taking acetaminophen tablets to relieve pain
while also taking a cough medicine containing acetaminophen.
Too much of this drug can result in liver damage.
Jon Temte, M.D., Ph.D., associate
professor of family medicine at the University of Wisconsin Medical
School, recalls a young woman who came in complaining of a racing
heartbeat and anxiousness. He discovered her symptoms occurred
because she had taken two different products, both containing
a decongestant.
Facts About Flu Drugs
Relenza (zanamivir) and Tamiflu
(oseltamivir), both approved for use in 1999, are to treat uncomplicated
cases of influenza caused by types A and B flu virus. Tamiflu
also is approved for preventive use, while Relenza is approved
only for treatment. Two older drugs, amantadine and rimantadine,
which are sold under the trade names Symmetrel and Flumadine
respectively, are approved for the treatment and prevention of
Type A influenza.
Talk with your health-care provider
about any use of these drugs in children. The doses and approved
ages are different for each. Because some of the drugs' side
effects can be serious and because viruses may become resistant
when antiviral drugs are used indiscriminately, the FDA recommends
that decisions to use these drugs be based on individual evaluations
of risk and benefit.
Relenza, which is orally inhaled
as a dry powder with a device known as a Diskhaler, can cause
wheezing or serious breathing problems, and is generally not
recommended for patients with asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary
diseases and other airway diseases.
Common side effects of Tamiflu,
which comes in pill and liquid form, include nausea and vomiting.
Both amantadine and rimantadine can cause gastrointestinal side
effects and central nervous system changes such as nervousness
and difficulty concentrating. Other side effects that can occur
are mentioned in the drugs' package inserts.
Other important flu drug facts:
Antiviral drugs are not meant
to take the place of a flu shot. The flu shot remains the best
way to protect yourself. The drugs are sometimes used as a backup
to the vaccine in special situations, such as to control a flu
outbreak.
The treatment effect of these
drugs is modest. They won't make you instantly better, but can
help shorten the time the flu lasts by about a day. And use of
flu drugs does not eliminate the risk of flu complications.
The drugs are meant to be taken
within the first two days you experience flu symptoms. That means
if you arrive at the doctor's office on Day 5 asking for a flu
drug, you'll be too late. By that time, uncomplicated flu usually
starts to get better on its own, and people who develop complications
are likely to need other treatment.
Flu drugs don't influence bacterial
infections or other illnesses that may look like the flu. It's
important to talk with your health-care provider if you are being
treated with an antiviral drug but aren't getting better or if
you experience new symptoms. |
