The common cold

The common cold is actually the most common disease in the world. There are very few people who do not have a cold during the year, even in winter months. It seems for some people there are definite patterns as to the number of colds they will have each year. About ten percent of people have no colds, 15 per percent have about one cold a year, 25 percent will have three colds and about 25 percent of the population has more than three colds. This is a disease that outnumbers any other disease. Some studies have shown that over 55 percent of all visits to the doctor will involve the common cold or some complication due to this disease. Lots of people often wonder why there is not a known cure for the frustrating disease and after many years of research the cure for the common cold still does not exist. Less is actually known about the common cold than any other disease.

Usually a cold will begin with the dry stage, during this time your nose will feel stuffy and perhaps you'll have a tickling sensation in your throat. Coughing and sneezing along with watery eyes will come next, then but not always, a headache and a sore throat. There is a viral stage to a cold during this early stage even with or without fever and you should keep away from others so as not to spread these germs. Most of the time there are other micro-organisms around that will infect you and you'll now be in the full cold stage. This stage can last as long as two to three weeks, but it does vary, sometimes longer, other times less. In this stage you will have some fever, membrane congestion, partial obstruction of air passages and thick secretions. You may even have pain and aches over most of your body along with chills, headaches and lassitude. The sinuses, tonsils, passageways in the lower respiratory system and the ears may be affected. The incubation period of a cold is short, perhaps from l8 to 48 hours. It is best to keep this infection away from others and do stay away from someone who already has a cold if you are feeling the effects of the common cold yourself.

This is a disorder without a specific treatment and there are more remedies for it than any other disease. Some remedies include: citrus fruits, juices, cathartics, mustard, turpentine, aspirin, flannel rags, steam kettles, atomizers, and whiskey. Drinking lots of fluids including juices and water seems to help some in easing that stuffy feeling. Some feel that drinking alcoholic beverages will pacify a common cold, but this can increase congestion. Chicken soup is an old time remedy that our grandmothers certainly believed would help. The hot liquid seems to clear the mucus passages a little sooner than drinking cold liquids but usually within an hour the passages are the same as before the intake of the hot liquids. Depending on the person asked if hot liquids help you will get an entirely different answer. Young children seem to feel better when fruit juices and soda drinks are substituted for water. Making sure your intake of liquids is that of a normal day or perhaps a little more than normal will keep you from being dehydrated. It is essential for a child or an adult to have a high fluid intake for efficient kidney elimination. Some people will take

to their beds for the duration of a cold, even take off from school or work or a planned event but does it make them well any quicker, who knows?

There are many cold preparations available in our drug and grocery stores today but do any of these really give relief to all of us, not really. Some of these cold preparations bring temporary relief and others bring no relief. When you pick up a cold preparation or preventive you are taking a chance as the product could damage your health, could even be dangerous if you are taking a prescription medicine already. You could have a slight or even a severe drug reaction that could even be life threatening. It is wise to read the labels very carefully before buying and even more so before taking these over the counter medications. These products will contain anticholinergics, supposedly to clear up the eye and nose secretions, expectorants that say they will clear or thin the mucus in your respiratory system or painkillers to rid your body of fever. There are anti-tussives for cough suppression, and also nasal decongestants to clear up those nasal passages. Most of the time these over the counter cures for the common cold or relief from the symptoms of the common cold are in such small portions that they can be ineffective. Sometimes the ingredients are irrelevant to symptoms of the common cold. The labels should have all the precautions for taking these products but be careful as there are lots of side effects. It is best to think and if you must buy these products to make the wisest of choices concerning them.

Some will use a humidifier or a vaporizer when they have a cold, but scientists have not proven these machines will be of help. In recent years even the safety of these machines or devices has been questioned. Sometimes the humidifiers will cause more health problems than just having the common cold. If you choose to have a vaporizer, be certain it is one that produces steam as most microorganisms won't survive the temperature of the steam. Bacteria can thrive in these machines. If you use a cool-mist machine you'll want to check for deposits of minerals before use. Some people will add a camphor or menthol to these machines but no study has determined that these products help anymore than just using the cool-mist.

The question is asked and also studied as to if some section of the country has more colds than others and there is actually no correlation. The common cold can strike at anytime and in any area. There seems to be a variation in cold by seasons. October and November are months when lots of people have the common cold. Studies have shown it is because summer is over and the weather is cooler and perhaps more people have returned to school or from vacations and back to work among crowds of people who may expose them to the common cold virus. January seems to be the worst month for an outbreak of the common cold perhaps because people tend to eat more, relax more and not pay as much attention to healthy lifestyles and eating during the holiday season. A lack of sleep during the holidays could also contribute to more colds and more cold germs. Sudden changes in the weather also contribute as more people are prone to not wear enough clothing and get chilled or they are exposed to more drafts.

There seem to be different types of colds even though to most people a cold is just a cold. Sometimes a cold is caused by allergy, other times an infectious cold is just because our immune system is weak and we are less resistant to germs. Then there seems to be a third type that is actually a combination of the allergy and infectious cold. Some people who have allergies seem to have a lower resistance to germs of the common cold than others without allergies. It is hard sometimes for a physician to tell the difference between an allergy and just the common cold.

Keeping yourself in good physical condition, eating healthy and getting plenty of rest seems to be the best preventive method of lowering your chances of getting a cold. When you get a cold take the very best care of yourself, avoid being in drafts or getting a chill. If your circulatory system is in good working condition this is your most important prevention against the virus of a common cold. Your blood won't stagnate and can readily react to external temperature changes.

Be sure when you leave your home that you are properly dressed for the outside temperature; if the temperature is cold wear protective clothing such as a sweater or a coat. Using discretion in your wearing apparel daily will help a lot towards keeping your circulation system working as it should. Eat a well-balanced diet from all of the food groups daily so that your body will function at its peak and just be sensible in choices. Sleep in a room with adequate ventilation with perhaps with windows cracked a little at the top. Prevention of the common cold will help you a lot but still there will come times when you do come down with the common cold.