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Common Cold And Alternate Medicine

Cold is the most common illness that affects infants and elderly alike. Unlike the contrary belief cold weather is not the cause of colds. There are 200 types of viruses, which cause cold. The common cold is usually mild with symptoms of running nose, sneezing and throat sore. The symptoms may last for one or two weeks. Cold is common among the children and decline with age. On an average people may get 2 to 4 colds per year depending on their body immunity. 20

You can get a cold by touching your eyes or nose after you touch surfaces with cold germs on them. You can also inhale the germs. Symptoms usually begin 2 or 3 days after infection and last 2 to 14 days. Washing your hands and staying away from people with colds will help you avoid colds. 12

Although most colds resolve on their own without complications, they are a leading cause of visits to the doctor and of time lost from work and school. Treating symptoms of the common cold has given rise to a multimillion dollar industry in over-the-counter medications, yet none of these medications are actually anti-viral to the rhinovirus. 14

There is no treatment for the common cold other than that aimed at relieving symptoms and keeping the body well-rested, -fed, and -hydrated. Because of the growing problem of drug resistance, doctors are being discouraged from prescribing antibiotics (which do not affect viruses) for colds unless secondary bacterial infection makes them necessary. There is no convincing evidence that vitamin C megadoses can prevent the common cold. 40

More than half of the healthy subjects came down with colds regardless of treatment, and the severity and duration of their symptoms—even the weight of their nasal secretions—were all about the same. These findings should at least give pause to the faithful following who dose up on echinacea pills with the first winter’s chill, a mighty number considering estimates that $300 million is spent each year on the herb in the United States alone. 11

Colds are caused by more than 200 different viruses. The most common groups include rhinoviruses and coronaviruses. Different groups of viruses are more infectious at different seasons of the year, but knowing the exact virus causing the cold is not important in treatment. 14

In the USA it is estimated that the annual economic burden of common colds through lost working days etc. The conventional common cold medicines available at present only help to alleviate the symptoms of the common cold and that is why there has been a move towards self medication with alternative medicines which may help to prevent infection. 43

Although recent findings question the use of echinacea for colds and flu, it’s still one of the most popular herbs used today. A 2005 study by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine found that echinacea did little to prevent or shorten the common cold. There were many critics of the study, who say that the study shouldn’t be used as evidence that echinacea doesn’t work. The Cochrane Collaboration conducted a review of 15 studies on echinacea, however, and found that it wasn’t more effective than a placebo at preventing colds. 9

Colds may also be passed through direct contact. For example, if a person with a cold touches his runny nose or watery eyes, then shakes hands with another person, some of the virus is transferred to the uninfected person. If that person then touches his mouth, nose, or eyes, the virus is transferred to an environment where it can reproduce and cause a cold. 14

A smaller study led by Dr. Steven Sperber of Hackensack University Medical Center in New Jersey used echinacea purpurea aerial parts. Although echinacea didn’t prevent infection (which may be due to the lower dose used), they found that 58% of people taking an echinacea purpurea extract made from aerial parts developed cold symptoms, compared to 82% of people taking a placebo. 10

A common prescription is to take high doses of vitamin C each day until the cold symptoms go away, with doses spaced out during the day so excess vitamin is not simply eliminated in the urine. Check with your practitioner, however, as high doses of vitamin C can cause diarrhea.) Eating oranges is helpful, but stay away from juices that contain a lot of sugar. 22

The first cold symptoms are usually a tickle in the throat, runny nose, and sneezing. The initial discharge from the nose is clear and thin. Later, it may change to a thick yellow or greenish discharge. Most adults do not develop a fever when they catch a cold. Young children may develop a low fever of up to 102�F (38.9�C). 14

Other symptoms of a cold include coughing, sneezing, nasal congestion, headache, muscle ache, chills, sore throat , hoarseness, watery eyes, fatigue, dull hearing and blocked eustachian tube (a danger when flying), and lack of appetite. The cough that accompanies a cold is usually intermittent and dry. 14

Echinacea (or purple coneflower) may perform two valuable functions for people with colds: weakening cold viruses and stimulating the body’s defenses to work better. Taking this herb — usually in the form of a tincture — can shorten the duration of a cold. Goldenseal is often combined with echinacea in herbal cold treatments. It’s also an immune-booster, and the herb may lessen mucus in the nose and throat as well. 22

Essential oils such as those containing menthol and eucalyptus have been used for hundreds of years for the treatment of common cold. Menthol is a major component of cornmint and peppermint oil, and eucalyptus oil is obtained from the eucalyptus tree. Menthol provides relief from nasal congestion by causing a cool sensation in the nose and also relieves the symptoms of sore throat and cough by a local anaesthetic action. The antimicrobial activity of essential oils such as menthol may also help to inhibit infection of the airway by pathogenic viruses and bacteria. 43

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