Tolerating Cold Symptoms May Hasten Recovery
No matter how healthy you strive to be in the New Year, you're still likely to succumb to the common cold every now and then. Like it or not, most of us can expect to catch two to four colds annually.
Although more than 200 different cold-causing viruses have been identified to date, the symptoms they cause are remarkably similar. An infection with any one of the pesky microbes can result in fever and body aches, accompanied by roughly a week's worth of sniffling, sneezing and coughing.
If you're determined to keep your suffering to a minimum, you may turn to an over-the-counter cold formula for relief. With dozens of brands and hundreds of different formulas on the market, there are plenty to choose from.
Nonprescription cold remedies typically contain some combination of antihistamines, decongestants, cough suppressants, fever reducers and pain relievers. While many of these concoctions can make you feel a little more comfortable, it's important to remember than none of them can stop the infection itself.
Over-the-counter drugs don't speed healing or recovery, either -- they merely mask the symptoms of infection. Even worse, some of these medications actually hinder the body's ability to rid itself of the cold-causing virus, prolonging the illness in the process.
When the respiratory tract is invaded by disease-causing microbes, the immune system is activated to defend the body in a number of ways. Most of the troublesome symptoms experienced during a cold are caused by the defenses of the immune system, rather than the virus itself.
In healthy individuals, these respiratory symptoms are helpful, and perhaps even essential, in overcoming the illness. Trying to suppress the symptoms with medications may be counterproductive, since it disables the immune system and interferes with the body's ability to protect itself from infection.
When cold-causing viruses invade the body and latch onto tissues in the nose, throat and lungs, they trigger the release of inflammatory compounds that attract white blood cells to the site of infection. As part of the immune system, these cells are programmed to attack, destroy and engulf disease-causing germs.
After the white blood cells have completed their mission, they begin to pile up by the millions in the respiratory tract. The runny nose that accompanies a cold may be annoying, but it's what removes these spent cells from the sinuses and nasal passages, along with microbes, mucus and other byproducts of infection.
Taking an over-the-counter antihistamine designed to "dry up" nasal secretions can cause these substances to accumulate in the sinuses, increasing the risk of developing a sinus infection.
If you develop a cough, it's a good sign that your body is working hard to keep your lower respiratory tract clear so you can breathe easily. Coughing is a natural, protective reflex that allows you to expel secretions from your lungs.
Taking a medication designed to suppress your cough isn't always a good idea. The resulting buildup of mucous secretions can increase the risk of developing pneumonia.
Having a fever can make you uncomfortable, but it's an excellent way to rid yourself of infection-causing viruses, which typically thrive at normal body temperature. Even slight elevations in body temperature create an environment that is too warm for these germs to survive, much less reproduce.
You can think of a fever as the body's way of "pasteurizing" the blood, similar to the process used to kill microbes in milk with short bursts of relatively high temperatures. A fever also kicks your immune system into high gear, accelerating the production of germ-killing white blood cells.
A higher body temperature causes your heart to beat faster, speeding the delivery of blood and nutrients to the site of infection and hastening the removal of cellular debris and toxins. Higher body temperatures also speed enzymatic reactions, whether they're involved in killing germs or repairing injured tissues.
As long as you're healthy, there's no real danger associated with running a low-grade fever, and there's no real need to take a fever-reducing drug. In fact, letting a mild fever run its course may shorten the duration and the severity of your cold by killing more of the viruses responsible for the infection.
Recovering from any illness, including a simple cold, takes time. Over-the-counter cold medicines might make your symptoms a little easier to tolerate, but they won't help your body heal any faster.
Rallie McAllister, M.D. is a family physician, speaker, and co-founder of www.MommyMDGuides.com, a website featuring child-raising tips from trusted doctors who are also moms. To find out more about Rallie McAllister, M.D., and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.
COPYRIGHT 2010 CREATORS.COM
Although more than 200 different cold-causing viruses have been identified to date, the symptoms they cause are remarkably similar. An infection with any one of the pesky microbes can result in fever and body aches, accompanied by roughly a week's worth of sniffling, sneezing and coughing.
If you're determined to keep your suffering to a minimum, you may turn to an over-the-counter cold formula for relief. With dozens of brands and hundreds of different formulas on the market, there are plenty to choose from.
Nonprescription cold remedies typically contain some combination of antihistamines, decongestants, cough suppressants, fever reducers and pain relievers. While many of these concoctions can make you feel a little more comfortable, it's important to remember than none of them can stop the infection itself.
Over-the-counter drugs don't speed healing or recovery, either -- they merely mask the symptoms of infection. Even worse, some of these medications actually hinder the body's ability to rid itself of the cold-causing virus, prolonging the illness in the process.
When the respiratory tract is invaded by disease-causing microbes, the immune system is activated to defend the body in a number of ways. Most of the troublesome symptoms experienced during a cold are caused by the defenses of the immune system, rather than the virus itself.
In healthy individuals, these respiratory symptoms are helpful, and perhaps even essential, in overcoming the illness. Trying to suppress the symptoms with medications may be counterproductive, since it disables the immune system and interferes with the body's ability to protect itself from infection.
When cold-causing viruses invade the body and latch onto tissues in the nose, throat and lungs, they trigger the release of inflammatory compounds that attract white blood cells to the site of infection. As part of the immune system, these cells are programmed to attack, destroy and engulf disease-causing germs.
After the white blood cells have completed their mission, they begin to pile up by the millions in the respiratory tract. The runny nose that accompanies a cold may be annoying, but it's what removes these spent cells from the sinuses and nasal passages, along with microbes, mucus and other byproducts of infection.
Taking an over-the-counter antihistamine designed to "dry up" nasal secretions can cause these substances to accumulate in the sinuses, increasing the risk of developing a sinus infection.
If you develop a cough, it's a good sign that your body is working hard to keep your lower respiratory tract clear so you can breathe easily. Coughing is a natural, protective reflex that allows you to expel secretions from your lungs.
Taking a medication designed to suppress your cough isn't always a good idea. The resulting buildup of mucous secretions can increase the risk of developing pneumonia.
Having a fever can make you uncomfortable, but it's an excellent way to rid yourself of infection-causing viruses, which typically thrive at normal body temperature. Even slight elevations in body temperature create an environment that is too warm for these germs to survive, much less reproduce.
You can think of a fever as the body's way of "pasteurizing" the blood, similar to the process used to kill microbes in milk with short bursts of relatively high temperatures. A fever also kicks your immune system into high gear, accelerating the production of germ-killing white blood cells.
A higher body temperature causes your heart to beat faster, speeding the delivery of blood and nutrients to the site of infection and hastening the removal of cellular debris and toxins. Higher body temperatures also speed enzymatic reactions, whether they're involved in killing germs or repairing injured tissues.
As long as you're healthy, there's no real danger associated with running a low-grade fever, and there's no real need to take a fever-reducing drug. In fact, letting a mild fever run its course may shorten the duration and the severity of your cold by killing more of the viruses responsible for the infection.
Recovering from any illness, including a simple cold, takes time. Over-the-counter cold medicines might make your symptoms a little easier to tolerate, but they won't help your body heal any faster.
Rallie McAllister, M.D. is a family physician, speaker, and co-founder of www.MommyMDGuides.com, a website featuring child-raising tips from trusted doctors who are also moms. To find out more about Rallie McAllister, M.D., and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.
COPYRIGHT 2010 CREATORS.COM
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