How to Prepare for Cold and Flu Season

Studies show that the average person contracts about three colds per
year, and those who are in contact with young children get even more.
While there's no cure for the common cold or the flu, you can take
measures to protect yourself.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Know the difference between a cold and the flu. A cold can last two or three weeks; most people are better within seven to ten days. On the other hand, without proper care or attention, a flu virus can lead to bronchitis or pneumonia, each of which can cause permanent health damage. Each year, more than 100,000 people in the United States are hospitalized and about 36,000 die due to the flu and its complications.

2. Wash your hands. Frequent washing with warm water and ordinary soap for 10 seconds is one of the simplest and most effective ways to avoid catching a cold or the flu. Use antibacterial alcohol-based foams and gels when you don't have access to soap and water.

3. Disinfect your home regularly. Spray the surfaces in your bathroom and kitchen with a mild solution of 2 to 5 percent bleach in water to kill viruses and bacteria.

4. Get a flu vaccination if you're in a high-risk population: (a) People living in long-term care facilities and group homes. (b) Adults over the age of 65. (c) Adults and children with chronic diseases such as diabetes, asthma, emphysema and kidney disease. (d) Pregnant women who will be in the second or third trimester of their pregnancy during the flu season. (e) People with weakened immune systems, such as HIV-positive individuals or cancer patients who are undergoing chemotherapy. (f) Health care workers.

5. The vaccine is made with a killed virus that cannot give you the flu. Vaccines are not 100 percent effective, so you may still get a less severe case of the flu after receiving the vaccine. The vaccine takes about two weeks to become fully effective in your body, so prepare yourself before the season hits.

6. Discuss FluMist with your doctor if you are healthy and between 5 and 49 years. Approved in 2003 by the Food and Drug Administration, this flu vaccine is delivered through a nasal spray.

7. Eat a well-balanced diet. It's essential to building a healthy immune system, and it provides sources of energy and nutrition for optimal growth and development. Taking a daily multivitamin-- especially when you're fatigued or stressed--also helps ensure that you will receive an adequate dose of minerals and vitamins.

8. Get plenty of rest. On average, humans require seven to eight hours of sleep every night. Lack of sleep can lower the immune system's ability to react when needed. Without sufficient sleep, the immune system is hard-pressed to keep up with its nightly repair work, and creates an opening for opportunistic diseases.

9. Stock your medicine cabinet with a supply of single-symptom drugs such as cough suppressants, pain relievers and antihistamines. Cold symptoms tend to appear in sequence, not all at once, so multi-symptom formulas often give you too much or not enough medicine for any given symptom. Avoid time-release capsules for the same reason. See 43 Organize the Medicine Cabinet.

Tips & Warnings

• See 497 Cure the Common Cold.
• Ask your doctor about Tamiflu (oseltamivir phosphate) and Relenza (zanamivir), which both help lessen and prevent flu symptoms and duration. For these drugs to be effective, they must be taken when you are first exposed to others suffering from the flu. If someone in your home gets the flu, other family members can possibly avoid getting it by taking these drugs for at least seven days. A person exposed to the flu because of an outbreak in the community can take the drug for up to six weeks.
• If you've got a cold, don't ask your doctor to prescribe antibiotics. They do not kill cold viruses and can lead to resistant strains of bacteria. Prevention is the best approach to combat the cold virus.
• The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that aspirin and combination products containing aspirin not be given to children under 19 years of age during episodes of fever-causing illnesses, due to the risk of contracting Reye's Syndrome. Children's Tylenol and Children's Motrin are safe when administered according to directions.

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[karileighk]

on 6/18/2009 I have learned that people get sick even when they take the vaccine. It doesn't always work. I never use the vaccine.

I believe the key to this is having a well-balanced diet plus making sure you're taking the right vitamins.

Wash your hands often. Try not picking up everything in the stores.

Getting plenty of rest is important. If you're tired rest. Don't stress yourself out because stress is another thing that can cause sickness.

Thanks for the tips and reminder.

Kari

[robertkhunter]

on 6/1/2009 buy tamiflu http://tamiflushop.us/product/tamiflu.html