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From: blatt@Glacier.ARPA (Miriam Blatt)
Newsgroups: net.med
Subject: Re: Cure My Cold, Please
Message-ID: <2@Glacier.ARPA>
Date: Fri, 25-Oct-85 21:59:43 EST
Article-I.D.: Glacier.2
Posted: Fri Oct 25 21:59:43 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 27-Oct-85 10:32:30 EST
References: <31200022@uiucdcs>
Organization: Stanford University, IC Laboratory
Lines: 45

> 
> Now that cold season is upon us, and I am in day #9 of my first cold
>   I take contac or dristan for cold symptoms, extra-strength tylenol
> for aches and pains.  Sometimes an expectorant for cough.
>   Question 1:  What is the average duration of a common cold?
>   Question 2:  Is this a common cold?
>   Question 3:  What should I take?
>   Question 4:  What should I do?
>   Question 5:  Why does every doctor I see when in the extreme throes
> of a cold, say, "It's just a cold, it'll go away."
>   Question 6:  How can I keep from getting colds in the first place?"
>
> legitimate suggestions.  I'm almost ready to try the Polish remedy
> suggested to me of equal parts of lemon juice, honey, and vodka!
> 
> Denise

Denise, since the doctors aren't helping, probably the best thing you can do 
is to improve your lifestyle. Do regular exercise, make sure you get enough 
sleep, and eat plenty of fresh vegetables and fruit. Cut down a bit on 
red meat - most Americans eat way more protein than they actually need, and 
meat is full of fat which isn't much good for you. Above all, don't go to 
extremes - no one knows exactly what is the optimum diet is, so don't feel too
guilty about eating the occasional thing that is probably bad, just try
to keep it occasional. However, exercise is undoubtedly important.

Another suggestion I've heard (originally from my mother, but more recently
from a fully qualified medical doctor) is to cut down on milk and milk 
products when you have a cold. 

Also, those chemicals you put into your body to help you survive the cold
may not help your immune system to fight it. I'm no medical person, but I
don't believe the medicos have made detailed studies on whether the nose
sprays and so forth have any statistical effect on how long an average
cold lasts. I would always avoid such things except in extreme cases. Of
course, your colds do sound pretty extreme.

Finally, another myth invented (or at least propagated) by my mother, is that
if you eat too much, your body gets so overloaded coping with your digestion
that it cannot give maximum attention to fighting your cold. BELIEVE THIS AT
YOUR OWN RISK. The idea is to avoid overeating, and perhaps have only 2 meals
a day.

Hope there is something there that might help.
						-Miriam