Are you prepared for the cold season?

By Bunmi Sofola

THE rainy season is fast upon us.  A few of us might skip through the season; but most of us will succumb, enduring between two and five bouts of sniffing and sneezing each year – each lasting an average of nine days.  Experts believe we spend around five years of our lives sneezing, coughing and feeling generally rather under the weather.  According to reports from experts on colds and nasal allergies, there are tips to prevent the viruses and how to minimise the symptoms with the latest treatments available to help you get back to normal life as fast as possible.

COLDS:  With more than 20 subtly different types of cold virus variants around, it is hardly surprising that we succumb.  The virus is transmitted either by direct inhalation (when someone sneezes, a microscopic droplet finds its way into your mouth or nose), or touch. A good strong sneeze can send 100,000 virus – containing droplets around 3.5 metres into the air, and just one of those droplets can survive for up to 48 hours on a doorknob, TV remote control or a handrail, to be picked up when you touch it.  If you put your hands close to your nose, eyes or mouth, the virus can swiftly enter your body, using your cells as hosts to make thousands of copies of itself.  This rapid replication – or more specifically our body’s reaction to it – is what triggers classic cold symptoms.

“During the first few days of a cold, you are very unlikely to know you’ve been infected,” says Professor Wendy Barclays, a virologist – although this is the time that you are most infectious.  As the virus replicates, it will gradually damage the naturally protective mucus sheet inside the nose.  This allows access for irritants which make you start sneezing.  Next, dead cells (killed by the cold virus) start to collect in the nose and lungs, becoming trapped by mucus, making it thicker, darker and more likely to clog the lungs, which makes it harder for you to breath.  This triggers your immune system to leap into action.

“Your body is compelled to try to limit the rate at which the virus replicates and so releases immune cells and chemicals to do this,” explains Professor Barclay.  It’s these chemicals, produced by your own body, that cause many of the worst cold symptoms.  They raise your temperature, in a bid to kill the virus (which prefers cold environments), and they also dilate the blood vessels to allow immune cells to travel swiftly to the affected areas – this causes swelling which blocks your nose and congests your lungs.  They also trigger intensified sneezing in a bid to clear the virus out of your system.

The intensity of the body’s virus attacking mechanism varies from one person to the next, so no one will react to the same cold virus in the same way.

Genetic factors also play a part – you might have an inherited gene which triggers high temperatures or intense sneezing, for instance.  Experts believe the people who claim to never get colds are probably lucky in that they do not get infected, but their body mounts a less noticeable reaction to the virus.

And gender does play a part.  Research has found that men tend to react more strongly to the same virus than women.

What to do if you get it

There is no strong evidence that anything works to shorten a cold symptom, says Professor Barclay, but “treating symptoms with over-the-counter remedies like decongestants or pain-killers will make you feel better.

Stop it in its track:   An itchy nose and sore throat are the early signs that a cold is coming on – try Vicks First Defence.  There is some science behind this product.  It lowers the pH of the nose, making it more acidic, and viruses don’t like a low pH environment.  The herb pelargonium also helps when cold symptoms strike.  “Trials indicate that it stops some types of cold and flu virus, replicating and improves the immune system’s response to the viruses,” she says.  Another herb, black elderberry, has been shown to stop cold virus replication within the cell.  It’s one of the remedies with more robust evidence around.

For a sore throat:  Try some reputable Lozenges.  Antiseptic throat sprays can ease sore throats, but they apply a mist to the back of the throat, whereas an anti-inflammatory lozenges coats the throat, so relieving more pain.  Hot water, lemon and honey can also be helpful.  Non-medicated hot drinks are a hugely underrated soother.  In a study it was discovered that people who drank Blackcurrant cordial made with hot water experienced a relief of cold symptoms (running nose, sore throats and cough) within 15 minutes.

For a stuffed nose:   Try Benadryl Plus – it combines a decongestant and an antihistamine, says the expert.  Alternatively, squirting salty water through your nasal passages – can dislodge irritants and virus particles  which may help.

Use paracetamol not Ibuprofen:  Studies have shown that Paracetamol can work better on cold symptoms than Ibuprofen as people taking Ibuprofen are more likely to go back to their doctor with unresolved symptoms than those taking Paracetamol.  This could be because Ibuprofen dampens the inflammatory reaction the body actually needs to fight the cold virus.

Don’t blow your nose too much:  Infectious diseases specialists believe continually lowing your nose can push mucus back into sinuses and cause secondary infection.  Either sniff (mucus goes to the back of the throat and ultimately to the stomach, not the lungs) or blow a nostril at a time to reduce pressure in the nasal cavity so you don’t push so much mucus back.

Does cough medicine actually work?:  There’s much debate about whether cough mixtures work.  Many doctors believe they’re a waste of money.

As an authoritative report from Professor Ron Eccles of the Common Cold Centre at Cardiff University concluded,in clinical trials on cough medicines, up to 85 per cent of the reduction in coughs is associated with the placebo treatment; and the active pharmacological component of the medicine only contributes 15 per cent of the reduction.

However, Professor Morice, a respiratory consultant disagrees.  He says although over-the-counter cough syrups cannot treat the cause or reduce the duration, he’s convinced that some – those containing dextromethorphan, menthol or gualfenesin – actually calm the nerves that cause a cough, so reducing the coughing.

Gualfenesin, an ‘expectorant’ originally derived from a tree bark extract, works by drawing water into the air passages; the water thins the mucus and lubricates and airway, making if easier for cough to shift excess mucus.  It works best if you drink plenty of water at the same time. Try Robitussin, Benylin Mucus Cough or Boots chesty cough syrup.

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