What great timing it was when Scotties reached out with some advice for cold symptom relief, considering I left work early Tuesday sick and have been feeling off all week! Mount Auburn Hospital (a top Harvard teaching hospital) along with Scotties Facial Tissues have these tips to share to help alleviate symptoms when you feel yourself getting sick.
Cause:
The common cold, as explained by Stephen H. Zinner, M.D., Director of Medicine for Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, MA, is caused by a number of different viruses, and as such is not treatable with antibiotics (which treat infections caused by bacteria). There is no definitive or specific treatment or cure for the common cold, which is an example of a “self-limited” infection, meaning that patients recover when the infection has run its natural course.
Treatments:
Although many treatments are available, all provide relief of symptoms but they do not speed the eradication of the infecting virus.
According to Zinner, Symptom relief can be obtained by these TOP 5 measures including:
1. Humidification – add a humidifier to your home or steam a pot of water in the kitchen.
2. Steam vapor – take a hot shower and breathe in the steam.
3. Oral decongestants
4. Nasal saline irrigation and select nasal sprays.
5. Aspirin or acetaminophen: may be useful for the body aches that may accompany the first 24 -48 hours of a cold.
Scotties adds their own TOP 5 measures including:
6. Sleep – make sure to give your body the rest it requires to naturally rid the body of a cold.
7. Exercise – can be useful to thin out mucus and increase the activity of white blood cells – if the person feels well enough to workout.
8. Warm soup or hot tea – can soothe a sore throat.
9. Vitamin C & Zinc – stock up on foods high in these immune boosting properties.
10. Tissues – A soft tissue like Scotties can help alleviate nasal blockage and congestion.
Dr. Zinner says that the usual duration of illness ranges from 5 to 10 or more days, but most people begin to feel better within 24 or 48 hours after the onset of sore throat, runny nose and sniffles. The viruses that cause colds can be spread on the hands of infected persons to other individuals, so frequent hand washing is very useful to prevent transmitting the infection to others or catching a cold from an individual sufferer.
All great advice, so I want to an extend a big thank you to them for this info and also to share some good news! Scotties offered to send one lucky reader a care pack of tissues with a $25 gift card to Target, just like I received!
They have so many different box shapes and patterns to hold their super soft, convenient tissues.
I immediately grabbed a box and found it a home in my bathroom. Can you spot the Scotties?
Enter to win the tissues and Target gift card via rafflecopter below! I will choose a winner at noon EST on Friday March 14! USA only.
When I am stick, I ask my husband to give me a massage…it helps with the body aches and since I am sick he never says no! Otherwise, I love a big hot cup of soothing tea.
Drink lots of hot tea with honey. Snuggle with my dogs.
drink lots of water and eat chicken soup!
A hot shower.
As weird as it is, when I’m stomach sick I drink gatorade!
My sick tip is rest! First because it makes you forget that you are a misserable mess, and second because sleep really does help your body heal faster!
Lots of rest, tissues and white soda!
Sleep. I always love an excuse to sleep. lol
My favorite tip is to get plenty of sleep and avoid over exercising.
Sleep, hot tea with lemon and honey help.
Drink tons of water and sleep! If I don’t stay down and take care of myself I just feel worse and worse.
My favorite is to take a nap! Don’t get this one much! Otherwise I like to have a box of tissues, hot tea, mints or cough lozenges, eat crackers, drink Power aid (zero calorie one- blue colored!) or soda (If I can drink it!).
I get plenty of sleep and make sure I stay hydrated with plenty of fluids
I like to drink Jasmine tea and honey when I’m sick.
vicks under my nose and a bowl of hot water to steam my head!
The four S’s! Sleep, Steaming, Soup, Shower.
For me,just sitting down and resting.
Being a mom makes that a bit challenging though.
Chicken noodle soup…it really does work!
Sleep! Lots of sleep!!
My favorite tip is to boost your vitamin C and zinc intake.
Oh gosh, what perfect time! Finally caught the bug that’s been going around.
My favorite thing to do is take super hot showers, let the bathroom fill up with steam, and just relax. That, and a lot of hot peppermint tea with honey and a stack of gossip mags and netflix.
Sleep as much as possible. Seems like a no brainer but it’s not!
Chicken Noodle Soup & some extra cuddles with my husband and baby:)
ibuprofen, pedialyte, chicken soup, + several boxes of tissues!
xo. jenn @ hello, rigby!
A tried and true remedy is good old Vick’s Vapor Rub. Rubbed in on my chest, back, neck and under my nose. A hot cup of tea with honey and a box of soft tissues are all on the list too.
Lots of sleep!
love to efat chicken noodle soup and get plenty of rest
thanks for the giveaway