How to Manage the Most Common Respiratory Infection - the Cold

The common cold is known as one of the most prevalent infections worldwide. It is estimated that the average person contracts two to four colds per year. It has people running to drug stores and reaching for pharmaceuticals, causing further imbalance in the body, not to mention wasting money and resources. However, given a proper understanding of how the common cold works, people are able to prevent or treat this ailment in the most beneficial, and natural of ways.
A cold is classified as an upper respiratory infection (URI) and exhibits a collection of symptoms. The most common include nose and throat irritations, like a runny or stuffy nose and cough.

Colds are caused by viruses, not bacteria. Viruses and bacteria are as different as computers and elephants. Although they have some things in common, viruses generally do not respond to measures that work on bacteria. Therefore, using anti-bacterial soaps or antibiotics, which are both intended for bacteria, is useless. Viruses are not alive in the typical sense that a cell is, therefore, we cannot 'kill' them. The best way to deal with viruses is to limit our exposure to them and have our body's immune system "disassemble" them.

Over the counter cold medications do not cure colds, they just suppress the symptoms. It is; therefore, prudent to know that going out to buy typical cold medications, anti-bacterial soaps or drugs like antibiotics, is generally a waste of money and further damage to health. The best thing we can do to manage, alleviate or decrease the chances of a cold is work on boosting our immune system - and not just when a cold strikes, but year round.

Enhance your immune system
The best way to manage a cold is to not get it in the first place. This is possible by adopting optimally healthy lifestyle habits. Eating a diet based on whole, natural plant food is key. Fruits, vegetables, herbs and spices offer the most natural vitamins, minerals and antioxidants to protect and strengthen our immune system. Additionally, drinking enough pure water, having regular movement, effective stress relief, exposure to fresh air and sun for optimal vitamin D levels are of key importance as well.

Rest, hydrate and 'nutrate'
When a cold strikes, the best thing we can do first for our body is to rest. This means allowing yourself to take a day or two off of work. It is the very message the cold is trying to send us - take a break. Rest helps our bodies do what they does best, offering a most efficient and quick recovery.

Next, hydrate your body with water. Well lubricated tissues are less likely to be attacked by viruses and water helps to cleanse, as well as optimize all functions.

Finally, 'nutrate' your body by ingesting lots of high quality nutrition. This is the time to avoid all processed, junk and fast food completely, and instead take in pure nutrient-dense foods from whole, natural, plant foods. Boosting nutrient levels with supplements such as vitamins C and D and zinc is also beneficial.

Nutrition And Immunity In Children

Often in first signs of cold parents complain on weak immunity of child imagining badly what signs of illness exactly should cause anxiety. Does your child get diseased with influenza 3 – 4 times a year?

Most likely, in this case there is no need to worry and interfere with process of immunity formation in child. As general strengthening procedures may be recommended cold training of the body, walkings on fresh air and in children over 3 years old taking of natural botanical medicines based on Echinacea juice.

Day regimen
When sleep, rest, exercises, studies, work and food intake occur at one and the same time, then for the body it is easier to turn from one activity to another and there is consumed much less energy. Rhythmic cycle helps the body to effectively recuperate, optimally react on stress and changes, therefore child with an accurate and cozy regimen has more capabilities to meet an attack of bacteria and viruses.

Nutrition
First of all, for adequate development child should consume animal proteins and fats. For cold prevention it is good to eat onion and garlic – natural products containing phytoncides - and also vegetables, fruits and berries of red, orange and green color which do contain great amount of vitamin C.

It is better to avoid flavor enhancer, colorants and synthetic vitamins because they do give an additional load on body systems, provoke allergic reactions and do overload child's immunity because they are taken for a long time without taking into consideration individual needs.

Sugar also overloads immune system, helps to wash away from the body all vitamins and microelements and it would be better to exclude it from baby foods. It is good when meals take place at one and the same time as this helps body to better digest foods.

How To Fight Summer Cold

It is considered that colds are winter problems. In fact, 20% cold-related diseases occur in summer months. To catch a cold in heat is not just an annoying confusion. Specialists say summer colds are more dangerous than winter ones because summer symptoms are not so manifestative. Many people do not pay attention to sore throat and running nose and therefore even do not try to treat them. So they feel sick for a longer time.

There exists another cause. Upper respiratory tract infections together with sore throat, cough, running nose, temperature increase are caused by parainfluenza viruses, coronaviruses and rhinoviruses. They circulate all the year round but in summer time enterovirus joins them and it shows with rash on skin and diarrhea. Enterovirus is transmitted not only via dirty hands but also via airborne. It means that risks to catch a virus in summer time even increases.

Why do we catch cold in summer?
1. Air-conditioner
Habitually we do escape from heat and prefer to stay in places with air-conditioners and ventilators, but namely they are major causes of colds. Permanently circulating air dries nasal mucosa that is a protective barrier against infections which makes viruses easily enter the body. Besides this, conditioned air is not only dry but also cold one and these are perfect conditions for virus replication.

Solution: do not do at home air colder than 21C. Ideally, the difference between air temperature in the house or office and outside must be not more than 5 – 7C.

2. Icy drinks
Sensation that icy drinks allay thirst is deceptive one. They do freshen up for a quite short time but for throat it is a real icy shock. Overchilled mucous loses its ability to fight viruses and bacteria. After ice cream and other diary products those effects are stronger than after icy juice or water.

Solution: do not drink beverages with ice. It would be better to eat slightly melted ice cream. It is necessary to drink beverages or eat cold food with small portions in order to let them warm in the month.

3. Journeys
In summer we do actively travel and microorganisms do travel with us. In hotels holidayer may face infections unknown before. There is a major risk to catch a virus in air plane. Restricted space of air plane together with very dry air is an ideal medium for disease transmission. It was proved that chance to catch a cold depends directly on duration of flight – the longer you fly, the higher the risks are.

Solution: do not admit mucous drying, use rewetting drops and sprays for nose, drink more water. In vacations use antibacterial wet wipes. Remember that easiest way to catch cold is after flight during period of acclimatization. Those who like to spend time under the sun should know that the excess of solar radiation lowers the immunity.

ARVI (Acute Respiratory Viral Infection)

ARVI (commonly known as cold) is a widespread virus disease of upper respiratory tract. Major symptoms: running nose, cough, sneezing, headache, sore throat, fatigue. ARVI is most common infectious disease in developed countries where in average an adult gets sick 2- 3 times a year and a child 6 – 10 times.

ARVI may be caused by a number of agents including 5 different groups of viruses (parainfluenza virus, influenza virus, adenovirus, rhinovirus, reovirus) and over 300 their subtypes. All of them are infectious and are transmitted via airborne and are not treated with antibiotics. Also ARVI is transmitted via body contact, for example, during hand shaking.

At the onset of the disease virus is multiplied in nose, nasopharynx, throat showing with gripes, running nose, irritation and dry cough. Body temperature usually is not increased. Sometimes in this process are involved mucous of eyes and gastrointestinal ones.

Then virus enters the blood and causes symptoms of common intoxication: chill, headache, acute pains in back and limbs. Activation of immunity response helps body to produce antibodies to the virus, after which blood gradually becomes clean from virus and then symptoms of intoxication decrease.

At he final stage of the disease occurs respiratory tract cleaning from epithelium damaged by virus which shows with running nose and humid cough.

Treatment and prevention
Prevention against ARVI mainly consists of general health improvement, body strengthening, immune system stimulation, regular exercises, taking vitamins, consuming healthy food, fruits and vegetables. When epidemic occurs, it is necessary to abstain from visiting public places , avoid close contacts with diseased people and wash hands more frequently. And same rules for diseased people – they should take a sick day, not visit public places, avoid contacts with healthy people and wear flu mask.

ARVI treatment commonly is symptomatic: plentiful warm drinking (not hot), taking vitamin C. You should know that taking antibiotics without doctor's recommendation is strongly prohibited because they do not have any effect on viruses and instead they get immunity down and cause disbacteriosis. It is not recommended to take antifebriles and painkillers when temperature is below 38 degrees C because moderate body temperature increase is a natural protective reaction of human body which helps immunity to fight viruses. When comes to antifebrile taking, patient should take Ibuprofen, most safe and effective medication today.

Use anti-viral medications to treat and prevent ARVI.