HEALTH MATTERS

COLD & FLU MYTHS

By: Linda Hepler, BSN RN

There is PLENTY of misinformation
out there about colds & Flu. Test your knowledge with these myth busters.

Cold and flu bugs aren’t the only things running rampant this year. With the more virulent strain of “novel H1N1” influenza threatening people everywhere – myths about preventing and treating colds and flu abound. Read on for some facts about cold and flu viruses:
Myth: The flu is just a severe form of a cold.
Fact: Both colds and the flu are “upper respiratory tract” illnesses, which means that they cause symptoms in the nose, throat, sinuses, ears and bronchi (the windpipes or air-carrying tubes leading to the lungs). And colds and flu are both caused by viruses. But this is where the similarity ends, says Margaret Lewin, MD, Medical Director of Cinergy Health. “Flu is caused by the influenza virus; the common cold is caused by many different viruses within the adenovirus or coronavirus families,“ she explains.“ And whereas a cold is just a nuisance, the flu can cause more serious, prolonged illness, and even death.”

Myth: You will most likely catch a cold or the flu if you’re exposed to somebody who is ill.
Fact: “There are no guarantees in life, but if you take care of yourself to the best of your ability, you’re less likely to get viruses,” says Marcelle Pick, MSN, OB/GYN NP, and author of “The Core Balance Diet Book.” “And even if you do get a cold or the flu, you probably won’t be as sick as others.”

Taking care of yourself, says Pick, bolsters the immune system, which helps to defend you from illness, even if you are exposed. This includes good hand washing, especially before eating, keeping your hands away from your face, getting adequate sleep, reducing stress, staying well-hydrated, and eating a balanced diet, with plenty of fruits and vegetables, low fat dairy products and whole grains. “The cheapest medicine we have is what we put in our bodies,” claims Pick.

Myth: There are many types of vitamins, minerals and herbal preparations that can help to prevent the onset of colds and flu.
Fact: While not all experts agree, most believe that there are few vitamins, minerals or herbal preparations for cold and flu prevention that have good scientific research backing them. And even those that have such evidence may cause serious side effects. One such example is intranasal cold remedy products containing zinc, which have been available for several years. Very recently the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned consum-ers to stop using these products due to reports that some users have lost their sense of smell.

One supplement that recent re-search suggests may help to prevent cold viruses as well as secondary bacterial infections like pneumonia is vitamin C, claims Mark A. Moyad, MD, MPH, Jenkins/Pokempner director of Preventive and Alternative Medicine at the University of Michigan Medical Center. “Vitamin C is cost effective, easy to obtain, and won’t harm you even if it doesn’t help you,” says Moyad.

Moyad suggests taking 500-1,000 mg of non-acidic vitamin C such as Ester-C or its generic equivalent daily. And if you prefer to get this amount of vitamin C through food? “Not very likely,” says Moyad. “Five servings of fruits and vegetables each day will give you at the most only 200-250 mg of vitamin C. You’d have to eat 20 oranges to get 1,000 mg of vitamin C.”

Myth: A flu shot will always protect you against the flu.
Fact: When there is a good match between the flu viruses that are circulating and those viruses that are used to make a flu vaccine, you can expect as high as 70 to 90 percent protection rate. But if the circulating viruses have changed since the vac-cine was formulated, the shot may be far less effective.

This is not to say you shouldn’t get the flu vaccine, says Pick. “Those with an impaired immune system or underlying chronic illness like asthma or diabetes should especially consider the vaccine.”

But total reliance on a vaccine to prevent the flu is ill-advised, she continues. “You need to also be mind-ful of a healthy lifestyle, especially a good diet.”

Myth: Antibiotics can kill the germs that cause colds and the flu.
Fact: If you have a cold or flu, antibiotics won’t work for you, says Michael Zimring, MD, the director of Center for Wellness and Travel Medicine at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore, Maryland. In fact, overuse of antibiotics may contribute to anti-biotic resistance, which, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is one of the world’s most pressing public health problems.

One caveat though, says Zimring: “Antibiotics help if the virus goes on into a bacterial infection.”

How to tell if this is the case? Bacterial infections produce symp-toms that often occur after initially improving from a cold or flu, says Zimring. These symptoms may in-clude high fever, chills, shortness of breath, green mucous or pain in the face or ears. See your doctor if any of these symptoms occur, especially if you have a chronic illness like heart disease, asthma or diabetes.

Myth: The only treatment for a cold or the flu is to let it run its course.
Fact: While there is no cure for the common cold or the flu, prescription antiviral medications, such as Tamiflu and Relenza, may help to shorten the severity and duration of the flu, if taken in the first few days of illness. These medications may also make you less contagious to others.

There is no antiviral medicine for colds, although some experts believe that Vitamin C, 500-1,000 mg per day may help to shorten the duration and intensity of the symptoms.

Myth: There is nothing to the “feed a cold, starve a fever” saying.
Fact: There is actually one credible study done on this topic, says Frank Ervolino, ND LAc of Stuart, Florida. “It was published in the “Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Laboratory Immunology” in 2002 by a team of Dutch scientists. They found that an immune response to combat viruses which cause the common cold was produced when a person ate a meal. They also found that if someone has a fever-producing infection, mild fasting seemed to help fight off the infection.

While one study certainly isn’t conclusive, it can’t hurt to eat a bit more heartily when you have a cold and to eat lighter when a fever is present. Whatever you do, though, says, Ervolino, “For fast recovery, always remember to stay hydrated.” MS&F