HealthBeat News

Flu? Or Cold? How To Know.

Written by Wellness Club on May 13, 2014 – 4:52 pm -

By Nurse Mark

 

It seems there is nothing that can make folks feel more miserable than the common cold.

Most folks feel so awful when they have a cold that they become convinced that they are suffering from “the flu.”

This is so common that many people tend to use the terms interchangeably – to most folks, “cold” and “flu” are one and the same.

That’s too bad, because the differences are really very important – influenza (the flu) can be a life-threatening illness. A cold is not.

That is not to minimize the suffering that accompanies the common cold – it is a truly miserable experience – but it is called the “common cold” for a good reason – it affects people frequently and commonly – old and young, rich and poor, no one is spared.

How to know the difference between a “flu” and a “cold”? Here’s a chart that will help.

Symptoms	Cold	Flu
Fever	Rare	Characteristic high fever (100-102 degrees F); lasts three to four days
Headache	Rare	Prominent
General Aches, Pains	Slight	Usual; often severe
Fatigue, Weakness	Quite mild	Can last up to two or even three weeks
Extreme Exhaustion	Never	Early and prominent
Stuffy Nose	Common	Sometimes
Sneezing	Usual	Sometimes
Sore Throat	Common	Sometimes
Chest Discomfort, Cough	Mild to moderate; hacking cough	Common; can become severe
Complications	Sinus congestion or earache	Bronchitis, pneumonia

 

Here’s another look at colds and flu, and at whether or not an antibiotic is something that you really need: Hurry – Get An Antibiotic Before You Don’t Need It!

And for those of you who just want to know “What can I do about it?” here’s the short course:

1.) Eat an Immune-Boosting Diet. The two major dietary causes of immune suppression are sugar intake and food allergies.

• Sugar suppresses the activity of white blood cells for up to 5 hours. Avoiding sugar is the most important dietary step you can take to strengthen your immune system.
• Food allergies weaken the immune system. Check out the symptoms of food allergy to see if this might be a problem for you.

2.) Practice simple home and hygiene techniques.

• Wash your hands frequently. You don’t need expensive "hand sanitizers" – simple, pure soap is fine and silver gel like ASAP 365 – 24 ppm Silver Gel is a highly effective, safe, everyday, natural healing alternative to chemical-laced hand sanitizers.
• Cover your mouth and nose — preferably with a tissue — when you sneeze or cough.
• If you are sick take the day off!
• Keep your house humid.
• Get regular exercise – it stimulates the immune system.

3.) Strengthen your immune system with supplements.

• Take an optimal potency vitamin/mineral supplement every day.
  Here are the nutrients of particular immune-enhancing importance, and they should all be found in a good multiple nutrient formula:
  * vitamin C
  * vitamin E
  * beta carotene
  * vitamin A
  * vitamin D
  * zinc
  * selenium
  (Please Note: These nutrients and more are found in optimal amounts in Dr. Myatt’s Maxi Multi vitamins)
• Supplement with additional immune-boosting herbs including Echinacea, astragalus, medicinal mushrooms (Maitake, Shiitake, Reishi), Ligustrum, Goldenseal and Garlic. Learn more about Dr. Myatt’s Immune Support formula .

If you do catch something, start Dr. Myatt’s Acute Immune Protocol right away.

• B.A.M. (Broad Anti Microbial)
• Immune Boost
• Bromelain
• Vitamin C
• Whey protein
• selenium

 Print This Post
Posted in Family Health | Comments Off