Lifestyle /
Overmedicating A Common Cold
We all hate getting sick but overmedication could cause more harm than good when it finally happens.
Despite covering your mouth and nose in public places, keeping your home stocked with hand sanitizer and washing your hands obsessively, it finally happened. You're down with cold.
Before you reach for pills to fight it, check yourself.
Here's a list of pointers that might come handy as you take medication for common cold.
It Might Be An Allergy
If you’re prone to pollen or dust allergies think twice before you pop your first Dayquil or Mucinex.
Confirm whether you are suffering from cold or an allergic reaction especially if you’ve already taken your anti-allergy medicine for the day. You should be even more careful while giving medicines to children.
Even if you’re more prone to seasonal congestion, it isn’t uncommon to be hit by allergies throughout the year.
Stick To The Prescribed Dosage
When you take a higher dose of medication than prescribed, you can actually put a brake on the speed of your recovery.
Symptoms of cold like coughing and sneezing are part of the body’s way of clearing toxins.
Too much medicine may suppress your cough reflex and the bacteria can hang around. They can also gain a foothold in your lungs leading to worse ailments.
Last year the U.S. Food & Drug Administration reported that NSAIDS like Aspirin and Ibuprofen led to about 200,000 trips to the hospital for complications such as gastrointestinal bleeding. Similarly, Acetaminophen (Tylenol) overdoses have led to over 56,000 hospital visits.
It's even more alarming that these overdoses account for 17,000 U.S. deaths annually. These medications can cause serious liver damage or liver failure over time or if taken in doses higher than those recommended.
Don't Combine Medicines
People often take NSAIDS or Tylenol along with cold medication, not realizing that many brand name drugs include acetaminophen, making accidental overdoses from wrong combinations of medicines far too common.
Read the medication labels carefully. Even better, speak with your pharmacist or doctor and make sure which medications you can safely take together.
Avoid Alcohol With Medication
Life doesn’t stop just because you caught a cold. But as you catch up with your coworkers during happy hour, don't forget that alcohol doesn't mix well with medication.
Alcohol can increase or decrease the medicine's effects on the body, especially those of antihistamines. Additionally, alcohol is already included in many over-the-counter medications like Nyquil.
Stay Away From Too Much Vitamin C
We often tend to ignore that excess of a good thing can also be bad news. While you shouldn’t skip your daily glass of orange juice, most scientific evidence doesn’t point to vitamin C as the wonder cure for cold.
Too much vitamin C after the onset of a cold can cause headaches, intestinal problems and even kidney stones. While it’s still good to keep up with your vitamins, large doses of vitamin C can also interfere with blood thinning medications.
So make sure you maintain moderation while trying to cure your cold.
With winters already knocking at the door, we hope these tips will help you take good care of yourself when bugged by common cold.
Source: Health.nytimes.com, Mayoclinic.com, Shine.yahoo.com, Wral.com, Aapnews.aappublications.org
Feature Image: Thebeautybean.com
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