Guzzling orange juice helps fight nasty winter colds-right?
Throughout flu and allergy season, students are faced with a boggling medley of tips, over-the-counter medicines and herbal remedies to help them alleviate the symptoms of their annoying ailments.
The general consensus about how to best manage colds and the flu is to wait them out.
Caused by viruses, the illnesses cannot be cured with antibiotics. They usually do not last longer than a week. Doctors say treating the symptoms to minimize discomfort is a patient's best decision.
As far as herbal treatments go, specialists report that there are quite a few promising options.
"Vitamin C can't hurt, and it may help," said Deronda Elliott, nurse at the East Campus Wellness Center.
Although scientists continue to debate the vitamin's efficacy, taking some every day is good for you, Elliott added.
Another vitamin may soon be getting the kind of reputation vitamin C has gained among the general population.
"There are some new studies out that say vitamin E helps with prevention and lessens the severity of upper respiratory infections," said Toni Apadula, dietician at Student Health.
She added that nuts and whole grains are good sources of vitamin E.
Although the World Health Organization has endorsed echinacea-a botanical extract from the purple coneflower-for the treatment of the common cold, studies on its efficacy have produced mixed results, according to WebMD.com.
Echinacea can help lessen the severity and duration of a cold, but it might weaken the immune system if taken regularly, Apadula explained.
As for traditional home remedies for colds and flus, it turns out that the old wives were right.
The most traditional of home remedies-plenty of rest and fluids-is the best way to combat a sickness, explained PJ Rowland, a triage nurse at Student Health. Rowland suggested drinking at least 10 glasses of water a day.
She added that staying home and resting can also prevent the spread of a virus, which can be transmitted through the air and on contaminated surfaces through particles emitted during coughing.
Studies have shown that chicken soup is a viable treatment for cold symptoms. It reduces inflammation and clears nasal pathways.
Also, gargling saltwater is a method of relieving a sore throat, Rowland noted.
She suggested using a half-teaspoon of salt in a glass of warm water.
The saltwater option may be more helpful than traditional cough syrup, according to mayoclinic.com, which also lists lemon water and honey as cough suppressants.
For more flu-like symptoms, the scent of lemon helps reduce nausea, and eating regularly instead of "starving a fever" helps the body fight off the ailment, Apadula said.
As opposed to colds, allergies are caused by immune responses to foreign particles-such as pollen-that the body mistakenly recognizes as pathogens.
A simple alternative to medical tests for distinguishing allergies from colds is correlating the severity of symptoms with daily pollen counts, which can be found on websites such as www.pollen.com.
To lessen the inconveniences of allergies, the best strategy is to avoid the allergens themselves, Rowland noted.
"If you go outside, wash your hair because it will pick up pollen and allergens," Rowland said, adding that changing bedsheets frequently will also help reduce exposure to irritants.
For severe symptoms, prescription and over-the-counter antihistamines will help block the immune response underlying the stubborn runny nose and sneezing.
Frequent hand-washing and the use of alcohol-based gel is extremely important for preventing illness, Rowland said.
To maintain a healthy immune system, Apadula suggested eating small, frequent and well-balanced meals every four hours during the day.
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