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First signs of a cold

post #1 of 27
5/18/09 at 12:28am
Thread Starter 
Just now started feeling that all too familiar tickle in the back of my throat. Does anything actually work or is it all just old wives' tales? (Just gargled warm salt water, ate 2 cloves of raw garlic--blech--and am drinking hot lemon water and prepping for a very long night of sleep. I am going to be effing pissed if I am sick again; it'd be the second time in the last month).
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post #2 of 27
5/18/09 at 12:34am
If it's the flu, Tamiflu. (but it's ~$10 a pill, you need a prescription, and the Japanese think it'll make you über depressed) Otherwise, rest & drink up and hope for the best
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post #3 of 27
5/18/09 at 12:46am
I swear by the Zicam lozenges. I've used it when I feel a cold coming on, and wound up not getting sick. When I have come down with a cold, it really does seem to make it shorter and less severe.
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post #4 of 27
5/18/09 at 1:07am
Quote:
Originally Posted by MrG View Post
I swear by the Zicam lozenges. I've used it when I feel a cold coming on, and wound up not getting sick. When I have come down with a cold, it really does seem to make it shorter and less severe.

A pharmacist recommended them to me about two years ago and I have used them since then at the first sign of a cold. In the 2 years I've yet to have a cold come full on so I think they work great. Definitely worth the money imo.
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post #5 of 27
5/18/09 at 7:45am
Anecdotal evidence but I've had good luck with taking 50mg of zinc when feeling the first signs of a cold.

Echinacea has also been shown to help but must be taken at the "first signs" phase. It will do nothing once you're actually symptomatic. At least that's what I recall from a study I read a couple years back.
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post #6 of 27
5/18/09 at 10:02am
- get a large piece of fresh raw ginger - preferably organic (any root that grows in the ground probably is better if it's organic).
- use a cheese grater to grate the stuff into a large mug.
- add a large tablespoon or more of honey - if you can get NZ Manuka honey, do so.
- get a lemon or two; you can use them two ways: 1) use the grater to get the yellow rind (zest) but not the bitter pith. 2) Then cut off a quarter, half or squeeze the juice into your mug.
- top up with hot water; let it steep for a minute or two and drink. You can often feel your face flush as the ginger provides some sort of 'rush'.
- drink as often as you need; if you can take it - eat the remaining ginger with a small spoon.
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post #7 of 27
5/18/09 at 10:34am
Airborne + Zicam FTW.
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post #8 of 27
5/18/09 at 11:15am
Quote:
Originally Posted by MrG View Post
I swear by the Zicam lozenges. I've used it when I feel a cold coming on, and wound up not getting sick. When I have come down with a cold, it really does seem to make it shorter and less severe.

+1
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post #9 of 27
5/18/09 at 12:40pm
I like taking 5 to 10 grams of L-Glutamine before going to bed.
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post #10 of 27
5/18/09 at 1:00pm
Thread Starter 
thanks for the responses. ill get some zicam today.

woke up today with the throat in the same condition as i left it last night before bed. maybe i'm being oversensitive to the "soreness" as i've just recovered from a cold and the memory is still fresh.

anyhowwww... let's see how this zicam'll work
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post #11 of 27
5/18/09 at 1:08pm
Agree with zinc, and I also load up on Powerade/chicken soup. Not mixed together, though.

re: Zicam. Mrs. T tried it and inhaled like you do for Afrin/the rest of the genre. iirc, the instructions say to NOT inhale, and she was unable to smell much for quite a while. However, the upside was that I could fart without fear of reproach.
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post #12 of 27
5/18/09 at 2:02pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Thomas View Post
re: Zicam. Mrs. T tried it and inhaled like you do for Afrin/the rest of the genre. iirc, the instructions say to NOT inhale, and she was unable to smell much for quite a while. However, the upside was that I could fart without fear of reproach.

There are/were actually lawsuits filed against Zicam over this. Just like Mrs. T, people were using it like a nasal spray, and it messed up their sense of smell, permanently for some. Prior to hearing about this I used the spray, but afterwards I promptly switched to the lozenges. In my experience the lozenges work just as well as the spray. They don't taste great, but they have the benefit of not risking the loss of one of my senses.
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post #13 of 27
5/18/09 at 2:07pm
Alka-Seltzer Nighttime Cold effervescent tablets & an extra blanket. First sign of a cold, I do this that very night. The medicine knocks me out & the extra blanket sweats the cold out. Been doing this for 10+ years and it's always worked for me. A nurse taught me this one.
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post #14 of 27
5/18/09 at 3:40pm
Also Emergen-C Immune Defense twice a day - 1000mg of vitamin C, Zinc, B-Complex.. Definitely works for me.
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post #15 of 27
5/18/09 at 6:12pm
50mg of zinc daily (or every other day if you are concerned with zinc toxicity) and mega dose Vitamin C. I'm not talking 500mg, 1 gram, or even 3 grams. If you are already sick, you should be taking 20, 40, or more grams daily. Dose to bowel tolerance, ie, keep increasing your dose every hour until you get diarrhea. Once you get diarrhea, decrease dosage by 1 gram. That is the amount you should be taking....

Before I get a bunch of accusations of quackery, let me defer to Dr. Linus Pauling, winner of two noble prizes; one for discovering the alpha helix, the other for founding orthomolecular biology. This was his regimen for when he felt a cold coming on.
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