Antibiotic resistance is a major threat to public health. Resistance makes it harder for physicians to treat infections and can increase the chance patients will die from an infection. What is more, the…
They may not cure your cold but they’ll will help you forget your miseries.
Drew Leavy/Flickr
Feeling miserable? Is your nose blocked and your throat sore? If not, it will be sometime this winter, probably at least a couple of times. And then someone will probably say at your low ebb that “you…
The human body operates at an average internal temperature of 37°C, give or take various fluctuations during the day. But too much or too little external heat can exacerbate certain health conditions…
Unfortunately, nothing really works – or works that well – to prevent or treat colds.
Jacob Spencer
With symptoms including a runny nose, sore throat, sneezing, cough, headaches and fever, the common cold can leave you feeling rotten for up to two weeks. As the name suggests, they’re annoyingly common…
Influenza infection is very common – about one in five of us are infected each year. But, surprisingly, the majority of infections don’t cause any illness. In a study published in The Lancet Respiratory…
A lot of the illness we think of being caused by the ‘flu’ is actually due to other viruses.
Kim Keegan
Facts about Flu - Perhaps the misery you feel when ill in winter isn’t the fault of the much-maligned influenza virus after all. RSV, hMPV, CoV… these may all sound like random acronyms, but they are influenza’s…
Whether or not you are feeding a cold or starving it makes little difference to the biology of a common cold.
Image from shutterstock.com
This winter, most of us will catch a cold. Our kids will probably catch at least two or three. We all know you are supposed to feed a cold and starve a fever. But does it really make any difference if…
You’re no more likely to lose heat from your head than other parts of your body – except your hands and feet.
Taylor Mackenzie
As the weather starts to cool down and winter clothes enter rotation in our wardrobes, some peculiar combinations emerge: shorts and scarves; thongs and jackets; T-shirts and beanies. The last is often…
Only a lab test can confirm what virus you’ve been infected with.
Jason Rogers
Influenza or flu is one of those dustbin words used by the media and by health professionals to cover the myriad causes of a respiratory infection. The only way to be sure is with laboratory testing of…
Vitamin C is so often suggested as a treatment for the common cold that it’s almost considered common sense. This well-known vitamin is primarily found in fruits and vegetables, with small quantities in…
Despite decades of medical breakthroughs and growing health budgets, the simple act of washing our hands remains one of the most important things we can do to protect ourselves from disease. The principle…
When you’re sick with a cold, you’re likely to be told to rest and drink plenty of fluids – water, juice, tea and the old favourite, chicken soup. This has been the prevailing advice for generations and…
It’s wise to rug up outdoors but it won’t stop you getting a cold.
Flickr/foshydog
Colds are more common in the cold winter months. But does the weather have anything to do with why we get sick? These days, we use other terms such as “virus” or “the flu” to describe our sniffles because…
There’s no evidence to prove it works, but does that matter?
Flickr/Akane86
Of all the homemade winter cure-alls, chicken soup is the best known and most loved. In fact the term “chicken soup” has become idiomatic for all things restorative; benefiting every possible problem from…
SAD is often undiagnosed as a specific form of depression.
Jeremy Brooks
As the days get shorter and we approach winter, many of us have a lowered mood, reduced energy levels and seem to need more sleep. Such seasonal changes in mood and energy are common and most of us adapt…
The drugs don’t work. But a swifter way of identifying bacteria could reduce the need for antibiotics.
AAP
Antibiotics started out as the biggest medical breakthrough of the 20th century but overuse in humans and animals has led to resistance and reduced efficacy. We’re now at risk of reverting back to a pre-antibiotic…