Hello Everyone I Have A Cold.....*sniffles*

[chgomom]

I have a nasty cold....post nasal drip..stuff its all tickling my throat, got me dizzy.....eyes are itchy....

I wanted to buy Zinc drops....from Cold Eeze.....but are they Gluten Free....I have no idea.

I thought maybe some Cordricin (sp) cold medicine...but I have no idea.

So I bought orange juice and I am going to take a steaming hot shower.....

While I am taking that shower.....I am making cookies for my department at work that I can't eat.....that I made wearing gloves...

Help....!!! What to do with a cold...my eyes are crossing from the stuffy nose...dizziness and exhaustion!!

[lindalee]

Do you have a vaporizer? I run them in the winter to keep the virus stuff down.

How about zinc (plain)?

Sounds like you need to rest.

Drink lots of good water.

Hope you feel better.

[Guest ~jules~]

I just got over one, it cycled through the whole family then boom there I was. I'm sorry your feeling cruddy Rest as much as you can, and for goodness sakes don't get glutened!

[Fiddle-Faddle]

I firmly believe that cold medicines are just another effort on the part of the pharm industry to get money out of us.

Have you seen how many cold medicines are on the shelves these days? The general public seems convinced that we need cold medicines!

Cold medicines do not cure colds. The ones I've tried never made me feel any better. Some of them cleared my sinuses, but made me feel sicker at the same time. Every single time I tried a cold medicine, my cold lasted for at least a week. When I did not use cold medicines,my colds were always done in 48 hours.

I actually heard a radio advertisement that purported to sound like a newscaster reading the news--saying that business owners reported more productivity among employees using (brand deleted) cold medicine as they used fewer sick days.

Didn't say anything about how many people they infected, though.

And at the very end of the commercial, there was one of those very quick, quiet announcements that this was an advertisement for (brand deleted) cold medicine.

Disgusting.

[ravenwoodglass]

When we get a cold we do the usual more vitamin C, lots of liquids, rest and NyQuil. I know for sure the liquid for night time is safe but if you want to try the Dayquil call them to check if it also is safe. I hope you didn't gluten yourself making cookies and that your cold eases soon.

[jerseyangel]

I agree with Fiddle Faddle. I have never like using cold medicines--they always had some sort of side efffect that just added to the discomfort of the cold.

I do use Bufferin (extra strength--the 325 mg. is not gluten-free), but other than that I use honey and fresh lemon juice for a sore throat or cough, drink lots of liquids like tea, water, homemade chicken soup or a good broth like Imagine, get plenty of rest--all of the common sense stuff.

I hope you feel better soon--colds are nasty

[wacky~jackie]

chgomom,

Sorry to hear you're under the weather . I have found this list to be very helpful.

Open Original Shared Link

Hope you feel better soon.

[Mayflowers]

People need to know that ELDERBERRY KILLS the cold, flu and pneumonia virus. If you drank elderberry tea regularly or ate elderberry jelly on your gluten-free bread. You won't get sick...PERIOD. If you are already sick, by eating or drinking elderberry, you will get better 50% faster than if you didn't.

If you don't believe me, go to PubMed. It's the site where doctors get their research info from. Type in

"sambucol" and you'll see actual studies where it killed the cold, flu, and pneumona viruses and prevents infection.

You don't need echinachea or antibiotics or zinc or any of that crap. Just eat or drink elderberries reuglarly and you won't get sick again...Yes the doctors don't want you to know about it. It doesn't make them any money.

I've been giving my sons elderberry jelly on toast every day or every other day and they (14 &16) have not gotten a cold or anything, especially my older son who has a history of pneumonia and bronchitis every October. They HAVE NOT gotten sick in 2 years.

Yeah, yeah, it's sounds too simple...The real cure usually is. (K.I.S.S.) The cure for everything is in nature.

[Michi8]

AFAIK, there isn't anything that cures a cold (though some people swear by Cold FX.) However, you can try to ease the symptoms. Pretty much every cold med on the shelf has Pseudoephedrine hydrochloride in it, which can help dry up secretions, but it can also cause insomnia (too much of it gives me the shakes too). Personally, I find that every cold I have turns into a sinus cold with horrible sinus pain/headaches. My treatment of choice includes pain relief just to get through it.

Michelle

[loraleena]

cold eeze is gluten free. I always use it and it helps me get better faster. Sudafed is gluten free also. I also use a homeopathic remedy called cold cf. I get it at my local health food store. It helps.

[odcdinah]

I also have a cold and am really missing Campbell's Chicken noodle soup!!!

quote name='chgomom' date='Sep 29 2006, 12:25 AM' post='210117']

I have a nasty cold....post nasal drip..stuff its all tickling my throat, got me dizzy.....eyes are itchy....

I wanted to buy Zinc drops....from Cold Eeze.....but are they Gluten Free....I have no idea.

I thought maybe some Cordricin (sp) cold medicine...but I have no idea.

So I bought orange juice and I am going to take a steaming hot shower.....

While I am taking that shower.....I am making cookies for my department at work that I can't eat.....that I made wearing gloves...

Help....!!! What to do with a cold...my eyes are crossing from the stuffy nose...dizziness and exhaustion!!

[Mayflowers]

AFAIK, there isn't anything that cures a cold (though some people swear by Cold FX.) However, you can try to ease the symptoms. Pretty much every cold med on the shelf has Pseudoephedrine hydrochloride in it, which can help dry up secretions, but it can also cause insomnia (too much of it gives me the shakes too). Personally, I find that every cold I have turns into a sinus cold with horrible sinus pain/headaches. My treatment of choice includes pain relief just to get through it.

Michelle

Yes there is. Come up to the millenium... Or did you not read my post?

I said don't take my word for it. Try it yourself before you start saying "there is no cure for the cold"

[Michi8]

Yes there is. Come up to the millenium... Or did you not read my post?

I said don't take my word for it. Try it yourself before you start saying "there is no cure for the cold"

Hmm, I wasn't replying to you or referencing your post. So why would you respond to me so rudely?

Michelle

[Fiddle-Faddle]

Michi8, I don't think Mayflowers was trying to be rude--it did look (at least, to me) that you were referencing her post in saying that there was no cure for the common cold right after she posted saying that, for her, there is something that has consistently worked.

Let's try to keep this thread from going the way of some of the other recent argumentative threads, okay?

Michi8, according to today's medical standards, you are correct: there is no cure for the common cold.

Mayflowers, you may indeed be on to something--which would then prove today's medical standards wrong!

It seems to me that it would be a good idea for people who get severe colds to check out the link provided by Mayflowers--nothing to lose, and everything to gain, right?

As for me, I discovered 15 years ago that if I drink a ton (especially chicken soup!), I can get over a cold with only minimum discomfort in 48 hours or less, usually without feeling ill enough to miss work. (Famous last words: I've probably just jinxed myself by writing that, and will spend the next winter with a three month long cold! ) For all I know, it's just a placebo effect, although I do think there is some logic to the drinking a lot of liquid--you're peeing out all the germs!

[chgomom]

ok...to squabbling children. *lol*

Good to know cold eeze is gluten free!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yay!!

I hate cold medicines....and prefer to deal with it unless it get too bad.

I mad themistake of drinking orange juice tonight and now I'm burning.

Think I should take pepcid...or is it not gluten free?

[Mayflowers]

Yes it did look like you were referencing my post Michi8, since you posted right after I said elderberry kills the cold, flu and pneumonia virus and I felt you were being rude to me, but I didn't mention that in my post. I have a dry sense of humor that sometimes gets misunderstood.

It's time for people to understand that drug companies are manipulating doctors all the way to the FDA and here is a video clip by Dr. Mercola that I found that explains it.

Open Original Shared Link

[JenKuz]

I highly recommend zycam. Zinc is the way forward when it comes to colds. I haven't investigated the elderberry angle, though I'm heading to pubmed as soon as I'm done here. But zinc gluconate has been shown in clinical studies to reduce the duration of colds, and to prevent them from forming if you think you've been exposed. The lozenges are okay, but not as parsimonious as the nasal swabs.

They think it works by preventing the cold viruses from adhering to and invading cells in the nasal passages. The only thing is, if I remember right, it only worked for one type of virus...it was either rhinovirus or coronavirus, both of which cause colds...and the zinc was only good for one of them. So empirically the zinc might not always seem to work.

Making sure you have enough zinc in your diet is also good because it's vital for the manufacture of new DNA, meaning cells can't replicate without it. When immune cells respond to a new virus, they have to proliferate really rapidly, so having enough zinc may facilitate this process. But you don't need the lozenges. A regular zinc magnesium supplement will do just fine. Especially because the lozenges taste like death.

If you are prone to sinus infections or anything like that, a plain saline nasal spray will help keep bacteria in check while you recover from the cold or flu, preventing or limiting secondary infectious. But be careful of the ones with cold medicine in them, if you're already taking something.

Vitamin C itself doesn't seem to do much in clinical trials, but I personally think the acid on the throat must be good for something. Lemon and honey in hot water undeniably feels good when sick.

I don't happen to think echinachea does much. A lot of clinical trials have been done, and the empirirc evidence seems to be against it.

I will say this: the placebo effect is not something to scoff at. It is more powerful that the majority of pharmacologically active agents (read a guy called Moerman for more on this, he's really cool). I think we should embrace it as the tool that it is. So pretty much, if you believe it will work, it will.

My final recommendation is Hugh Grant. Or Colin Firth. Or any movie featuring the two of them together, excellent treatment for a bad cold.

[Mayflowers]

I tried Zycam. Didn't do a damn thing for me... Sorry. I think I've tried everything out there, from zinc to echinacea to chicken soup which also did nothing.

(except elderberry which I now swear by)

I do believe that colds are transmitted by hand to hand contact aren't they? You touch something that the sick person touched then rub your eye or nose or mouth. They say that water coolers at work are the worst for transmitting colds and flu due to the water handle being touched by everyone in the office.

Saline spray for the nose is GREAT! It really helps keep sinus infections away for me. I use it daily, especially in the winter.

I don't care for Hugh Grant, I do like Hugh Jackman or Vigo Mortensen (Lord Aragon in Lord of the Rings) OR Orlando Bloom..... Sean Conery aged well....Vin Diesel(great bod)....Keanu Reeves....Julian McMahn..(nip tuck) I have a long list...

[JenKuz]

Just looking at the Elderberry stuff now. There's an interesting study in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine.

They say: "A significant improvement of the symptoms, including fever, was seen in 93.3% of the cases in the SAM-treated group within 2 days, whereas in the control group 91.7% of the patients showed an improvement within 6 days (p < 0.001). A complete cure was achieved within 2 to 3 days in nearly 90% of the SAM-treated group and within at least 6 days in the placebo group (p < 0.001)."

So the p-values are good, but in the abstract they don't give n numbers and they don't describe their statistical methods (I have concerns about that). My university doesn't have online access to the article itself, so I can't check it out. If their results are accurate, this is saying that sambucol reduces symptoms due to the flu.

Now, this study was just for influenza. There's nothing on the cold. I see a couple publications on inflammatory cytokines. Based on that, I would say that the results in the flu study were probably because of an increase in inflammatory responses in the immune system. In other words, the sambucol probably doesn't kill the virus, but it does alter the body's response to it in a way that is beneficial in terms of recovery.

If this is true, then the sambucol encourages the inflammatory process. This is something to think about, given how much of the pain of celiac is due to intestinal inflammation. It may well be worht considering, but pay attention to your gut afterward.

That said, I'm almost certain I heard something about taking Sambuca shots for a cold when I was in Italy. Now I know why.

[Mayflowers]

Then how do you explain elderberry's ability to prevent colds and flu. My sons are my study. My oldest used to get bronchitis like clockwork every October that almost would go into pneumonia. Since he's been regularly eating elderberry, he hasn't gotten sick...period. Now, how would something that increases inflammation prevent someone from getting sicker? If you have inflammation, your immune system is compromised and you would in fact get sicker easier and faster. I'm not buying that. There has to be other "factors" of elderberry that are not being looked at that are involved.

You don't need shots of elderberry. Just drink the tea or eat the jelly.

Plus the fact that there are good results in studies on a natural cure on PubMed is HUGE. That should be enough for anyone.

I'm done. People should trust themselves and just try it, but they should give it a year of regular daily or every other day, consumption to notice any difference in immunity.

[JenKuz]

I tried Zycam. Didn't do a damn thing for me... Sorry. I think I've tried everything out there, from zinc to echinacea to chicken soup which also did nothing.

(except elderberry which I now swear by)

Saline spray for the nose is GREAT! It really helps keep sinus infections away for me. I use it daily, especially in the winter.

Well, the problem with the zycam is that it only works for rhinoviruses. Colds can also be caused by echoviruses, coxsackieviruses, and paramyxoviruses and a couple others. Rhinoviruses cause about a third of colds, so for any given cold I guess you have a 33% chance of zycam working. Empirically, most people would probably think it didn't work, if they happened to try it when they have some non-rhinovirus cold. The other problem is that you never know, when you get sick, how long this particular cold is destined to last. So you'd never know if something reduced the duration or not.

One of the zinc swab studies used experimental infection with rhinovirus. That would make it more or less the gold standard of clinical trials.

Unfortunately, nobody's going to put as much money into trials for something like sambucol, so we may never have as good data on some of those things. That situation is improving some, but not fast enough. We still don't have an artemesia-based malaria drug in the US, for example. They've been approved virtually throughout the rest of the world, and shown to be effective, even by our own companies (Coartem, made by Novartis, for example).

Here's this:

Hulisz D. Efficacy of zinc against common cold viruses: an overview. J Am Pharm Assoc (Wash DC). 2004 Sep-Oct;44(5):594-603.

School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA. dth4@cwru.edu

OBJECTIVE: To review the laboratory and clinical evidence of the medicinal value of zinc for the treatment of the common cold. DATA SOURCES: Published articles identified through Medline (1980-2003) using the search terms zinc, rhinovirus, and other pertinent subject headings. Additional sources were identified from the bibliographies of the retrieved articles. STUDY SELECTION: By the author. DATA EXTRACTION: By the author. DATA SYNTHESIS: Human rhinoviruses, by attaching to the nasal epithelium via the intracellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) receptor, cause most colds. Ionic zinc, based on its electrical charge, also has an affinity for ICAM-1 receptor sites and may exert an antiviral effect by attaching to the ICAM-1 receptors in the rhinovirus structure and nasal epithelial cells. Clinical tests of zinc for treatment of common colds have been inconsistent, primarily because of study design, blinding, and lozenge contents. Early formulations of lozenges also were unpalatable. In three trials with similar study designs, methodologies, and efficacy assessments, zinc effectively and significantly shortened the duration of the common cold when it was administered within 24 hours of the onset of symptoms. Recent reports of trials with zinc gluconate administered as a nasal gel have supported these findings; in addition, they have shown that treatment with zinc nasal gel is effective in reducing the duration and severity of common cold symptoms in patients with established illness. CONCLUSION: Clinical trial data support the value of zinc in reducing the duration and severity of symptoms of the common cold when administered within 24 hours of the onset of common cold symptoms. Additional clinical and laboratory evaluations are warranted to further define the role of ionic zinc for the prevention and treatment of the common cold and to elucidate the biochemical mechanisms through which zinc exerts its symptom-relieving effects.

Then how do you explain elderberry's ability to prevent colds and flu. My sons are my study. My oldest used to get bronchitis like clockwork every October that almost would go into pneumonia. Since he's been regularly eating elderberry, he hasn't gotten sick...period. Now, how would something that increases inflammation prevent someone from getting sicker? If you have inflammation, your immune system is compromised and you would in fact get sicker easier and faster. I'm not buying that.

You don't need shots of elderberry. Just drink the tea or eat the jelly.

Plus the fact that there are good results in studies on a natural cure on PubMed is HUGE. That should be enough for anyone.

I'm done. People should trust themselves and just try it, but they should give it a year of regular daily or every other day, consumption to notice any difference in immunity.

It's not actually true that inflammation means a compromised immune system. Inflammation is one of the immune system's most powerful tools for combating certain illnesses. It's only problematic when it gets caught in a cycle of constant inflammation (because of an autoimmune disorder, for example). A healthy immune system can deploy inflammation strategically when needed, and for many illnesses, it's necessary. C-reactive Protein, for example, is an inflammatory proteins. Most people in the US have come to think of it as a negative protein, signifying stress, sickness, inflammation, heart disease, etc. And it's true that when it is artificially elevated all the time, it is not so good. But we need CRP to fight darn near any disease we get.

As for prevention, I haven't found any studies on that through pubmed. There are only the studies on inflammatory cytokines and influenza duration. I will say, that if a body is kicking a flu's butt faster, it may be able to do it so fast that symptoms never appear. So it would be in effect preventing a flu.

It is quite possible that elderberry also works for colds, but it has not been tested yet. Hopefully it will be some day, so your observations in your sons are probably quite valid. It probably has actions not tested in these studies; perhaps it allows the body to elevat cytokines faster during illness, but maybe it also helps the body keep them in check when not ill? Who knows?

[Mayflowers]

Thank you for your observations.. I work in a medical school for two division chiefs of neonatology in pediatrics. My boss is skeptical also.. I even gave him tea and he said he felt better the next day after drinking it but he still wouldn't keep drinking it while he was sick and his cold hung on for another week and a half...I can also report that I didn't catch it from him because I have been drinking the tea every day.

I've worked in medical 20 years...Doctors are stubborn to change without 50 studies behind something.

[Michi8]

Yes it did look like you were referencing my post Michi8, since you posted right after I said elderberry kills the cold, flu and pneumonia virus and I felt you were being rude to me, but I didn't mention that in my post. I have a dry sense of humor that sometimes gets misunderstood.

It's time for people to understand that drug companies are manipulating doctors all the way to the FDA and here is a video clip by Dr. Mercola that I found that explains it.

Open Original Shared Link

I'm sorry you thought that, but I did say that "AFAIK" (as far as I know) there wasn't a cure. I did not say you were wrong at all, so I fail to see how what I said could be rude.

Elderberry sounds promising, but it still doesn't sound like a cure (and, yes, I did do some reading and searching on it...the studies sound interesting, but were of a pretty small scale.) I also had a hard time finding anything come up that wasn't from a homeopathic perspective, although there was some interesting stuff on Medline, including information on the allergy potential of elderberries. I also found a Warning letter from the FDA to a company selling elderberry products with claims that were beyond the scope of herbals.

Michelle

[Mayflowers]

I'm sorry you thought that, but I did say that "AFAIK" (as far as I know) there wasn't a cure. I did not say you were wrong at all, so I fail to see how what I said could be rude.

Elderberry sounds promising, but it still doesn't sound like a cure (and, yes, I did do some reading and searching on it...the studies sound interesting, but were of a pretty small scale.) I also had a hard time finding anything come up that wasn't from a homeopathic perspective, although there was some interesting stuff on Medline, including information on the allergy potential of elderberries. I also found a Warning letter from the FDA to a company selling elderberry products with claims that were beyond the scope of herbals.

Michelle

My problem was that I didn't know what AFAIK means. Sorry about that. And as I mentioned I was trying to be cocky...(funny). Yes the letter from the FDA, that's why I posted the link to Dr. Mercola's video. You should listen to the video. It will explain the evilness...

[Michi8]

My problem was that I didn't know what AFAIK means. Sorry about that. And as I mentioned I was trying to be cocky...(funny). Yes the letter from the FDA, that's why I posted the link to Dr. Mercola's video. You should listen to the video. It will explain the evilness...

I'm on the same page with you there...government regulatory bodies are not there to protect the public so much as to further the interests of business. I take the claims of both modern medical organizations and traditional/natural medical organizations with big grains of salt (they both have products to sell.) However, I do think that the best medicine combines all types of health care whether they are modern or traditional/natural.

BTW, the Cold-FX product I mentioned is a popular product made with Ginseng. Apparently it has had good results in studies (for both preventing and treating colds & flu), and a lot of people swear buy it. Check it out here: Open Original Shared Link Be sure to look at both the American and Canadian pages, they may present info differently due to FDA vs. Health Canada regulations. And here is the link to the clinial trial info: Open Original Shared Link

Alas, I do not know if it is gluten free, as it does not say on their website or on the bottle.

Michelle