POSTS WITH TAG: cold & flu

Baby Health Check

7 Ways to Survive Your Baby's First Cold

Posted by Jenny Benjamin
on Apr 22, 2012 at 4:10 PM

baby noseIt's become frighteningly clear to me that making comments like, "My babies have never been sick," as I did in my last blog post on formula-feeding, are surefire ways to tempt fate and get a swift karmic kick in the ass. Yep, just a few days later, my 8-month-old boys got sick with fevers and colds, the works. (With that in mind, I should mention that I've never won the lottery. No big jackpot here, nope, never, not me.)

Anyway, while I thought I was pretty well prepared for my babies to get sick -- you know, armed with the infant care kit I got when I was still pregnant -- I really wasn't. Our medicine cabinet was lacking, my general knowledge was lacking, and I emotionally was not at all ready to watch my babies cry and snarf and sneeze their way through their first real colds. It taught me a few things, that's for sure...

 

 

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Healthy Living GossipMonger

Kanye West's Ode to Kim Kardashian Gets Cold Reaction From Theraflu Makers

Posted by Julie Ryan Evans
on Apr 5, 2012 at 9:48 PM

TherafluIf you've opened either your eyes or your ears at all today, you likely know about Kanye West's new song "Theraflu" in which he proclaims his love for Kim Kardashian. It was conveniently released right as they went public with their budding relationship, and you couldn't plan a better publicity strategy for a record if you tried (which perhaps they did). One party at the center of the whole perfect media storm isn't so hot on the buzz, however ... and I don't mean Kris Humphries.

It seems the makers of the cold and flu drug named Theraflu (manufactured by Novartis) don't like the song one bit. According to TMZ, Kanye reportedly uses the name of the drug "because he's so cold to his enemies and they need a dose." That sounds like a pretty nice compliment to me and the kind of free publicity anyone would be crazy to sneeze at, but their Achoos! are coming in loud and clear.

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Healthy Living Health Check

Antibiotics Don't Help Sinus Infections -- Now What?

Posted by Kim Conte
on Feb 15, 2012 at 1:24 PM

kleenix box for sinus infectionIf you're a frequent sinus infection sufferer, it's likely you at times depend on antibiotics to make you feel better -- I know I do! It's not that I drop everything and hightail it to my doctor at the first sign of sniffles; but if I have severe cold-like symptoms that last for days and days, I'll ask him for a prescription (hopefully instead of missing work). But now a new study suggests this line of defense may not be as effective as we assume: It says that antibiotics, specifically amoxicillin, do not fight sinus infections any more effectively than taking an inactive placebo pill.

What? Waaaaa!

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Healthy Living

Don't Panic Over Neti Pot Deaths, It's Not That Bad

Posted by Cynthia Dermody
on Dec 17, 2011 at 12:10 PM

neti pot

In today's edition of "Never Would Have Predicted This in a Million Years," neti pots are killing people. And this news couldn't come at a worse time -- right in the middle of cold and flu season! People swear by their neti pots. The are one of the most popular methods of naturally treating and preventing a cold going, and many folks use them religiously. So the news that two people in Louisiana died this year from neti pots is probably terribly upsetting to them, and have them wondering if they should just toss the little teapot in the trash or just give it to their toddler to play genie. But as with any major health scare knee-jerk, that is exactly what you should not do. There's a lot more to this story than just a very alarming headline.

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Healthy Living

How to Tell the Difference Between a Cold and the Flu

Posted by Amy Reiter
on Nov 30, 2011 at 6:00 AM
Cold & Flu Guide

coldYou wake up in the morning feeling like crud: Your throat hurts, your nose is runny, your muscles ache, and all you want to do is crawl back into bed, pull your covers over your head, and sink into a deep, deep sleep.

But how do you know if what you've got is a cold or the flu? Both are respiratory illnesses and share many symptoms, making them very difficult to tell apart, but the flu can sometimes lead to more serious complications, like pneumonia or bacterial infections, which can be dangerous.

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Healthy Living

5 Top-Rated Humidifiers From Customers Who Use & Love Them

Posted by Amy Kuras
on Nov 28, 2011 at 8:11 AM
Cold & Flu Guide


Air O Swiss 7144
A humidifier can be the best way to combat the dry skin, chapped lips, and scratchy throats that come from living in the warm, dry air your furnace is churning out right now, and it's a great way to ease discomfort from a stuffy nose.

But which humidifier should you buy? Well, as with most things, you get what you pay for ... 

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Healthy Living

10 Surefire Ways to Survive Your Cold

Posted by Amy Kuras
on Nov 18, 2011 at 6:00 AM
Cold & Flu Guide

We're in full swing with cold and flu season, and if you haven't battled the nastiness yet, you probably will soon. Case in point: This has turned into a very, very timely assignment for me as I tempted fate last week by saying I hadn't gotten sick in a long time, and promptly developed the sniffles (sigh).

Usually a cold means you're just sick enough to be miserable but not sick enough to stay home and wallow for more than a day, maybe. You've just got to dig deep, power through, and make yourself as comfortable as possible. These 10 tips ought to help you get through until you feel better.

1) Stay warm. A cold can actually make you feel cold, or at least make going out into the chilly fall air feel worse than normal. Wrap yourself in warm, fleecy blankets and fuzzy socks at home, and make sure you bundle up with a hat, mittens, and scarf when you go out. If there's ever an excuse for a Snuggie, this is it.

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Healthy Living

6 Surefire Ways to Stop Coughing Now

Posted by Maressa Brown
on Nov 9, 2011 at 6:00 AM
Cold & Flu Guide

hot tea with lemonEver have one of those fall or winter mornings, days, or WEEKS when you just can't stop coughing your brains out? When almost no amount of cough drops under the sun are helping, and you feel like crawling under the covers? Yeah, we've all been sick as THAT dog at some point, and it's just awful.

Thankfully, there are some tricks you can pull from up your sleeve should the Worst Cough in the World strike! Here, six surprising ways to stop a nasty cough in its tracks.

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Healthy Living

8 Flu Shot Pros and Cons You May Not Know About

Posted by Amy Reiter
on Nov 7, 2011 at 6:00 AM
Cold & Flu Guide

flu shotEvery year you probably ask yourself the same thing: Should I get a flu shot this year, or should I pass it by?

It's understandable that you might feel uncertain. There's a lot of confusing information floating around out there about flu vaccines, which are available either as a shot or as a nasal spray. For instance, a recent study indicated that flu vaccines offer you only "moderate protection" from catching this season's flu. That's hardly inspiring. On the other hand, "moderate protection" is better than no protection at all, right?

What should you do? The CDC recommends that everyone over the age of 6 months receive the flu vaccine each year, unless you are allergic to the vaccine. But even still, there's no one-size-fits-all answer.

Here are a few flu shot pros and cons to consider as you weigh what's right for you:

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Healthy Living

Hand Washing 101: Tips You Need to Avoid Getting Sick

Posted by Amy Kuras
on Nov 4, 2011 at 6:00 AM
Cold & Flu Guide

There's one thing that can do more to save lives -- and keep you cold and flu free this winter -- than any vaccine or medical intervention, and you've probably been doing it since you were old enough to stand at a sink. It's washing your hands!

It seems really simple, but any visit to a public restroom will remind you that some people still don't get the importance of hand washing (which is, quite frankly, gross). Even the most well-meaning among us don't always know when to wash their hands or what the most effective hand-washing techniques are.  

You know to do it after using the bathroom, before eating, and after handling stuff like raw chicken, but you should also scrub up:

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