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Common cold
How long does it take to recover from a cold and fever?
If medication is not used, the general course of the illness is about three to seven days. With medical intervention, recovery can generally be achieved in one to three days. If the fever exceeds 38.5°C, it is advisable to take measures to reduce fever to prevent complications such as febrile convulsions. Physical methods can be used to reduce fever. Fever can also be treated with oral antipyretics. During the treatment period, it is advisable to eat light meals, avoid staying up late, and avoid consuming large portions of meat and fish.
What should I do if I have a cold, headache, and nasal congestion?
Symptoms such as cold, headache, and nasal congestion should be treated accordingly. It is advisable to drink plenty of water and avoid eating irritating foods. Check your body temperature, and if there are symptoms of fever, you can take aspirin or acetaminophen to treat the fever and headache. For nasal congestion, you can take oral medications that suppress gland secretion, or use some nasal drops locally to relieve the swelling of the nasal mucosa and control the sensation of congestion. Drink plenty of water, rest more, and avoid spicy foods and seafood.
Can you drink tea when you have a cold?
It is not recommended to drink tea when having a cold; it is advised that patients drink more plain water instead. Patients also need to maintain a light diet and eat some fruits, and it’s recommended to avoid both tea and carbonated beverages, as well as alcohol. For conditions like the common cold, it is important to avoid staying up late and overexerting oneself. The common cold is usually self-limiting, meaning it will typically resolve on its own as the patient's immune system fights off the illness. However, if the symptoms of a cold are severe, it may be necessary to take medication for symptomatic treatment. It is also important to note that while the common cold is usually self-limiting and does not often lead to serious consequences, complications can sometimes arise. For example, it could lead to acute sinusitis or bacterial pneumonia. If a cold sufferer's symptoms persist or worsen, it is important to seek medical attention promptly for proper treatment.
Cold symptoms also include diarrhea.
Colds may involve symptoms such as sneezing, runny nose, nasal congestion, coughing, and phlegm. If there are also symptoms like diarrhea and watery stools, it is possible that it might be a gastrointestinal type of cold. Besides the common cold symptoms, there might also be gastrointestinal symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, acid reflux, or burping. It is recommended that in such cases, in addition to taking anti-cold medicine, one should also take medicine to regulate the spleen and stomach for treatment, such as other traditional Chinese medicines that adjust the spleen and stomach functions. It is also important to maintain a light diet, eat smaller meals frequently, and if the diarrhea is severe, anti-diarrheal medication should be taken for treatment. (The specific use of medications should be under the guidance of a doctor.)
Can I eat beef with a cold?
Beef is a very delicious food, but can you still eat beef after catching a cold? Whether you can eat beef after catching a cold depends on the specific situation. If the symptoms of the cold are mild and not very pronounced, it is okay to eat beef. However, if the symptoms are severe, such as significant fever, reduced appetite, and gastrointestinal discomfort, it is recommended to avoid eating beef. This is because beef is rich in protein and generally not very easy to digest. Eating beef in such cases could increase the burden on the gastrointestinal tract, causing the body to feel even more uncomfortable.
Green nasal discharge is what kind of cold?
Nasal discharge that appears blue-green in color is primarily caused by viral infections such as the common cold, with symptoms including obvious nasal congestion, runny nose, headache, and fever. The common causative viruses include influenza virus, parainfluenza virus, and rhinovirus. We can determine the specific causative virus by testing for influenza antibodies in the blood. Based on the patient's test results, antiviral medications, as well as medicines that clear the nasal passages, are used to improve symptoms. In daily life, it is important to maintain hygiene, wash hands frequently, ensure good ventilation, wear masks, and avoid crowded places to prevent infection.
Can you donate blood if you have a cold?
You cannot donate blood when you have a cold, as colds are mostly caused by bacterial or viral infections, and donations are not allowed during this time. Before donating blood, a series of tests are required, and donation is not allowed when you are sick. Additionally, your immune system is generally weaker when you have a cold. Donating blood at this time could worsen the symptoms of the cold. After donating, your immunity could be even lower, making your body weaker, thus hindering the recovery from the cold. Therefore, you should not donate blood while having a cold. Wait until at least half a month after the symptoms have subsided before donating blood. Furthermore, you should eat lightly, avoiding spicy, greasy, raw, or irritating foods. Before donating blood, you should avoid smoking, drinking alcohol, and staying up late to ensure you get enough sleep and boost your immunity.
Symptoms of a cold caused by wind-cold
The so-called common cold, which is often referred to as the common cold, is divided from the perspective of Chinese medicine into heat-type colds and cold-type colds. A wind-cold cold refers to the symptoms that occur when a patient is exposed to wind and cold causing viruses or other pathogens to enter the respiratory tract, characterized by fever, headache, runny nose—often clear mucus—along with coughing and an itchy throat. Thus, in clinical practice, for patients with a wind-cold cold, if symptoms such as nasal congestion, runny nose, and sneezing occur, it is appropriate to use heat-clearing, detoxifying, and antiviral medications according to the patient's symptoms for symptomatic treatment. The discomfort caused by the wind-cold cold can be effectively controlled.
Is scraping effective for colds caused by heat?
Scraping therapy can also be very effective for treating colds associated with heat symptoms, as it primarily stimulates acupoints to help reduce internal heat, achieving effective regulation and improvement. It is also important to pay attention to diet, avoiding foods that are too heating to effectively prevent exacerbating the condition. Scraping therapy mainly adjusts the body by stimulating acupoints, and can significantly improve conditions by scraping acupoints like Kidney Shu and Lung Shu. It is best to avoid alcohol and overly heating foods in your diet.
Symptoms of a cold in children
Children's cold, also known as acute upper respiratory tract infection in children, is the most common disease among children. It mainly refers to the inflammation of the mucous membranes of the nose, nasopharynx, and pharynx, leading to acute rhinitis, acute pharyngitis, and acute tonsillitis, collectively referred to as such. After catching a cold, children can exhibit local symptoms, primarily manifesting as nasal congestion, sneezing, runny nose, mild cough, discomfort in the throat, or sore throat. Systemic symptoms may include fever, fatigue, headache, body aches, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain, which often appears as spasmodic periumbilical pain without tenderness. In infants and young children, local symptoms are not severe, but systemic symptoms are more significant. A general physical examination can reveal congestion in the throat, swelling of the tonsils, and enlargement of the lymph nodes in the jaw and neck area.