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Health & Fitness

How to Prevent and Treat the Common Cold

We often think of winter as being cough and cold season, but summer colds are common, too. Find out the one most important thing you can do to fight a cold, and when it's time to see the doctor.

We often think of winter as being the “cough and cold season” … and no, we still haven’t found a cure for the common cold (no matter what the advertisers say)! But summer colds are common, too.  And it can be tricky to find the right thing to help you find relief.

Most products you’ll find in the store are designed to help fight cold symptoms, not the cold itself.  The one exception is Zinc products. There is some evidence that the products containing zinc can actually stop some colds if taken at the very start.  The challenge is that they’re difficult to take properly:  you can’t swallow them; you have to follow the directions on the package. They often taste bad and, truthfully, they give me a little nausea. Still it’s worth it, if it means not missing work.

So, let’s say the zinc didn’t work for you, or you got to it too late and now you’re sick. What can you do?  

Find out what's happening in Greenfieldwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Find out what to do and when it's time to see the doctor in Dr. Susan Hill's post on the Wheaton Franciscan Medical Group blog.

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