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by Lyle Hurd
Illustrations by Jeff Ham
Special Report:
COLDS & FLU
Dear Reader,
Welcome to this Special Report on Colds and Flu.
Statistics from the Center for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) concerning the incidence of
colds and flu in the United States are staggering.
Particularly when you take into account
the overwhelming incidence of a six to seven
month period each year.
According to some estimates, in the
course of a year, people in the United States
suffer one billion colds. Children have six
to 10 colds a year. In families with children
in school the number of colds
can be as high as 12 a year. Adults
average about two to four colds a
year, although the range varies widely.
Women, especially those aged 20 to 30
years, have more colds than men, possibly
because of their closer contact with
children. On average, people older than 60
have less than one cold a year.
Every year in the United States, on
average: five–20 percent of the population
gets the flu, more than 200,000
people are hospitalized from flu complications,
and about 36,000 people die
from flu. Some people, such as young children,
and those with certain health conditions, are at
high risk for serious flu complications.
What are the symptoms of the flu versus the symptoms
of a cold? In general, the flu is worse than the
common cold, and symptoms such as fever, body
aches; extreme tiredness, and dry cough are more common
and intense. Colds are usually milder than the
flu. People with colds are more likely to have a runny
or stuffy nose. Colds generally do not result in serious
health problems, such as pneumonia, bacterial infections,
or hospitalizations.
Symptoms of Colds
Symptoms of the common cold usually
begin two to three days after infections
and often include: mucus buildup in your
nose, difficulty breathing through your
nose, swelling of your sinuses, sneezing,
sore throat, cough, and headache.
Fever is usually slight but can climb
to 102 degrees Fahrenheit in infants and
young children. Cold symptoms can last
from two to 14 days, but like most people,
you’ll probably recover in a week. If
symptoms occur often or last much longer
than two weeks, you might have an
allergy rather than a cold.
Complications of Colds: Colds occasionally
can lead to bacterial infections
of your middle ear or sinuses, requiring
treatment with antibiotics. High fever,
significantly swollen glands, severe sinus
pain, and a cough that produces mucus,
may indicate a complications or more
serious illness requiring a visit to your
health care provider.
Transmission: Cold viruses can infect you
by either of these methods: Touching your
skin or environmental surfaces, such as
telephones and stair rails, that have cold
germs on them and then touching your
eyes or nose, also by inhaling drops of
mucus full of cold germs from the air.
Symptoms of flu include: fever (usually
high), headache, extreme tiredness, dry
cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose,
and muscle aches. Stomach symptoms,
such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea,
also can occur but are more common in
children than adults.
Complications of flu can include
bacterial pneumonia, ear infections,
sinus infections, dehydration, and worsening
of chronic medical conditions,
such as congestive heart failure, asthma,
or diabetes.
How Flu Spreads
Flu viruses spread mainly from person
to person through coughing or sneezing
and people with influenza. Touching
something with flu viruses on it and then
touching their mouth or nose may infect
people sometimes. Most healthy adults
may be able to infect others beginning one
day before symptoms develop and up to
five days after becoming sick. That means
that you may be able to pass on the flu
to someone else before you know you are
sick, as well as while you are sick.
Good health habits for preventing
Colds and flu
- Avoid close contact with people who are sick. When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick too.
- Stay home when you are sick. If possible, stay home from work, school, and errands when you are sick. You will help prevent others from catching your illness.
- Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. It may prevent those around you from getting sick.
- Washing your hands often will help protect you from germs.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth.
- Practice other good health habits. Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids, and eat nutritious food.
Editor
totalhealth
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