If you have or are getting over a cold, we hope that you feel better soon. However, our colleagues down the hall at Consumer Reports hope that you do not run to your doctor’s office and demand antibiotics unless test results show that your have strep throat, or you show symptoms of pneumonia. Antbiotics are life-saving when you need them, but taking them when you don’t can contribute to antibiotic resistance in the community. [Consumer Reports] [More]
colds
Do You Have Cold Symptoms? Don’t Reach For Vitamin C
By 12.22.14
Our colleagues down the hall at Consumer Reports, armed with actual facts, are out to debunk everything that I do when I think I might be coming down with a cold. First, they explained why taking zinc supplements isn’t a good idea, and now they’ve pointed out that taking Vitamin C supplements isn’t all that helpful either. If they debunk lengthy naps next, my cold-coping strategies are all eliminated. [More]
Do You Have Cold Symptoms? Don’t Reach For Zinc
By 12.8.14
I have been known to reach for vitamin C pills and lozenges at my very first sniffle, but it turns out that this is not good health advice. Our seasonally savvy colleagues down the hall at Consumer Reports tell us that while it feels good to do something when you feel a viral illness coming on, a fistful of zinc lozenges isn’t the best idea. [More]
Trade Walgreens Hippie Cold/Flu Remedy For Actual Flu Shot
By 8.4.09
First, there was Airborne. Then there was Rite-Aid’s house brand version of Airborne. Now, the Walgreens brand of homeopathic cold and flu remedy was also the subject of a class action lawsuit, and the settlement is at hand.
Safety Experts Urge FDA To Ban OTC Cough And Cold Meds For Kids Under 6
By 9.29.07
The New York Times is reporting that safety experts are urging the FDA to consider a ban of all “over-the-counter, multisymptom cough and cold medicines for children under 6.”
