View Full Version : Colds - And almost everything you think you know is wrong
gregmcc
12-10-2010, 10:35 AM
Makes for interesting reading.
http://www.iol.co.za/lifestyle/and-almost-everything-you-think-you-know-is-wrong-1.685523
cbrunsdonza
12-10-2010, 11:31 AM
Interesting read.
HavocXphere
12-10-2010, 12:17 PM
Nice.
The first point is BS though. The bullet heading ("A weak immune system doesn’t make you vulnerable") which is BS anyway relates to how vulnerable you are to catching it, but the supporting paragraph is about the effects after you've caught it. ("terrible cold symptoms are the product of a strong immune system, rather than a weak one.")
3 more interesting ones that were new to me (from wiki)
# A history of smoking extends the duration of illness by about three days.[18]
# Getting fewer than seven hours of sleep per night has been associated with a risk three times higher of developing an infection when exposed to a rhinovirus, compared to those who sleep more than eight hours per night.[19]
# Low blood vitamin D levels are associated with an increased risk of getting a common cold.[20] Whether this relation is causal has yet to be determined.[21]
Korn1
12-10-2010, 12:18 PM
Interesting read.
Interesting indeed. Now I can tune my mummy for not letting me swim at night :mad:
Skywalker42
12-10-2010, 12:28 PM
* Vitamin C won’t stop a cold
No cure for the common cold has been better studied than vitamin C, which, it is claimed, helps by increasing infection-fighting white blood cells. However, more than 30 clinical trials involving more than 10,000 people have examined the effects of taking daily vitamin C and have shown that it does not prevent colds. At best, it only slightly reduces the duration of symptoms.
The only time it might help is if you’re engaged in extreme physical exercise or exposed to extreme physical cold. Several studies have shown that soldiers, skiers and marathon runners in these situations who down a daily dose of 200mg of vitamin C have the risk of a cold reduced by half
I think the article is mainly BS..
I always use Vit-C when I feel I'm starting to get a cold.
But I take 7000mg (or more) every 4 hours. The next day I'm fine.
I got this advice advice from my Mom who got it from an "old school" doctor.200 mg is nothing.
blunomore
12-10-2010, 12:36 PM
Low blood vitamin D levels are associated with an increased risk of getting a common cold.[20] Whether this relation is causal has yet to be determined.
So why the heck do they put it in the article then? FFS, do your research and then come and scare us !
HavocXphere
12-10-2010, 12:53 PM
I think the article is mainly BS..
I always use Vit-C when I feel I'm starting to get a cold.
But I take 7000mg (or more) every 4 hours. The next day I'm fine.
I got this advice advice from my Mom who got it from an "old school" doctor.200 mg is nothing.
7000mg *24hr/4hr = 42 000mg. Or 21x what is listed as the Tolerable upper intake levels for Vit C (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dietary_Reference_Intake#Current_recommendations). Consider also that VitC is slightly toxic. Do you really think you're on the right path here? At best the result is expensive urine.
So why the heck do they put it in the article then? FFS, do your research and then come and scare us !
That quote is from wiki. So its meant to represent the current research standings, not practical application.