Understanding and coping with the common cold

There’s a good reason it's called the common cold; it’s estimated that Canadians catch one million colds each year. But with the right remedies, you can get faster relief and possibly even shorten your cold’s stay.

• You don't catch a cold from cold weather. You don't catch a cold by going outside with wet hair. And despite what many people think, bacteria do not cause colds, viruses do — some 200 different strains of them
• Rhinoviruses, which produce an estimated 30 percent to 40 percent of colds, are most active in spring, summer and early fall
• Coronaviruses are responsible for most winter and early spring colds
• Regardless of which virus you're exposed to, it spreads the same way — by direct contact. If someone sneezes or coughs in your direction, you can breathe in the virus
• It can also survive outside the body for up to three hours, on telephones, cups, kitchen counters and other surfaces you're likely to touch (that includes shaking hands). If you pick up the virus and rub your eyes or nose before you wash your hands, you've just given the bug a free ride to your mucous membranes, where it starts replicating with a vengeance
• Your immune system, in an effort to evict the unwanted guest, unleashes a counterattack that you recognize as the classic cold symptoms: runny nose, sneezing and coughing
• A cold usually clears up within a week, although particularly stubborn strains can hang around for up to two weeks
• The severity of symptoms varies greatly from person to person. Unlike most illnesses, though, colds become less likely to bother you as you age. That only underscores the important role your immune system plays in fighting colds.The average child gets six to eight colds a year; the average adult has two to four. And by the time you're over age 60, you're likely to get less than one cold a year

• Don't accept antibiotics. They're useless for viruses, and work only against bacteria. Yet a survey in the late 1990s found that doctors prescribed antibiotics to an astounding 60 percent of patients who came to them with colds
• Check over-the-counter drugs for PPA. If you have a nasal decongestant that’s been around for awhile, check the label. In 2000, Health Canada banned phenyl­­propanolamine (PPA) in decongestants and appetite suppressants after a study found that a small percentage of those who used products with it had an increased risk for stroke. If PPA is listed as an ingredient, toss it
• Try steam inhalation. Breathing in warm, moist air can loosen impacted mucus and help you decongest without a lot of drugs

No one enjoys having a cold. Washing your hands often is a good way to help reduce the spread of germs that lead to infection.