Useful Information On The Common Cold, Influenza

Useful Information On The Common Cold, Influenza
A viral upper respiratory tract infection. A contagious illness
caused by a number of different types of viruses. Because of the great
number of viruses that can cause a cold, the body never builds up
resistance (immune) against all of them. For this reason, colds are a
frequent and recurring problem. In fact, preschool children average 9
colds a year; those in kindergarten, 12 colds a year; and adolescents
and adults, 7 colds per year. Going out into the cold weather has no
effect on the spread of a cold. Antibiotics do not help the common cold.

More than 200 different viruses are known to cause the symptoms of
the common cold. Some, such as the rhinoviruses, seldom produce serious
illnesses. Others, such as parainfluenza and respiratory syncytial
virus, produce mild infections in adults but can precipitate severe
lower respiratory infections in young children.

Approximately 10 to 15 percent of adult colds are caused by viruses
also responsible for other, more severe illnesses: adenoviruses,
coxsackieviruses, echoviruses, orthomyxoviruses (including influenza A
and B viruses), paramyxoviruses (including several parainfluenza
viruses), respiratory syncytial virus and enteroviruses.

The causes of 30 to 50 percent of adult colds, presumed to be viral,
remain unidentified. The same viruses that produce colds in adults
appear to cause colds in children. The relative importance of various
viruses in pediatric colds, however, is unclear because of the
difficulty in isolating the precise cause of symptoms in studies of
children with colds.

Although many people are convinced that a cold results from exposure
to cold weather, or from getting chilled or overheated, NIAID (National
Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases) grantees have found that
these conditions have little or no effect on the development or
severity of a cold. Nor is susceptibility apparently related to factors
such as exercise, diet, or enlarged tonsils or adenoids. On the other
hand, research suggests that psychological stress, allergic disorders
affecting the nasal passages or pharynx (throat), and menstrual cycles
may have an impact on a person's susceptibility to colds.

Seasonal changes in relative humidity also may affect the prevalence
of colds. The most common cold-causing viruses survive better when
humidity is low the colder months of the year. Cold weather also may
make the nasal passages' lining drier and more vulnerable to viral
infection.

Multi nutrient deficiencies, single nutrient deficiencies and
imbalances amongst individual nutrients have all been demonstrated to
impair immunocompetence and therefore resistance to infection. The
major nutrients found closely linked with the proper functioning of the
immune system include vitamins A, B5, B6, E, C, folic acid, iron,
copper, zinc, germanium, magnesium, the amino acid lysine and Co Enzyme
Q10.

The
nutrients mentioned above reflect the major nutritional supplements
that may help the condition. Please do remember however that
nutritional supplementation is an adjunct to medical treatment and in
no way replaces medical treatment.