Saturday, January 19, 2008

What's The Big Deal With Common Cold Prevention?

Have you ever wondered why people make such a big deal out of common cold prevention? Surely you've already heard the answer, though admittedly it's hardly ever stated in response to the above question. Just so you know, all the fuss about fighting the common cold is due to the lack of an established cure. Yup, after all these years, the medical community has made no progress in finding a cure that works for sure.

Granted, they have come up with some methods of treatment. Then again, the most these treatments can do for the infected is to keep their symptoms in check and prevent further complications. In other words, even if the best of these remedies can help, none of them can do a thing to eliminate the virus. Hats off to the docs, eh?

So what are we to do? Sit back, accept the failings of the health care industry, and suffer from the cold virus whenever it chooses to strike? Why in the world would anyone want to do that?

Though the common cold will typically run its course after a week or two, it's still not something that people want to deal with if they can help it. And that's why common cold prevention has made so much noise in the medical community. We've come to realize that if we can successfully fend off the cold virus, then the lack of an established cure won't matter.

Lucky for us all, though there has yet to be a proven way to cure the virus, there are already tried and tested means of keeping it at bay. The best part? Many of these methods are not just geared for fighting the common cold ?they're also capable of holistically improving our health and well-being.

Some of the more common methods include adjusting our diets to accommodate more healthy foods, sleeping the recommended eight hours a day, and adhering to that universal remedy, drinking lots and lots of water. All this is aimed at building an immune system strong enough to withstand the effects of the cold virus.

Other methods, while not directly addressing our overall health, encourage us to practice good hygiene as a means of common cold prevention. Washing our hands and using disinfectant on a regular basis are two of many prevention techniques that stress hygienics.

These methods work, and have the scientific evidence to back them up as well. No surprise, then, that people make such a big deal of common cold prevention. When it comes to that particular malady, prevention truly is worth much more than a pound of cure.

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