Cold is the most common infectious disease caused by the infection of virus that are present within the air. Cold mostly affects upper respiratory system showing some of the common symptoms like cough, runny nose, fever and sore throat. The viruses responsible for causing cold are coronaviruses and rhinoviruses. This article on how to prevent a cold gives you some natural ways to prevent cold.
The common cold resolves within 7 to 10 days if treated properly. Sometimes it lasts for many days and is accompanied by fatigue, body pain and shivering. The symptoms of viral infection are usually shown after 5 to 6 days of the infection and get severe thereafter. When the cough is accompanied by fever it is called influenza.
The first indication of cold is sore or scratchy upper throat. There are many ways that can help you prevent cold, here are some of the effective preventive measures.
How to prevent cold:
- Avoid frequent touching of mouth, nose and eyes with contaminated hands. This increases the chances of the viruses getting transferred into your body. These viruses mostly affect the upper respiratory tract, but they are harmless when present on hands. Touching the mouth and eyes with such contaminated hands can cause cold.
- Avoid contact with people who are affected by cold. Do not share food and utensils with such people. The infected person can transmit the virus in the form of droplets while he coughs and sneezes. Most of the cases of cough and cold are found to be droplet-borne infections. Whenever you come in contact with such a person, cover your nose and mouth using mask.
- If you are suffering from cold then it is your responsibility to cover your mouth and nose by mask or with your hand while you are sneezing or coughing to prevent the transmission of the disease to others.
- Wash your hands properly using an antiseptic hand wash. Do not touch any food items with dirty hands. You can also make use of warm water while washing; this will kill the infectious virus present on the surface of your hands.
- Sometimes body cooling may also cause cold. About 10% of people are found to have cold because of body cooling. Try to keep your body warm by wearing woolen sweaters and keep your living space warm using room heaters.
- Better immune system is very necessary to prevent yourself form the infection of the viruses. Fresh fruits and vegetables contribute a lot to give you a good immunity. The vitamins and minerals present within the fruits and vegetables are essential to maintain a good immune system. Include adequate amount of zinc in your diet. It helps in stimulating your immune system.
- Vitamin C is also very helpful in reducing the intensity of cold. Eat lots of fresh fruits as fresh fruits contain vitamin C, which is helpful for you while you are suffering from cold.
- Red wine will help in reducing the intensity of cold. Have a glass of red wine if you have cold. It is believed that alcohol when consumed in small amounts acts as medicine.
- Garlic also has antibacterial properties. It is a very powerful natural antibiotic and anti-viral source that will help you in increasing your immunity. Your daily diet should contain at least one tablespoon of garlic.
- Ginger also contains certain useful compounds like gingerols and phenolic compounds that will help you in reducing cold. If you are suffering from cold then add a small piece of ginger to the tea and drink it. This will give you relief from cold.
- Turmeric is also an effective immune stimulator. It has certain anti-inflammatory properties that will help you in preventing cold.
- Eating sugary foods and food that contain cortisone will suppress your immune system, so avoid eating such foods.
- Lower level of vitamin D in the blood is also a reason for cold. Get adequate amount of vitamin D through your diet.
- It also seen that getting less than 7 seven hours of sleep also causes cold. Get sleep for at least 7 to 8 hours. Good sleep is the solution to most of the disease.
- Try to maintain a proper level of humidity in your home. It is observed that low level of humidity increases the transmission of the viruses.
- Drink lot of fluids in the form of water or fruit juices to maintain the hydration of body. Proper hydration of body is very essential to clean the unwanted matter out of the body.
- Gargling with warm water adding a tea spoon of salt to it will be very helpful to give you a relief for irritation in the throat. This also kills the viruses that are responsible for cold.
The suggestions given above are very helpful to prevent and minimize the effect of viruses responsible for causing cold.
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