Answers to our Flu Quiz in the September/October issue:
- Cold symptoms tend to come on gradually where the flu starts suddenly. You’ll often feel a cold coming on over a few days. But flu symptoms begin quickly, over a period of 3 to 6 hours. Colds are milder. Fever, body aches, dry cough, and being very tired are more likely to be the flu.
- Feeling exhausted is a sign of? B, The flu. If you feel like you can’t get out of bed, don’t. Serious fatigue, along with chills and body aches, are signs that you have the flu. So you need plenty of rest. Acetaminophen, naproxen, or ibuprofen can help with body aches.
- You can catch the flu from someone before they look True. Someone can spread the flu a day before they start to feel sick and up to 7 days after that so they can pass the virus on before they know they have it. People with colds are most contagious 2 to days after symptoms show up. But a cold can be catchy for as long as 2 weeks. That’s a good reason to wash your hands often during cold and flu season.
- Drinking fluids help the flu but not the a cold. With a cold or the flu, fluids help break up congestion and thin mucus.
- When you have the flu, you can leave the house when your fever goes False. Wait at least 24 hours after your fever goes away naturally – without using medicine to bring it down. Avoid travel, social events, movies, and other public gatherings for 24 hours after your temperature is normal.
- Chicken soup may help fight a cold. It’s good for you and keeps your fluids up and may also help fight infection and keep germs from entering the body through the nose. And it seems to thin mucus better than other warm liquids.
- When are you most likely to get the flu? February. Winter is flu season, but flu outbreaks can happen anytime between October and April. The best time to get a flu vaccine is in the fall, before flu season starts, so your body has time to build up immunity. Getting a flu vaccine anytime during flu season offers some protection.
- Which can soothe a sore throat? Both. Sucking on ice chips or a frozen ice pop numbs your throat and gets fluid into your body. Gargle with a mixture of 1 cup of warm water and half a teaspoon of salt. Spit the liquid out afterward. Warm drinks like tea, or a cool mist humidifier, may also give you some relief.
- The average cold lasts for? B. One week. Colds usually end after 7 to 10 days. Most stick around for roughly a week. See a doctor if you’ve been sick more than 7 days or have a high fever, severe sinus pain, swollen glands, a cough that brings up mucus or blood or shortness of breath.
- If you have a bad cold, you should take antibiotics. Antibiotics treat bacterial infections, but viruses cause colds. If your cold brings on a bacterial infection such as one in your ear or sinuses, your doctor may give you antibiotics.