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Health Care Tips 

Colds and flu are common illnesses during the winter months.  Knowing how to properly treat your symptoms can help you get back on your feet quicker.  Sometimes, it’s hard to figure out if your symptoms are due to the common cold or the flu.

A cold generally introduces itself slowly with a runny nose, sneezing, scratchy throat and loss of taste and smell.  Your nose may also become congested and then you will develop a cough and hoarseness.  Some individuals have a mild fever.

Symptoms of the flu typically strike suddenly and will force most people to seek comfort in their bed.  Early symptoms are similar to a cold, plus muscle aches and extreme exhaustion.  Other symptoms are fever, chills, weakness, headache, loss of appetite and sometimes diarrhea.

Treating Your Symptoms

• Take aspirin, acetaminophen or ibuprofen for your headache, muscle aches and fever.  Children should not be given aspirin for a cold or the flu as it is associated with Reye’s syndrome.
• Get plenty of rest so your body can fight off the germs causing your illness.
• Drink plenty of liquids, especially water.  Extra fluids are necessary when you have a fever and they can help keep mucus loosened.

When to Call a Doctor

Call your doctor if you experience any of the following symptoms:

• a temperature of 101 degrees or greater or a fever that lasts more than four days
• shaking chills, soaking sweats, shortness of breath or mental confusion
• persistent headache
• chest pain
• a cough that lasts longer than 10 days or a cough that produces a thick greenish mucus
• a runny nose for more than 10 days or a nasal discharge that is yellow or green and lasts all day
• symptoms that last more than seven days