CityLiving's resident health expert, Dr Richard Newland, talks germ warfare... There is no such thing as a cold cure, just a variety of potions to ease the awful symptoms. Its a virus that will have its way with your body and only leave when its done. The only true course of action is to try and outwit it. The virus that causes a cold is with us constantly, just waiting for its chance to take hold in the upper respiratory tract. We all have our own folk medicine for staving colds off, from doses of Vitamin C to gargling with TCP and whilst these have their merits, there are some practical ways to ward off the virus. So at the risk of making everyone wary of human contact, heres some advice for those already affected and those who want to stay in the clear: CLEAN HANDSHAKE Cold germs are spread by direct contact. A person sneezes into their hands (lovely!) then they touch a door knob or a computer keyboard where the germs can lurk for hours or even weeks for the next hand to pick them up. Simply washing your hands regularly can break the cycle of contamination. If you dont have access to a sink or wish to avoid embarrassment after shaking hands with a clearly infectious VIP, rubbing your hands together will help break up the germs and reduce the chance of infection. DISPOSABLE ETIQUETTE A sneeze in the hand is worth two in a tissue because you are sure to pass along the virus to others, as explained above. At least if you have a tissue, you can throw away the worst of it. When caught unprepared find a free space to sneeze into. If you are in cocktail party huddle make sure the area immediately behind you is clear before letting rip. FACE IN YOUR HANDS Stop touching your face. During a cold fluid leaks out from every orifice the germs entered in - the nose, mouth and eyes. If germy hands touch the face, its a free for all. That is why children are so good at passing on colds to their parents with all those loving touches. If the cold has triggered a cold sore, there is even more reason to avoid touching the face since these can easily be spread to other parts. FLUSHING AND STEAMING Drinking plenty of fluid seems to help flush out the system of toxins and prevents a cold taking hold. Also by introducing heat and fluid in the form of a sauna creates unfavourable conditions in your airways for colds. FRESH AIR AND EXERCISE The ancient wisdom of a dose fresh air has a modern relevance because central heating is very drying to the mucous membranes making you more vulnerable to colds. Also most people stay indoors in winter in crowded offices or shops where the warm air and close proximity to each other leads to easy infection. Going outside is very healthful indeed and if you add a spot activity into the equation, doing enough to break a sweat increases the bodys natural virus killing cells. COLOUR YOUR LIFE Because colds are always lurking, having a strong immune system is the key to staying cold free. A quick way to boost it is through upping your intake of the more colourful foods by filling the shopping trolley with mainly red, dark green and yellow fruits and vegetables. If you want to breathe easy on that skiing trip, a daily tub of low fat bio yoghurt will apparently reduce your susceptibility to colds by 25 per cent. THE HARD PART Anything that zaps your immune system in a bad way will make your more likely to succumb to colds so that means too much smoking, drinking and stressing will be harmful. Smoking, even the passive variety, deactivates the cilia, the little hairs lining the nose lungs which sweep viruses out of the breathing passages. Just one cigarette puts the cilia out of action for 30-40 minutes. Drinking taxes the liver which has the job of filtering germs and toxins out of the body. Overdoing it on the alcohol will slow down the cleaning process. Hopefully in the run up to Spring, the urge for a purer body will come naturally. Stress appears to depress the immune system whereas relaxation activates it. However, be warned that relaxation needs to be worked at. Simply doing nothing and becoming bored will not produce any of the chemical changes that generate beneficial effects! Good medical advice is not to be sneezed at, so for a traditional GP service, Dr Richard Newland can be consulted at the Newhall Medical Practice, the private GP surgery which serves Birmingham city centre. It offers same day appointments, unhurried consultations and no need to register. For an appointment, contact the Practice Manager on 0121 236 6633. | 
