colds | Georgetown Pediatrics

Cold and flu season is here. It arrives with colder weather as people spend more time indoors, in close quarters, where germs are more easily passed from one person to another.

Here are just a few reminders of how to help keep your family healthy.

Wash hands. Good old soap and water are still the best protection against contagious diseases that get passed through touching surfaces, shaking hands, etc. Get your family in the practice of washing their hands often. When soap and water are not handy, use hand sanitizer.
Get plenty of sleep. Being well-rested keeps your immune system stronger.
Don’t share. Okay, you teach your kids to share, but some things ought to be for just one person. Water and soda bottles, lip balm, musical instruments all fall into this category. If you have a youngster in child care, make sure the provider sanitizes toys and tables daily.
Cover. Cough or sneeze into a tissue. If there’s no tissue, use the crook of your elbow instead of your hand. Germs on the hand are more easily transferred to other people or surfaces.

Already have a cold? Continue to do all the above, and make sure you stay hydrated. Drinking plenty of fluids keeps mucous thin and your throat moist. Avoid caffeinated beverages.

It’s going to be a long winter, and your family will likely get colds at some point. Use the common sense advice above, and you may have fewer of them.

artwork by Kennedy

So your child has been coughing and sneezing for a week, has a bit of fever, a little green mucous coming from the nose, and has missed school or childcare, which causes you to miss work. You see the pediatrician to get a prescription for an antibiotic, but you walk out disappointed. Why didn’t they prescribe what you wanted?

Since penicillin was first manufactured in the 1940s, antibiotics have been quite successful in treating bacterial infections, reducing the spread of disease, and saving many lives. In the last few years, though, it’s been determined that overuse of antibiotics has led to the growth and spread of antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections.

Check out this article at USA Today.

Even so, your child’s pediatrician will not shy from using antibiotics when they are warranted. Here’s the thing: antibiotics are completely ineffective against colds or other viruses. Your child may sometimes feel better after taking antibiotics, simply because the virus began to subside on its own as the body fights back.

Research continues to create new antiviral drugs that will work against viruses (with much success in the area of influenza). In the meantime, don’t forget that antibiotics work only in the fight against bacterial infections, and also with some funguses and parasites. And if you do take an antibiotic, MAKE SURE YOU TAKE ALL THAT ARE PRESCRIBED. Stopping the course just because you feel better can lead to drug-resistant infections later on.

Corinne, age 5

Georgetown Pediatrics

Caring for your children.

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To use or not to use antibiotics