Cough Medicine, yes or no?

[SamIchi]

When you get sick do you take medicine? It doesn't have to be just cough medicine, any type of medicine to relieve your symptoms. I just got sick for the first time this year, seems to happen about the same time every year, and I usually stay away from any type of medicine, unless it's unbearable. Which usually occurs at night and I'm rolling around for hours, then I take something. I think I've only taken aspirin like 5 times in my life. I try to stay away from anything unnatural.

This brings me to another question, are doses too general? I'm an adult but, I weigh about 120. Does body weight play a part in this? How can the same dose be applied to a man that's 120 and a man that's near 300? Does that make sense? Sometimes I take a half a dose.

So cough medicine, pain relievers etc, yes, no?

 

[eternlgladiator]

generally speaking I avoid medicine too but probably not near the scale it sounds like you do. Usually when I start to feel sick (spring and fall) I'll start taking a lot more vitamins and making sure I dress warmer. That just helps keep my immune system a tiny bit stronger and seemed to make a difference this fall but then again its still early here in Wisconsin. Doses are pretty general but half a dose up to a double dose probably isn't going to make a difference. Note, I am not a doctor and don't condone anything I said. I'm just speaking from personal experience. I also have some leftover heavy duty prescription cough syrup that seems to help when things get bad. Generally speaking, just keep your body healthy by dressing appropriately for the weather, eating right, and exercising and you'll get sick far less often that most people. That said, if/when you do get sick take it easy. Eat right, cut back a little on heavy exercise that can weaken your immune system, stay hydrated, get some rest, and stay warm. Oh, and drink more water. Hope that helps.

To answer your basic question. I'm a yes and a no. Cough syrup comes in handy in a pinch but it never seems to help more than most other things. However, when the symptoms get rough I have to try something.

 

[boss.king]

I take medicine depending on how soon I need to get better, usually a cocktail of painkillers, vitamin c, cough syrup, decongestants, and throat lozenges.

When it comes to doses, I pretty much take the cocktail every 2-4 hours. I'm 2m, 110kg, so I figure I need a bit more. It's always worked so far, but I don't recommend it for others.

 

[rockyroad55]

Coughs usually go away after a certain period of time regardless of the syrup. It'll just lessen the effects which help endure that period of time.

I usually stick with throat lozenges and getting more Vitamin C in my body.

 

[theconfused1]

Most common colds are viruses so some medications like antibiotics are completely ineffective for treatment. A lot of doctors used to throw antibiotics at common colds as a “just in case” or to make the patient feel better. This isn’t happening as much anymore because the awareness of antibiotic resistant bacteria has drastically increased. NSAIDS such as aspirin, ibuprofen, and tylenol (which is technically not an NSAID but has a lot of the same properties) will reduce the inflammatory response. This can be a very good thing because if a fever gets to high it can cause serious harm (brain damage, or even death). This is not usually a problem for healthy individuals but something you should be aware of.

The dosing on medication is general however it has been tested and is generally very safe, especially over the counter medication. If you have any concerns you can talk to the pharmacist. While they can not prescribe medication, they generally do know more than your doctor about the medication.

The best advice I can give is to get all the vaccinations that are recommended for you in your geographic location. I got the flu once because I thought getting the vaccination was too much trouble. Since then I’ve gotten the vaccine every year. It not only protects you but it keeps you from being a carrier and passing it on to other. Unfortunately, their is still no vaccination for the common cold, but you can protect yourself from some of the most serious and often most contagious diseases (example, Hep A & Hep B).

 

[avro707]

I don't have much luck with cough medicines, they are never really effective for me.

My remedy is plenty of rest and keep warm. Just the old fashioned remedies for colds. However, I will sometimes use something like the Codral Cold and Flu tablets - those help with sleeping at night, important when you've got a cold and it's sometimes hard to get sleep. Drinking plenty of water helps too.

 

[Grey Beard]

Lily the Pink

Ever hear of Lily the Pink?

She invented medicinal compounds, most efficacious in every case.

KGB

 

[Mousse]

When you get sick do you take medicine?

I don't take pills unless I'm on death's bed... or when the Missus orders me to. I prefer treating the cause instead of the symptoms.

Anyhow, body weight does come into play with some medicine. This is the sort of stuff you should ask a pharmacist, not strangers on a computer fan forum.

 

[localoid]

... I think I've only taken aspirin like 5 times in my life. I try to stay away from anything unnatural.

Aspirin is natural.

 

[OutThere]

I find cough medecine to be disgusting and make me feel uncomfortable, so typically I'll avoid it. If I have a sore throat I will suck on cough drops or lozenges, however.

I almost never take pills for anything...I just never found any over the counter stuff to really have any effect. I've taken allergy pills and otc painkillers before and never felt they were doing a damn thing (vicodin post wisdom teeth removal was a different story haha). Meh. Didn't even have a cold last winter anyhow.

 

[anjinha]

I don't take cough syrup, because I never feel it helps at all, but I might take cough drops. Other than that it depends on how bad I feel and whether I have stuff I need to do. I'm more likely to take something before going to bed, so that I'll actually manage to sleep, or if I have to work.

 

[hayduke]

No, sir. Treats the symptom, not the cause.

 

[stevenlangley1]

I very rarely get sick, so when I do I'm a big baby. I'll take whatever I need to reduce my symptoms, as well as resting and drinking plenty of fluids until I get over it.

It works for me!

 

[EricNau]

I do. No use in feeling sick if a safe OTC medication can help relieve my symptoms.

For a stuffy/runny nose I get myself Sudafed (pseudoephedrine). It's OTC but if you're in the US you need to show your ID and obtain it at the pharmacy (so Big Brother knows you're not going to make it into meth). If you don't need to show your ID you're buying the wrong Sudafed, which doesn't work for beans.

For pain I prefer ibuprofen, always on a full stomach.

And if I feel congestion in my lungs I take Mucinex (Guaifenesin).

And lots of liquid to say hydrated.

I understand your hesitation, but OTC medications are extremely safe when taken as directed on the package. They've been studied so extensively that doctors, drug companies, and the FDA feel that the use of such medications is safe without consulting a doctor.

You mentioned that you prefer "to stay away from anything unnatural." Can I ask what you mean? You also mentioned aspirin, which has the same active ingredient as plant extracts that have been used for thousands of years. Now, I'm not trying to convince you that aspirin is safe because it's natural. Rather, that being natural is irrelevant to safety and efficacy.

Think of it like this. It certainly doesn't matter if you take an aspirin or chew on willow bark; we can both agree that you receive the same ingredient and it has the same effect on your body. However, the aspirin is carefully manufactured to ensure that you receive a consistent and safe dose, and one that doesn't contain any contaminants. The willow bark, on the other hand, might (theoretically) give you the equivalent to 4 tablets of aspirin, not a safe dose. You just don't know how much you're getting. Likewise you could die from the ingestion of a parasite that was inside the bark. That's the problem with with "natural remedies" more often then not they do absolutely nothing, but when they do you don't always know what you're getting yourself into.

Here's another way to think of it. Like the example I just provided you, doctors took a natural pain reliever, took the time to study and understand it, isolate it, and then manufacture it in a safe and controlled manner. Scientists took something natural and made it safer. This has been done with thousands of treatments over the course of medical history: cures that are proven to work are incorporated into the field of medicine.

As technology advanced, humanity gained the ability to create new medicines, those that aren't necessarily found in nature. But this doesn't make them any more or less dangerous than those herbs and remedies found in the wild. Nature is a scary place: eat the wrong mushroom and you're dead. Personally, I'd rather ingest substances that have been studied and are well understood: so well understood that we have the ability to create them in a tablet form that I know contains exactly one dose and nothing else.

Sorry, did I go overboard? In any case, feel better soon!