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longtresses's avatar

Success story?: How did you reverse Common Cold at the onset?

Asked by longtresses (1334points) February 10th, 2012

On the morning that I woke up with headache and dry throat, I realized I was going to catch cold. Not wanting to spend two weeks with stuffy nose and dull head, I loaded up on Zinc Lozenges (Cold-eeze drops) and Vitamin C. Didn’t stop the cold from developing. Maybe I was already too late.

Have you successfully reversed cold at the onset? What did you do? Also, what helped with speedy recovery?

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13 Answers

Hawaii_Jake's avatar

I stick to what works for me, a Chinese herbal remedy called Yin Chiao. For me, it stops a cold the first day.

Jeruba's avatar

When I was working full time, I used to beat about three colds out of four. I’d brazen them out with heavy doses of (a) vitamin C, (b) clear liquids, and (c) denial. Hard to tell which worked best; I figured it was the power of the combination.

The fourth cold would usually catch me, but I’d outrun the rest. Not bad.

These days I’m not exposed as often, and I usually come down with about one in two that I feel coming on.

Once I get it, I haven’t found any speedy route to recovery. My main goal is to keep it out of my chest, because that will make me very, very sick, probably for months, with a killer cough. That’s why I’m really motivated to do whatever works up front.

Coloma's avatar

You don’t reverse it. You MAY be able to modify the intensity with immediate mega doses of C, Airborne, etc. but…too late…gotta roll with it.

Buttonstc's avatar

If it’s a cold, (viral) it will usually run it’s course in a week or so. If you’re lucky, it will be seven days.

That’s the usual way of saying that you can’t reverse a cold. Possibly modify the associated symptoms somewhat. But it will just run it’s course and then be over. That’s it. Rest. Drink lots of fluids. Etc etc etc…....

HungryGuy's avatar

Cold-Eeze is a great product, but you can’t just pop them like candy and pretend that the cold will go away by magic. You still need to drink plenty of fluids, go to bed early (do a shot of NyQuil first), sleep late, stay warm, and let your body rest to fight the virus.

flo's avatar

I don’t think you can, you can just reduce the effects of it.

Coloma's avatar

Most likely you caught the cold from being in a rather rundown condition as it is. Good food, good rest, no stress, is the best recipe to fend off illness BEFORE it nails you.
Also…you can absorb a cold virus via any mucus membrane, so, even if you don’t touch your nose or mouth you can pick it up through rubbing your eyes. Best advice, keep a bottle of germ juice with you at all times and use it and do NOT touch your face after being in public places.

Hain_roo's avatar

I lost my spleen years ago and had secondary infections every time I got a cold. I became allergic to the antibiotics and then a new GP introduced me to echinacea and zinc to take on the onset of a cold. 3 caps a day for the first 5 days—much milder colds and no more infections ever. It’s been 10 years!

longtresses's avatar

@all Thank you!
@Hawaii_Jake Maybe I’ll try that one next time, hopefully not within this year. :-)
@Jeruba That’s why I’m really motivated to do whatever works up front.
Of course.. Getting sick is something that I like less and less every passing year..
@HungryGuy I know.. but long ago I’ve overheard a mentioning of this magic herbal spray that stops cold dead. I was hoping that someone would know about it.
@Hain_roo Thank you, will definitely look into that.

HungryGuy's avatar

@longtresses – There is no such thing as a magic anything to cure an illness. There is no such thing as magic, period. And as others have said, nothing will stop a virus dead. You can strengthen your immune system by taking certain chemicals (such as zinc in ColdEeze), and giving your body the rest it needs to fight the infection, but the best you can hope for is to shorten its duration.

Sunny2's avatar

If some one near me sneezes heavily, I ask if it’s a cold or allergies. If it isn’t allergies, I have a 3 day regime I follow. ASAP I take 2000 mg of vitamin C, followed by 1000 mg twice a day for 3 days (the usual incubation time for a virus) I haven’t had a cold in over 10 years.

saint's avatar

Zycam. I am serious, that stuff works!

Brian1946's avatar

@saint

“Zycam. I am serious, that stuff works!”

It works for me too. If I use it within about 8 hours after my first symptom, my cold only lasts from 8–24 hours

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