TED:

U – and going out with wet hair guarantees a cold, so you’d better up… gets experts to cough up the truth

e symptoms. In fact, any hot drink help because the heat dilates blood vessels, which increases blood flow and allows the mucus to flush everything out, thus helping with congestion. There’s also the hydrating factor of drinking soup which is important when ill.” myth arose because people thought body’s heat escapes through the d, explains Dr Perry. “In fact, you lose as much, if not more heat, through re arm or leg as through your head.” ut it is thought that being cold can leave you more vulnerable to illness, adds Dr Henderson: “When we shiver, our whole body becomes quite stressed, which depresses the immune system.” Dr Perry says: “Studies have shown more than one in five people on planes suffer from a cold or the flu after the flight.

“Some of the 200 or so viruses that can cause a common cold can infect people up to 18 hours after they have left the body. And flu viruses can infect people for up to eight hours after being let loose.

“Germs are commonplace on planes, with bacteria and viruses lurking on seats, magazines, armrests, toilet cubicles and hovering in the air. So you certainly risk infection on a flight.” a preventative measure had reduction in colds,” he added.

“In the general population, 8% of adults and 14% of children had a reduction of cold duration. Once symptoms started, vitamin C had no impact.” a 50% “The herb has a broad antiviral effect against cold viruses as well as the newly emerging respiratory viruses,” says Dr Edwards. “It has also been shown to help prevent initial infections and pneumonia and bronchitis, particularly in those individuals with stress, or who have reduced immunity such as smokers.

“Just make sure any Echinacea product you use is properly regulated and quality controlled by having a THR (Traditional Herbal Registration) number and logo on the pack.”

Try Echinaforce Hot Drink, £10.99, Boots.com. “Eating fewer calories can actually make fighting off infection much harder,” says Dr Perry. “Nutritious hot drinks and soups – if you can’t face solids – are vital.” Dr Perry says: “Although the flu vaccine is normally offered from September until mid November to give the body a chance to build up immunity, it’s better to be protected later rather than not at all.” Alcohol suppresses the immune system, leaving you potentially more prone to viral infections. The term was created because medical research suggests that men take longer to recover from colds and flu, and suffer more side effects than women. As a general rule, a cold will leave you feeling under the weather for a week. With flu, you’ll be completely knocked out for a week – taking up to three weeks to recover. The first symptoms of a cold are generally a sore throat and sneezing, followed by a blocked or runny nose, and possibly a cough, headache, muscle pain, sinus pain and sometimes fever. Unlike a cold, which creeps up on you slowly, influenza tends to start suddenly – you may feel fine one hour and have a high fever the next. And as well as having cold symptoms, you’ll feel achy, shivery and feverish. Infection with flu virus often leads to other ear, sinus or bronchial infections. “There are around 200 cold viruses and, on average, we catch a couple each winter,” says Dr Henderson. “However, once the cold ends, your body has built up immunity which will protect you from catching the same virus again.” A review of placebo-controlled trials using at least 200mg/day vitamin C found it “did not significantly reduce the risk of developing a cold in the general population”, says GP David Edwards.

“However, trials in skiers, marathon runners and soldiers exposed to extreme physical exercise and/or cold environments who took Vitamin C (250mg to one gram a day) as

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There are various strains of flu around and, even if you have had the flu, it is worth having the jab to prevent another bout of the illness hitting your immune system.

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It is very hard to catch a cold by exchanging saliva as the virus travels in mucus from the respiratory system.

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