Q&A about colds and flu with Dr Chris Steele - ANSWERS BACK

[RachelMumsnet]

For the second of our health related Q&As this week, Dr Chris Steele is returning to Mumsnet during the big freeze to answer your questions about colds and flu. He qualified as a doctor in 1968 and has worked as a GP in South Manchester since 1970. He has been the resident doctor on ITVs This Morning for the last 23 years. If you or your family are suffering from colds or flu this winter, send in your questions to Dr Steele by end of day on Monday 13th February and we'll be linking to Dr Steele's answers on Thursday 23rd February.
The people at Kaloba Syrup say:
According to a recent survey, UK children are missing 16.4 million school days each year due to time off suffering colds and coughs. Children catch as many as eight colds per year, but often deciding how best to treat them can be tricky for parents with many remedies unsuitable for children under 12 years. NEW Kaloba® Syrup (Pelargonium sidoides EPs®7630) is a licensed herbal medicine for coughs and colds, that is suitable for children aged 6+, and is even suitable for children with asthma. Kaloba® has been scientifically proven to shorten the duration of upper respiratory tract infections, such as acute bronchitis and the common cold, and reduce the severity of the symptoms. Kaloba® is antibacterial, antiviral, and has secretomotory activity (it is able to clear mucus from the respiratory tract). For more information visit www.kaloba.co.uk or find us on Facebook - www.facebook.com/thecoldcrusader

This Q&A was sponsored by Kaloba®

I suppose I want to ask Dr Chris Steele what he thinks of Kaloba herbal medicine! Does it work? How does it work? Shouldn't a child with acute bronchitis be taken to the doctor?

How us it different to honey, which is also antibacterial and antiviral and antiseptic?

(and cheaper, Starlight. )

Marking my place - interested to see responses to questions above!

Sorry, I didn't mean to put the mockers on the Q&A.

Why do I get a couple of colds each year (starting with shivery feeling, aching limbs and headache, progressing to running nose and cough) when I'm always washing my hands because of doing food preparation, or feeding the cat, helping the children with stuff and needing to wash my hands after etc etc etc whereas my husband only seems to get a cold once in a blue moon and he is not a frequent hand washer.

I have been told that as I have other allergy stuff (hay fever and eczema) that I just will be more proine to colds but why ?

Is it really best to stay in the warm, rest and drink plenty of fluids ? My husband thinks I'm skiving and insist he carries on as normal, going out in the cold, swimming, the gym etc even when he does have a cold.

What can be given to a child under 6 these days - now that everything's been banned?

I am keen not to give antibiotics unless absolutely necessary and would prefer to allow DD to be soothed while she recovers on her own. But it seems there is zero on the market that actually soothes a cough or sore throat unless you're 6+.

What can you take for cold/flu symptoms when breatfeeding?

What is the relationship between the cold virus and asthma? Is the evidence clear?

(Lots of questions on asthma on another thread - you can see how many MNetters are concerned by it.)

Linked to the bf question above, if my baby is on pain relief do I have to be careful what I take when bf?

If I go out with wet hair will I get a cold?

If I have bath and go out will I get a cold?

If kids have sniffles and play outside will they get more sick/ take longer to recover?

Do you burn the cold and starve the flu or whatever?

Should I be dressing kids like they going to arctic if they have a.cold?

How serious does it have to be before its acceptable to keep them off school?

Why won't Dr or minor ailment scheme give cough medicine?

Is calpol and saline drops really the only thing Dr can do?

How does this Kaloba stuff work? I find echinacea and Sambucol (black elderberry extract, high in antioxidants) quite effective if you take them when a cold is just coming on - is this a similar product?

What's the current thinking on the efficacy of Echinacea when it comes to either preventing colds or helping the body to overcome them more quickly?

Are there any cold/flu remedies whatsoever beyond paracetamol, be they herbal or not, that can be safely taken during pregnancy?

Any tips for un-blocking a bunged up nose (if nasal decongestants are verboten during pregnancy)? - I find it almost impossible to sleep if I have to breathe through my mouth.

I would love to know, by how long does this medicine apparently reduce the duration of a URTI - is it something like most people coughed for 9 days but people taking the medicine coughed for 8.5 days?

Cold and flu symptoms - I find it hard to know whether or not the DCs need to see a Dr with a cough. Several times they have had rotten coughs - just a virus/cold. But once my daughter seemed the same, coughing til she was sick and had a nasty chest infection needing Klaricid but she didn't seem more poorly and I couldn't really tell and felt really guilty because I am an HCP

And I remember you getting your dodgy mole removed on the TV and thought it was a really great thing to do, have you had further treatment at all? ignore if you want I am just nosey

What can be done to loosen nasal mucus generally and particularly when pregnant? Have tried having lots of warm drinks and inhaling steam, but bending over a sink is hard with a big bump and full sinuses...

I'd like to know if it shortens the duration of the common cold if you give in and rest, or if it makes no odds.

Also, why do some healthy people get so many colds while others seem to get very few.

When do answers start to appear? I've had a hacking cough to the point of throwing up alongside a cold for over a week think I have chest infection is this the kind of thing you should get anti bs for haven't seen a doc for years excluding pregnancies.

Sorry just read intro properly

I'm also interested to hear whether resting and skiving off work makes any difference to getting better. Secondly, why the cold germ, I mean an absolutely bog standard not serious cold, makes my children's asthma get so bad.

How can you tell a bad cold apart from flu?

and why do I never ever catch colds but I will get flu once every two years without fail?

i have not had a cold for about 5 years

i have loads of vit c - oranges and juice every day
also i get out in the fresh air (even freezing like today) as much as possible

had flu twice in my life - awful really achey and ill couldn't move off sofa for a week then cough cough cough for another week and ended up losing over a stone in weight

sorry just realised haven't got a question

Marking place

And I get no vitamin C probably, but I have AN IMMUNE SYSTEM which is a marvellous thing