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It Ain't Like They Say On Tv Part II

It Ain't Like They Say On Tv Part II image
Parent Issue
Day
9
Month
August
Year
1974
OCR Text

Contac Doesn't Snuff The Sniffles

In 1900 the average American suffered the discomfort of three colds a year. Today, and a world of medical technology later, Americans are still suffering out three colds a year. Cold and cough remedies currently enjoy sales of upwards of $650 million per year. But they don't do anything.

Medical researchers are reasonably certain that the common cold is caused by one or more of a group of viruses, and is spread by talking, contact, sneezing -- and just chancing to be in a susceptible condition in the wrong place at the wrong time. Colds can spread wherever people gather in groups. Individual susceptibility varies greatly, and no one is really sure how or why. While a balanced diet, adequate rest, and overall good health can be recommended as general cold preventatives, healthy people still get colds.

Colds are unpredictable. They can last from days to two weeks and even longer, and the nagging cough that accompanies many colds can last another week or two after the cold symptoms have disappeared. Colds can drag on seemingly endlessly, or clear up all of a sudden, and people generally attribute "curing" properties to whatever they happen to be doing or taking at the moment the cold clears up. There are people who swear by virtually every conceivable cold pill, regimen, and home remedy, even those that have been proved to be useless.

Antihistamines, drugs that provide relief for hay fever sufferers, enjoy a certain popularity as cold "remedies." Since hay fever symptoms are similar to some cold symptoms, some clinical  experiments seemed to indicate that they were also effective against colds. However, subsequent and better-controlled experiments found that antihistamines worked no better against colds than placebos did. A placebo is a phony pill that look like the real thing which is given to a control group who think they've been given the real thing. Placebos "cured" as many colds as antihistamines did. Antihistamines neither cure nor prevent colds. They can run into quite a piece of change, too. Furthermore, they produce unpleasant side effects in many users, like: dizziness, headache, and drowsiness. People using antihistamines should be extra careful about driving while on these drugs.

Many people who are into natural foods swear by vitamins as both a cold cure and preventative. The two most popular vitamins used against colds are vitamin C and P. Vitamin P is more commonly known as the group of chemical compounds called bioflavonoids. Experimental evidence compiled by Consumer Reports indicates that vitamins C and P neither prevent nor cure the common cold in the dosage administered. Now, this dosage was much lower than the dose that vitamin C freaks, notably Nobel Laureate Linus Pauling, maintain cures colds. The vitamin C controversy is still raging with advocated touting it and detractors scoffing at it, both sides very passionate in any event. So: you pays yer money and you takes yer chances [sic]. One thing is certain, however, vitamin C is readily available and costs a small fraction of the price of the cold "remedies" pushed by the major drug companies. If you want to take something for your cold, vitamin C will put the smallest dent in your purse, and since many Americans suffer from at at least some vitamin C deficiency, it will help balance your body nutritionally, even if it isn't a sure-fire cold cure. 

Aerosol medications like Congestaid and Pertussin that you spray around a room to reduce the contagion of cold germs are worthless. Most spray products contain menthol, a mild anesthetic used in cigarettes to fool smokers into thinking their throats aren't raw and irritated. There is no evidence that spray products have any redeeming medical value against colds.

Contac is by far the most heavily hyped cold product on the market, and is one of an increasing number of over-the-counter drugs whose claim to fame is not what's in them (which isn't really worth mentioning), but how they're released in your body over a long period of time. The major failing of sustained release products is that different people absorb the "600 tiny time pills" at different rates. One person may absorb too much too fast while another might not absorb enough to have any effect at all. The uncertain absorption rates make Contac and products like it potentially hazardous for young children, elderly people, and people with high blood pressure, diabetes, and heart conditions. Even if Contac's ingredients were released perfectly into your system, it still wouldn't do anything for your cold, except perhaps to dry up your runny nose. 

What should you do for colds? No on knows. It has not been demonstrated that bed rest, aspirin, and plenty of liquids work any better or make recovery any quicker than doing nothing at all, though most people feel like resting in bed when they have a cold anyway. For stuffed noses, try a few drops of  Phenylephrine Hydrochloride 1/4% USP, available at any drug store, and sold at a much higher price under the brand name Neo-Synephrine. For runny noses, if you're past the sore throat stage, a few tokes of the magic herb is as good a drying agent as anything else. If you have a sore throat, try an "enriched" brownie.

Some people beg doctors for antibiotics (like penicillin or tetracycline) for their colds. These drugs are effective only  against bacteria, not the viruses that cause colds. Plus, the more you take them, the more your body builds up a tolerance to their effects, so they might not work the next time you really need them, like if you contract VD, for instance. 

There are over 800 products available for coughs without prescription, and dozens more available with a script. "With sales of these products so high, it is remarkable that reliable evidence of the effectiveness of popular cough remedies is virtually impossible to find." (Consumer Reports) People think they work, but none work any better than phony placebos, so it comes down to a matter of Faith.

Most cough syrups are combinations of sugar, to sooth the sore throat, and alcohol, to lift your spirits. You're better off without both. The opiate codeine, or more commonly terpin hydrate plus codeine does slightly suppress the activity of the "cough control center" of the brain, but not enough to eliminate a persistent cough in the recommended dosage. Furthermore, codeine has a number of distressing side effects among which are: a horrible taste, high frequency of upset stomach, possibly nausea, drug hangover and splitting headache the next morning. For a cough following a cold, drink hot drinks, and suck on hard candies. If you develop a nagging cough apart from having a cold and it persists for a week, come into the Free People's Clinic.

-- Free People's Clinic