Being Well at Magill

Winter Ailments

Hello Magillians. Did you know…….?

There were many nasty remedies for treating illness throughout history. In the early Middle Ages, a mixture of the juice of black beetroot and honey administered through the nose was believed to cure a cold. During the 1800s, surgeons used leeches for bloodletting; they believed this treatment would cure fevers. Physicians would place a live leech onto the skin and allow it to drink the patients’ blood.

Thankfully, medicine has come a long way since then! Even so, most families have a remedy handed down from generation to generation that they enjoy sharing with others, or theories on how to stay well. Advice such as what food/drink helps, or which behaviours to avoid in order to stay well. Let’s look at some of these and see how effective they are. Do they work? What do the experts say?

Drink honey, lemon and ginger tea

This remedy causes debate. The idea is that the honey, ginger and hot liquid provide temporary relief for an inflamed throat, while the lemon packs a punch of vitamin C. What is the truth?

Experts say using honey, which can act as a cough suppressant, should never be given to a child under 1 year of age as it may cause the child to develop Botulism. Allowing a child to cough may also prove beneficial as it helps to clear mucus from the airway.

Eat chicken soup

A chicken soup which contains vegetables and chicken bones, cooked over time, releases zinc which helps build the immune system, calcium for strong bones and magnesium: a nutrient that is essential for healthy muscles and nerves, into the liquid. Hot soup can help clear a blocked nose, zinc helps shorten a cold, fluid from the broth keeps you hydrated, and there are several anti-inflammatory substances in the broth that help alleviate symptoms such as aches and pains.

Do not go outside with wet hair

If children go outside with wet hair or without shoes during winter months, they’ll get sick.

Many people believe that cold temperatures can cause an increase in illness especially during winter months. However, the reality is that more people get sick in the winter because they spend more time close to other people, indoors and not because they’ve been outside in cold weather.

The truth is it’s not really going to matter that much if your child goes outside without socks and shoes unless you are worried about dirty feet or in extreme cold weather, children may run the risk of frostbite.

Feed a cold and starve a fever

Experts say there’s no scientific evidence to support this idea. Children who are sick should eat when they feel up to it and drink plenty of fluids to prevent dehydration. Milk is considered to work as well as other fluids, even though a common wife’s tale is that milk should be avoided when a child has a fever. The important thing is for children to remain hydrated.

Put Vicks on the soles of your feet

Vicks is a popular product for treating the symptoms of a cold, such as a blocked nose. However, experts say, putting Vicks on the soles of your feet is unlikely to help with cold symptoms; it may possibly have a cooling effect on this part of the body. There is little research about how effective Vicks is at treating cold symptoms. Some studies suggest that Vicks could help reduce cold symptoms at night in children, but more research is required before confirming this claim.

You can't prevent your child from catching a cold

The answer to this one is that while there is no real cure for the common cold, one thing we have all learned over the last couple of years is WASH, WASH, WASH! Wash your hands after you sneeze. Wash your hands after you blow your nose. Wash your hands after you eat. Children should sneeze into the crook of their elbow and not their hands. They should blow their nose to get rid of the mucus.