What should I do if I have a cold?

Written by Hu Bai Yu
Pulmonology
Updated on May 23, 2025
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The common cold is a frequently occurring disease. If it is just a common cold, it does have certain self-healing properties, and generally heals on its own in about seven days. Symptoms may include a runny nose, sneezing, and some nasal congestion. At this time, you only need to stay warm, avoid exposure to cold winds, eat some warm, easy-to-digest foods, and drink some brown sugar ginger juice to relieve the symptoms. If the condition is more serious, or the symptoms are more pronounced, symptomatic treatment can be sufficient. However, if it is influenza caused by a viral infection, it generally onset quickly with pronounced symptoms. In this case, it is necessary to take anti-infective and anti-cold medications under the guidance of a doctor. Normally, it's also important to drink plenty of water, promote excretion, rest more, not to stay up late, ensure sufficient sleep, enhance your own resistance, and during the treatment period, avoid smoking and drinking alcohol, actively cooperate with the treatment.

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What are some cold medicines for babies?

When a baby catches a cold, it indicates that the child has an acute upper respiratory infection, which is mostly caused by viral infections, with about 10% due to bacterial infections. Therefore, when a child catches a cold, it is crucial to ensure they rest adequately and take some cold medications. The commonly used cold medications primarily involve symptomatic treatments. For high fever, antipyretic analgesics can be administered, and physical cooling measures such as cold compresses may also be applied. When a child experiences febrile convulsions, sedatives and anticonvulsants should be given; for nasal congestion, topical medications can be applied to alleviate nasal congestion. If the child’s throat is uncomfortable, throat lozenges can be taken. For the common cold, antiviral drugs do not have a specialized therapeutic effect. Thus, drinking more water is advisable. If it is confirmed that the cold is caused by a bacterial infection, antibiotics should be administered under the guidance of a hospital doctor. (Note: This answer is for reference only. Medications should be administered under the guidance of a professional physician. Do not self-medicate.)

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Written by Zhang Shu Kun
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Is wind-cold common cold?

Wind-cold common cold is actually what is referred to as the common cold, primarily caused by exposure to cool air or catching cold. It mostly occurs in autumn and winter, and can easily lead to symptoms like a runny nose, cough, excessive phlegm, and body aches. For treatment, it is recommended to mainly use Western medicine, though Chinese medicine can also be effective. During treatment, the diet should consist mainly of warm foods, drinking more ginger sugar water or brown sugar water, which has the effect of expelling cold.

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Written by Wang Chun Mei
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Can I eat oranges if I have a cold in the summer?

Colds that occur in the summer are generally more often heat-induced colds. Symptoms of heat-induced colds typically include fever, headache, or overall fatigue, along with chills, nasal congestion, runny nose, sneezing, sore throat, and coughing among other clinical symptoms. It is generally not recommended for patients with such colds to eat oranges. Oranges are highly nutritious, containing a large amount of Vitamin C and some B vitamins. However, oranges can cause "internal heat," and eating too many oranges may exacerbate symptoms like sore throat. Therefore, it is generally advised not to eat oranges when one has a cold during summer. If one really wants to eat oranges, consuming a small amount, just a few segments, is acceptable.

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Can a baby swim with a cold?

When a baby has a cold, their physical condition is not at its best, which means their physical ability will definitely decline. Under such circumstances, we do not recommend that the baby goes swimming. Swimming can increase physical exertion in the water, and sometimes the water temperature is not properly controlled, which could potentially increase the baby's burden. Especially when there is significant physical exhaustion, and if the water temperature is not well controlled, it may worsen the baby's cold symptoms. Therefore, we advise against swimming in this situation, but you can still give the baby a warm bath. However, make sure the duration is not too long, and the external temperature must also be appropriately managed.

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How to treat a baby's cold in the early stages?

What are the symptoms at the onset of a cold? Generally, at the initial stage of a cold, we definitely experience symptoms such as a runny nose, nasal congestion, low-grade fever, and slight coughing. If it's just a runny nose and nasal congestion, in this case, we can take some antiviral medications, some proprietary Chinese medicines, and also provide some acetaminophen chlorpheniramine granules to relieve these symptoms of runny nose and nasal congestion. If there is a cough, appropriate cough suppressant medication can be taken orally. At the same time, pay attention to body temperature; if there is a fever, fever reduction measures should be taken. If it is a low-grade fever, physical cooling should be the main approach. If the body temperature exceeds 38.5 degrees Celsius, oral ibuprofen or acetaminophen can be administered. Also, pay attention to the child's mental response and other conditions.