After a season of togetherness and travel, as we make our way back to our school and work routines, cases of the common cold are on the rise.

The common cold is one of the most common upper respiratory problems that the average individual will come across during the winter months. The common cold is an umbrella term that usually describes a viral upper respiratory infection. Influenza and Covid are some of the more common viruses, but there are many others that can cause similar symptoms such as RSV, Rhinovirus, adenovirus, and norovirus. Apart from Tamiflu and Paxlovid (for influenza and COVID-19), there are very few medications that doctors can prescribe that directly attack the virus. Instead, doctors will recommend medications, most of which are over the counter, to help with the symptoms that result from a viral infection.

Some of the most common symptoms are low to mild fever, chills, dry cough, runny or congested nose, headaches, and muscle aches. Tylenol is acceptable to treat headaches and fever. For muscle aches, NSAIDs such as Motrin are effective and can provide relief quickly. For a persistent dry cough, there are many over the counter cough syrups and suppressants available. These can lead to sluggishness the following morning, and most physicians would recommend trialing honey (1 teaspoon in warm milk or hot tea) before bed. In addition, a humidifier in the room you sleep in can also be helpful.

One of the most effective ways to prevent transmission of common cold viruses is proper hand hygiene. According to the CDC, we may be touching our faces up to 23 times an hour. This makes the transmission as rampant as it can be and one of the best ways to combat that is frequent handwashing. Always wash your hands before eating/preparing food, after using the bathroom, after coughing/sneezing, and after handling any garbage.

Finally, one of the best ways to protect yourself is to get you and your family vaccinated yearly for influenza. While vaccination is not a 100% guarantee you will not catch the common cold, it does provide modest effectiveness (40-60%) and helps reduce transmission of the influenza to higher risk populations. As always, consult your physician for more information about the common cold.

Dr. Paramveer Swaich, DO, Family Medicine, Corewell Health East-Grosse Pointe. For more information, please visit: www.corewellhealth.org.