# Starting to get a cold, how to knock it out? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 22, 2015, 10:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272 "2015-04-22T10:25:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 10:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/1 "2015-04-22T10:25:32Z")
Mega dose of vitamin C? Zicam? Do any of these drugs/remedies actually work? ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/2 "2015-04-22T12:15:13Z")
Eat well, get lots of sleep, take lots of fluids. Gargle regularly (2-3 times daily), with warm salt water. Use aerosol saline spray regularly to keep nasal passages clear. (Always sterilize the tip, after each use!) I do these things and it always helps. Good Luck! ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/3 "2015-04-22T12:44:06Z")
Thanks **elbows**! I picked up a vitamin C supplement, I hope it works. I read that zinc lozenges can harm your sense of smell, so I passed on those. My only experience with a nasal spray wasn’t so great. I heard you can get addicted to it if you don’t stop within a few days? But just in case I try that, how do you sterilize the tip? ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/4 "2015-04-22T12:52:51Z")
Airborne? ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/5 "2015-04-22T13:12:38Z")
Saline spray is just salt water, NOT addictive. The addictive ones have actual pharmaceuticals in them! You can sterilize the tip with rubbing alcohol or even hand sanitizer. (You don’t want to reintroduce what you’re trying to get rid of, after all!) ---
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/6 "2015-04-22T13:15:23Z")
You can get over-the-counter cold pills at the drugstore. They don’t really cure colds, but they can somewhat alleviate symptoms for a while so you’re temporarily not coughing all over the place. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/7 "2015-04-22T13:45:55Z")
> [@Rachellelogram](#): > > I read that zinc lozenges can harm your sense of smell, so I passed on those. I’ve never heard this about lozenges, only about [sprays or swabs](http://www.webmd.com/cold-and-flu/news/20100719/study-links-zinc-nose-sprays-loss-smell) [that go in your nose](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinc_gluconate#Safety_concerns). ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/8 "2015-04-22T14:45:34Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > I’ve never heard this about lozenges, only about [sprays or swabs](http://www.webmd.com/cold-and-flu/news/20100719/study-links-zinc-nose-sprays-loss-smell) [that go in your nose](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinc_gluconate#Safety_concerns). Oh that’s promising. Thank you so much 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/9 "2015-04-22T14:51:39Z")
Cold-Ease (zinc lozenges) works wonders for me. And the store brand from CVS works just as well. ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/10 "2015-04-22T14:59:35Z")
My husband swears that taking vitamin c always helps him when he feels a cold coming on. Hope you feel better. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Parker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/35a633/32.png) [@Richard\_Parker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Parker)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/11 "2015-04-22T15:07:46Z")
I think the answer to the OP is: probably not, but it won’t hurt and you shouldn’t go ruining your placebo by reading the science! The research suggests that regular supplementation of Vitamin C might have a small beneficial effect on cold duration, with a bigger effect among populations subject to acute extreme stress. But I’m not aware of any meta-study showing consistent positive results for therapeutic use of Vitamin C after onset of a cold. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/12 "2015-04-22T15:25:43Z")
I’ve heard that zinc is the only remedy that shows any results under controlled tests. It won’t cure a cold but it will reduce a cold’s effects and duration. But you need to take it early in the cold. When I feel like I’m getting a cold I take [lozenges](http://www.amazon.com/Halls-Defense-Vitamin-Echinaca-Cherry/dp/B00J2CNMOS) that have a mix of zinc, vitamin c, and echinacea. I figure the zinc helps and the vitamin c and echinacea at least contribute a placebo effect. ---
**Author:** ![Pixel\_Dent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bc8723/32.png) [@Pixel\_Dent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pixel_Dent)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/13 "2015-04-22T15:48:16Z")
> [@John\_DiFool](#): > > Airborne? It’s just a placebo, so I take double doses to get twice the Placebo effect. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/14 "2015-04-22T17:48:59Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > You can sterilize the tip with rubbing alcohol or even hand sanitizer. (You don’t want to reintroduce what you’re trying to get rid of, after all!) You don’t want to give it to someone else, but I didn’t think it would matter to yourself. You already have that specific virus and won’t get it again. ---
**Author:** ![Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/channing_idaho_banks/32/250_2.png) [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Channing_Idaho_Banks)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/15 "2015-04-22T17:54:07Z")
Have a Piña Colada and then a nice hot bath, and then take a nap. Do this several times until the cold is gone. ---
**Author:** ![beagledave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6de8d8/32.png) [@beagledave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beagledave)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/16 "2015-04-22T18:21:03Z")
Cecil weighs in on Zinc. I think of the proposed “treatments” (besides symptomatic stuff), this one might have some merit. It looks like the quality of the Zinc matters > **[What’s the latest on whether zinc cures colds?](https://www.straightdope.com/21344279/what-s-the-latest-on-whether-zinc-cures-colds)** ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2015, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starting-to-get-a-cold-how-to-knock-it-out/718272/17 "2015-04-22T18:56:50Z")
Speaking as a Scot, I’m legally obliged to suggest a [hot toddy](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_toddy). If you don’t have honey and cloves handy to make one, just a straight single malt should do the trick (make sure it’s a peaty one, the fumes will blast the germs out the sinuses. Honest). 😉