There is no need to use antibacterial soap! Antibacterial soap attacks all bacteria, both good and bad, and can cause bacteria to become resistant to antibiotics. Plain soap effectively removes bad germs from the skin without leading to antibiotic resistance.
Fluids, rest and acetaminophen are the best way to treat colds and the flu. Although you will usually feel better in 4 – 5 days, it may take as long as three weeks to completely recover.
If you have influenza (flu), stay home until you are feeling better and avoid going out except to seek medical attention.
Most coughs are due to viruses. Antibiotics will not help! Sometimes a cough can be due to pneumonia. If your doctor suspects pneumonia, an X-ray should be taken and antibiotics may be prescribed.
Fifty percent of children who have ear infections will still have fluid behind the eardrum after one month. This is not a reason to give antibiotics.
In patients with viral bronchitis, 45% still have a cough after two weeks, and 25% still have a cough after three weeks. Be patient; it takes a long time for your body to get over a virus.
Sinusitis is caused by viruses up to 200 times more often than bacteria. A yellow or green drainage from the nose does not mean you have a bacterial infection!
Using antibiotics when they are not needed is an unnecessary risk. You can carry resistant bacteria in your body for up to two years. Do not use antibiotics for colds and flu and for most cases of bronchitis.
Bacteria are complex living organisms that digest nutrients, divide and multiply. Antibiotics work by attacking these life processes. Viruses are much simpler and do not carry out life processes on their own. Because they are simpler, viruses do not have targets that antibiotics can attack. That is why antibiotics work against bacteria, but not against viruses.
Bacteria have antibiotic resistance when they cannot be killed by an antibiotic. Remember it is the bacteria that are resistant NOT YOU! Even very healthy people who have never taken antibiotics can become infected with antibiotic resistant bacteria from other sources.