Tip of the Week Archive

This Week's Tip

Decongestants and cough syrup often contain acetaminophen. Always check labels and ask your pharmacist to avoid overdosing.

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Up to 80% of children with ear infections will get better without antibiotics. Wash your hands frequently and teach your children to wash their hands since most ear infections occur after a cold.

A yellow/green discharge from the nose is normal 2-3 days after the start of a cold. This does not mean it is a bacterial infection

Always wash your hands after using the bathroom, changing diapers or helping a child use the toilet.

Because of the risk of developing antibiotic resistance, it is no longer recommended to give antibiotics to prevent ear infections in children who get them often.

A child's behavior, rather than the fever, is more important for telling you when to worry. When fever is reduced with a viral infection, children usually feel better. Often with a bacterial infection, especially pneumonia, the child will still feel miserable even when the temperature is brought down.

Make sure that soap is available in the washroom of your child's school, in your workplace and places where you eat.

Alcohol based hand sanitizers are effective against germs on the hands. Read the label to make sure that the alcohol content is at least 60%.

A child should be examined by a doctor three months after an ear infection to make sure there is no fluid left in the ear as this may lead to hearing problems. (There is no need to see a doctor immediately after an ear infection if the child is better. As many as half of all children with ear infections still have fluid in the ear after one month. This is normal and will go away by three months in most children.)

Expect your doctor, dentist, nurse or therapist to wash their hands before they examine you.

Fluids, rest and acetaminophen are the best way to treat colds and the flu. Although you will usually get better in 4-5 days, it may take as long as three weeks to feel completely well.

There is no need to use antibacterial soap! Antibacterial soap kills both good and bad bacteria (the good bacteria protect our skin from disease-causing germs). Regular soap is good enough to get rid of bad germs. Antibacterial soap may also promote antibiotic resistance.

Salt-water nose drops are the best treatment for babies with nasal congestion caused by a cold. You can make your own or buy them at the store.

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!

Make sure that childcare facilities have places for adults and children to wash their hands.

Sore throats are common with a cold and the flu. If a sore throat is part of these illnesses, it is most likely caused by a virus and a throat swab is not needed.

Viruses are more contagious than bacteria. If more than one person in your family has the same illness, odds are it is a viral infection, and antibiotics will not work!

Handwashing is the best way to stop the spread of colds. Always wash your hands after being with someone who has a cold or the flu.

Most sore throats are due to viruses. A doctor cannot tell, just by looking, whether a sore throat is due to a virus or to Streptococcus bacteria (Strep throat). A throat swab is the only way to know if antibiotics might help.

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 are usually prescribed.

Eighty percent of common infections are spread by hands. Handwashing is the best way to stop the spread of respiratory infections.

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.

Colds, flu, croup, laryngitis and most cases of bronchitis in children and adults are due to viruses. Antibiotics will not help!

Using antibiotics when they are not needed (for example to treat viral infections such as colds and flu) can lead to antibiotic resistance. 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.

The best way to prevent the flu is to get the flu vaccine. Talk to your doctor or visit your nearest public health clinic.