Cold/flu Going Around?

[jaideeguy]

Seems a lot of people in our neighborhood are suffering the same symptoms....runny nose hi/low fever and cough along with usual fatigue and sore bones.

Wife has it and she is miserable and taking paracetamol and herbal cough concoction . The local clinic and most of the neighborhood confirm that a lot of people have the same, but is it a cold or the flu??

Just checking.....

[Rancid]

That might explain why I have been feeling a bit off, although not really sick as such.

[elektrified]

We're all sick with the same symptoms here. The cough lasts for weeks. The fever comes and goes. It's a flu bug.

[lemoncake]

its a nasty little ......., i got it a few days ago and it hits hard, cough is really deep following the loss of voice, after i got it, my staff got it and all had same.

what i found worked well for me and my staff was an antibiotic called "bactrim" but make sure not allergic before taking it.

PS. Cough syrop did not help with the cough at all

[WinnieTheKhwai]

I was coughing for well over a week. A strict Sang Som regime was the perfect therapy to help me conquer it. Never even had much of a fever, then finally the cough went away.

[Semper]

PS. Cough syrop did not help with the cough at all

You could ask Chalerm what brand he use.

[MESmith]

PS. Cough syrop did not help with the cough at all

You could ask Chalerm what brand he use.

Probably the same as WTK

[jaideeguy]

For a deep chest cough with phlegm, I find that an herbal syrup works great....based on an herb called 'mawang'....ask any pharmacist.

[MESmith]

an antibiotic called "bactrim"

antibiotic for flu?

[elektrified]

The cough is nasty and deep as has been said. Nothing you can buy from a pharmacy helps. A doctor friend gave me some tablets the other day that help a little but not much more than the ones I got at the pharmacy. The Ma wang stuff helps the scratchy throat but does nothing for the cough. My child has had the cough for about 15 days now. Been on a couple of antibiotics, etc. Nothing helps. This flu bug is a bad one.

[lsk]

Started 5 days ago with a mild cough and some phlegm, progressed to a deep cough and nasty phlegm within a couple of hours. Woke up from a restless sleep with an awful headache. Symptoms carried for the next few days with cold sweats appearing here or there. Currently, apart from feeling lethargic and a fluctuating body temp all OK.

P.S. Girlfriend Parents homemade honey whiskey helped a lot.

[jaideeguy]

Yeah, forgot to mention that headache is another common symptom of this flu/cold.

BTW, has it been confirmed weather it is a cold or flu yet?? no tests were performed on my wife.

[Joop50]

It's definitly a virus. What (not) to do. Don't take antibiotics, harms you more. It works only for bacteries, anyone should know that by now.

Raise your resistance level by eating loads of fruits and green vegetables in form of juices and salades, besides that one can take a lot of vitamin C, Vitamin D3 (sunbath) and something like Astaxanthin. Let fever do its job, don't repress it by taking paracetamol etc. There are some good herbs that helps the cough by making phlegm. For instance thyme, lemongrass and ginger. Drink a lot of water. How do I know? I have copd, a chronic bronchitis for years, every virus grabs me too. I read all there is about it on internet.

[elektrified]

Yeah, forgot to mention that headache is another common symptom of this flu/cold.

BTW, has it been confirmed weather it is a cold or flu yet?? no tests were performed on my wife.

It's a flu. My child had both the blood test and the nasal swab. Confirmed influenza.

[eyecatcher]

Sorry to be a bore; but remember the advice:

Eat right! Make sure you get your daily dose of fruits and veggies.

Take your vitamins and bump up your vitamin C.

Get plenty of exercise because exercise helps build your immune system.

Walk for at least hour a day, go for a swim, take the stairs instead of the lift, etc.

Wash your hands often. If you can't wash them, keep a bottle of antibacterial stuff around. -

Get lots of fresh air. Open windows whenever possible and get plenty of rest

Try to eliminate as much stress from your life as you can.

OR. .. You can take the doctors office approach. Think about it, when you go for a shot, what do they do first? Clean your arm with alcohol.

Why? Because alcohol kills germs.

So;. All well and good .. I walk to the liquor store (exercise),

I put lime in my cocktails (fruit), celery sticks in my Bloody Mary (veggies), drink on the patio (fresh air), get drunk, tell jokes, and laugh (eliminate stress), then pass out (rest).

The way I see it, if you keep your alcohol levels up, flu germs can't get you!!!

[amexpat]

Well, there is a vaccine that is recommended by the NHS, the US Center for Disease Control, the World Health Org, etc, etc. because flu is nasty and can be fatal.

Dr Morgan offers the shot/jab for 680 baht, hospitals may charge more.

If you believe it's a conspiracy of the scientific community, like global warming, evolution, western medicine, please don't waste your effort trying to educate me. I'm a hopeless case.

[kjhbigv]

Me and the GF have had it all week (and still do).....definitely lasting longer than a normal cold.....first time in over a year!

Blowing my nose every minute....starting to get on my t*t's now!

[lemoncake]

an antibiotic called "bactrim"

antibiotic for flu?

it worked

[Joop50]

When you have flu symptoms already a vacination is useless and spoiled money. Your body needs some time to build immune cells.

But even if you take a flu vaccine every year, it possibly don't work.

Just one link about it: http://chemistry.abo...a/aa011604a.htm

[Joop50]

an antibiotic called "bactrim"

antibiotic for flu?

it worked

It means there was a bacterial infection not flu. The name says it all.

[T_Dog]

High season brings tourists and tourists bring in a whole new herd of viruses. Good news is that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

[lemoncake]

an antibiotic called "bactrim"

antibiotic for flu?

it worked

It means there was a bacterial infection not flu. The name says it all.

so may be its a bacterial flue , i donot know but symptoms seem to be the same in most people, i also ate aspirin every 4 hours

[Joop50]

For them who suffer from a sore throath, gargling with salt is an option, and these tea's work very well too.

Several teas are known to soothe sore throats. A helpful recipe includes:

1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar

Juice from 1/4 lemon

1 teaspoon of honey

Cayenne pepper to taste

Mix the ingredients into a cup of warm water and drink slowly. One cup is rarely enough for all day relief, but four may do the trick. This drink may also help reduce coughing.

Another tea option is to combine ginger tea with cinnamon and lemon. Ingredients include:

1 teaspoon of grated ginger

1 cinnamon stick

2 teaspoons of grated lemon peel

1/2 cup of water

Combine ingredients in a pan and simmer for 15 minutes. Pour three tablespoons of mixture into a cup of warm warm and drink. Save the rest for additional cups of tea later in the day.

A third tea option is ginger tea with lemon and pepper.

Seep one bag of ginger tea in a cup of hot water.

Add lemon juice and black pepper powder to taste.

This remedy not only helps relieve throat pain, but it can also clear blockages.

[helpisgood]

I caught something about six days ago. It started as a cough and then later became a runny nose with sneezing. Plus, I was feeling very tired and ached all over causing a bad night of sleeping. However, there was no fever. I have taken a couple of symptomatic meds (which has worked well), and I was prescribed an antibiotic called Darflox. About 24 hours after taking the antibiotic, I started feeling better. This my fourth day on Darflox and I am feeling almost normal again. I can't say if this is the same illness as is discussed and I am not a MD. However, if you have the same symptoms, you may want to get examined by a physician and get some medication.

[masuk]

probably too late for the sufferers now, but the flu shots for this season have been available for about a month.

aching bones can also be an indication of dengue fever.

[elektrified]

This is what was prescribed for my child: Meiact (Cefditoren pivoxil) manufactured by the Meiji company. It seemed to knock out the flu and the cough, but unfortunately the symptoms returned about a week after treatment was discontinued.

[jaideeguy]

Wife was tested for dengue fever.....quite a simple test where the nurse tied her arm with a rubber tube and left it for [what she says] 5 minutes, then looked for telltale signs of red spots......she's clear of dengue!! This is just over a week and she is slowly returning to normal, but still low energy and the hot/cold flushes.

[eyecatcher]

Wife was tested for dengue fever.....quite a simple test where the nurse tied her arm with a rubber tube and left it for [what she says] 5 minutes, then looked for telltale signs of red spots......she's clear of dengue!! This is just over a week and she is slowly returning to normal, but still low energy and the hot/cold flushes.

me thinks, she was afraid of needle and ran away!!! Yes the rubber tube is tied around your arm, to emphasise the veins before the nurse takes the blood sample. Then the blood is tested and the blood cell counts made, so the doctor can form an opinion.

If i thought a visual on dengue fever could be made I would have done the same.

[meadish_sweetball]

The plant mentioned above is part of the Solanum is called มะแว้งเครือ (mawáeng khruea) in Thai. From googling, there are at least three types of plants with the component มะแว้ง (mawáeng) in it. But I guess if you ask at a pharmacy and specify it's for cold/chest symptoms, chances are they'd know that you want mawáeng khruea.

Here's more info if you can read Thai:

http://www.rspg.or.th/plants_data/herbs/herbs_08_4.htm

The above URL claims it is used like this:

Anti-phlegm, anti-cough

มะแว้งเครือ Mawáeng Khruea

Scientific name: Solanum trilobatum L.

Family: Solanaceae [[same group as nightshades and horse nettles; potatoes, eggplants and nettles are part of this family]]

Other names : มะแว้งเถา [mawáeng thao+] (Bangkok) แขว้งเควีย [khwâeng khwia] (Tak)

Botanical characteristics: Climber that runs along other plants. Round, green, oily stem. The branches have thorns. Single leaves alternating in a garland pattern. Thorns line the veins on the underside of the leaves. The flowers are purple with five petals, forming axillary buds at the ends of the branches. The leaves have five pointed lobes, and are joined at the base. It has five yellow stamina. The fruits are round, 0,5 cm with smooth skin. The unripe fruits are green with a white pattern. The ripe fruits are bright red. The seeds are flat and plentiful.

Parts used: roots, the entire plant, stem, leaves, fresh full-sized but not yet ripe fruits

Properties:

Roots - reduces severe bleeding from the anus or urethra, expectorant (anti-cough), anti-asthmatic, diuretic, anti-spasmodic hallucinatory fever [traditional Thai medicine classification, not recognized in Western medicine; fever due to "elemental congregation"], balancing elements, reduces stickiness of saliva, thirst, anti-tuberculosis

Whole plant - reduces sweating, expectorant, anti-asthmatic, diuretic

Stem - Reduces flatulence in pregnancy, anti-cough, anti-phlegm, reduces stickiness of saliva, strengthens blood, reduces severe bleeding from the anus or urethra

Leaves - Balances elements, anti-cough, reduces stickiness of saliva

Fresh fruits - Anti-cough, anti-phlegm, diuretic, anti-diabetic, tonic, reduces stickiness of saliva, strengthens blood, reduces severe bleeding from the anus or urethra

Method and amounts

Anti-cough, anti-asthmatic, as a bitter medicine to stimulate appetite

Take 5-6 fresh Mawaeng Khruea fruits, chew them, swallow all of the bitter juice, and spit out the rest - very potent anti-cough remedy.

Pound 5-10 fresh fruits until crushed, squeeze out the juice, add salt. Sip frequently, or chew the fresh fruits and swallow both the juice and the pulp.

Treating diabetes, lowering blood sugar

Use 10-20 full-sized Mawaeng fruits and eat as veggies dipped in nam-phrik

Substances :

The leaves contain Tomatid - 5 - en -3- ß - ol

The flowers contain Alkaloids, Cellulose, Pectins Unidentified organic acid Lignins, Unidentified saponins

The fruits contain Enzyme oxidase, high levels of Vitamin A

[meadish_sweetball]

Since four months back, I drink a huge glass of คาวทอง khaao thawng Houttuynia cordata ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houttuynia_cordata ) juice every evening before bed. Seems to work well enough, haven't been sick since, my stomach health is better (I used to have IBS like symptoms but not anymore) and haven't noticed any side effects.