Advanced Family Medicine

Common Cold 101: What it Is & How You Can Avoid It Now that the days are short and the weather is cold, this means that cold season is once again upon us. But to help you and your family remain happy and healthy during the Holidays, we here at  Advanced Family Medicine  thought it would be a good idea to answer some of the more frequent questions we receive about the common cold. What is the Common Cold? Did you know that the  common cold  isn’t a single illness, but is actually a set of symptoms that can be caused by more than 200 types of viruses? It’s true, although the Rhinovirus is thought to result in between 10% and 40% of all annual cases of the common cold. But whatever the cause, according to the  CDC , as much as 20% of the population can fall ill to the common cold each year (in some instances, multiple times per year), which typically involves sneezing, a sore throat, nasal congestion, draining, and itchy / watery eyes. In more sever...

How Tylenol Works, & How It Can Help Your Child Find Relief You’re a great parent. You do a lot for your children, and you never want to see them hurting or ill. Unfortunately, a big part of life is dealing with various levels of pain and getting sick, so it’s inevitable that, at some point, your child’s going to hurt themselves or fall ill. And for toothaches, minor bumps and bruises, and other types of “owies,” it’s likely that—after giving your child a big hug and wiping away their tears—you give them a dose of Tylenol or a generic form of acetaminophen. However, did you know that the next time you child comes down with the  flu or another illness , Tylenol can work as an effective treatment to reduce their temperature? How Does Tylenol Help Reduce Fever? Surprisingly, the answer to this question is that we really don’t know. Despite acetaminophen’s  widespread use , “experts aren’t quite sure how the drug works.” However, some researchers think that this dr...

Important: Knowing the Distinction Between the Cold and the Flu Could Save Your Health It’s that time of year again in Seattle when coats, mittens, and caps are the norm, right along with runny noses and missed school days. But if you or your child starts getting the sniffles, at what point should you start worrying if it’s a cold or the flu? Make no mistake; it’s an important distinction, because the common cold will typically resolve itself with home remedies, while the flu may require medical attention. So, let’s take a closer look… Differences Between the Cold and the Flu During onset, cold and flu symptoms might seem similar, including sore throat, congestion, and coughing, which often lasts no more than 3-5 days. But when you’re trying to discern if it’s a cold or the flu, a lot of it comes down to whether or not you’re running a high fever. While it’s true that cold symptoms may include a low-grade fever, flu-based fevers typically reach much higher temperatures if...