Well, here in Colorado Autumn is in full swing, and with cooler temperatures we’re beginning to see more people getting the first of the winter viruses. Cold viruses cause the majority of wintertime illnesses we see by far, with flu viruses sweeping through as well.

These cold bugs cause all the classic symptoms – fatigue, congestion, sore throat, cough – and worse in some people.  Others, such as the norovirus, can cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain. Some people are only minimally affected by a viral infection, while others have more serious symptoms.

But the thing to keep in mind here is that a virus causes the majority of these illnesses – colds, flus, bronchitis, pneumonia, etc. What does that mean? It means that antibiotics, which only kill bacteria, will do nothing to get you better if you have one of these viral illnesses.

Because antibiotics are notoriously overprescribed, it's now becoming more common for doctors to hold off on prescribing antibiotics for these illnesses (and that’s a good thing, because over-prescribing of antibiotics is leading to drug-resistant bugs, which is a bad thing!)

So then what can you do to get healthy if you have a virus? There really aren’t any anti-viral drugs for common winter illnesses. (Tamiflu, the once-hyped anti-flu drug, has been shown to reduce symptom duration (how long you are sick for) by a whopping 12-24 hours.(1)

Here’s what I’m doing right now to keep the bugs away: