When do you need antibiotics for cold and cough?

Are you suffering from common cold, cough or flu symptoms. Read this before popping an antibiotic.

The on-going war on antibiotics and the term ‘antibiotic resistance’ has scared everyone about the use, overuse and misuse of antibiotics. It’s true that antibiotics are not needed every time you suffer from cold and cough, but the symptoms shouldn’t be ignored to an extent that the infection becomes worse. Antibiotics are truly a boon to medical science because they have the ability to stop infections and are life-saving in many cases. To clear your confusion, here are a few ways that can help you to determine whether or not you need an antibiotic for your infection.

• Viral infections should not be treated with antibiotics because they are ineffective on viruses. In fact, if you take antibiotics for viral infections, it increases your chances of developing a bacterial infection which might be resistant to those antibiotics. Read more about how bacteria develop resistance to antibiotics.
• Common cold or flu with runny nose and green mucus is a sign of viral infection. There’s no need to take any medicines if you rest well and try some natural remedies for common cold.
• You may start feeling better within two weeks if you have common flu. But, if suddenly your symptoms become worse then you may have developed a secondary bacterial infection because of weakened immunity. This is a characteristic feature of secondary infections, which should be treated with antibiotics.
• If your cold and cough is accompanied by high fever and chills then there’s a possibility that you may be suffering from a bacterial infection which needs antibiotic treatment.
• Productive cough with thick yellow-green mucus that does not get better even after 2 weeks needs to be treated with antibiotics. Read more about side-effects of antibiotics.
• Sore throat is caused by viral infection and doesn’t need antibiotics. But strep throat is caused by bacterial infection. So, it’s must for you to take the prescribed dose of antibiotic to clear the infection. Try thesetips to treat sore throat.

  Also, ensure that you complete the course of your medicines as prescribed, and don’t stop taking them once you     start feeling better. This is the main reason whyantibiotic resistancehas come into existence.

• Severe sinus infection that lasts for 2 weeks or more needs antibiotic treatment. Here are various methods to diagnose and treat sinus infections.
• Some ear infections caused by bacteria are also treated with antibiotics.

A proper diagnosis is the only way to determine whether you need antibiotics or not. So, don’t insist your doctor to prescribe antibiotics unnecessarily. Also, don’t reuse leftover medicines if you suffer from common cold or flu in the future. It’s better to discard them. Read more about current status of antibiotics’ use in India.