Cold and flu season hits Ottawa University

The students here at Ottawa University have been blessed this summer with great weather and a great start to our 2014-2015 school year, but now the cooler, fall months are beginning to come into play.

Knowing the cold weather can cause harsh cold and flu symptoms, there are many different ways to prevent getting these sicknesses; especially for fall athletes now approaching the climax of their season.

Our school nurse, Martha Dodd, was able to discuss several ways to avoid getting sick and a few remedies that are simple to make and that are highly effective. “One way that many students can prevent catching the cold is to make sure they start adding layers to your daily outfits,” Dodd said. “It would also help if students they did not share items such as water bottles, silverware and even clothing or hats.”

Nurse Martha also advises us to start being more cautious when placing our hands in certain places like doorknobs, phones and even sometimes our own desk. “It wouldn’t be a bad idea to invest in some portable hand sanitizer bottles,” she said. “Also if your are already sick and going to classes, make sure when coughing, to cough in your arm near your elbow so that way your hands are not full of bacteria.”

With these cold months coming it means that most students will spend most of their time indoors, and doing that comes with responsibilities. “Be sure to clean everything that you have used even if you are not coming down with any symptoms, be courteous to others.” Dodd said.

All these methods will prevent you from catching anything, but if you unfortunately have already caught a virus, and are trying to find out some methods to relieving it and keeping it at an affordable cost.

Nurse Martha has a couple solutions. “If you have a sore throat, it would be best if you do a remedy called the Waxman Gargle. You add 10cc of water, 10cc of your favorite mouth wash and 10cc of hydrogen peroxide. You should be repeating this step three times a day.” Dodd said. “Another remedy that you should consider is to start the BRATT diet, for 24-48 hours. Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Tea (warm or cool), and Toast (dry without butter).”

Hopefully this article was helpful in what to watch out for when approaching this colder season. For more information or questions, you can visit the nurses’ office in the Ward Science Hall.