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The INDEPENDENT, November 7, 2012
To Your Health!
By Judy Hargis, P.A
HERE COME THE
BUGS!
Cold and Flu
Prevention Strategies.
There are over 200
hundred cold viruses
floating around just wait-
ing to infect us. In the win-
ter, the odds are in their
favor, as we stay indoors where more of these
viruses can be concentrated. The viruses that
cause colds (rhinoviruses) can be spread by
droplets in the air when infected people cough
or sneeze, or even talk. They can travel up to 10
feet away. They also can be passed on when we
cough or sneeze into our hands or into a tissue,
and others come in contact with them. We have
all heard this, but when we are busy and in-
volved in our everyday lives, it is easy to forget
some simple basics that can help us avoid the
spread of cold and flu viruses.
We all know what a cold feels like. We expe-
rience runny, stuffy nose, sneezing, sore throat,
fever, chills and fatigue. Sometimes cold symp-
toms get confused with influenza (the Flu). The
flu is spread the same way as a cold, but the
symptoms are a little different and can make you
feel a lot worse. Flu symptoms can come on
quickly and include fever, chills, body aches,
cough and fatigue. Fevers, chills and body
aches associated with the flu can continue for
up to a week. People who have the flu will some-
times have a sore throat, but don’t usually expe-
rience a stuffy nose or sneezing.
Antibiotics are not needed to treat a cold or
the flu. They will not make symptoms go away
any faster because they do not effectively treat
viruses, only bacterial infections such as strep
throat, pneumonia etc. The best treatment for
colds and the flu is fluids, rest, comfort meas-
ures and time. Occasionally, symptoms will not
improve or will worsen. Sometimes secondary
infections can develop, such as sinusitis or
pneumonia. Occasionally, serious complications
can develop from influenza, and even be life
threatening, especially in infants, children, the
elderly and people with chronic medical condi-
tions or suppressed immune systems.
Cold and flu prevention is important. It is im-
portant to wash your hands frequently, for at
least 20 seconds with soap and water. Hand
sanitizers can be helpful but are not as effective
as soap and water. You do not need to use anti-
bacterial hand soaps. It is important to cough or
sneeze into your elbow, not into your hands, and
dispose of tissues used to blow your nose im-
mediately. Try to avoid touching your face. We
touch our faces on average, up to 15 times an
hour. Flu and cold viruses can get into your body
through your eyes, nose and mouth. Clean door
knobs, bathrooms and kids’ toys frequently with
disinfectants. Allow fresh air into your home at
least once a week. Maintaining a healthy diet,
exercising regularly and getting plenty of rest
can contribute to a healthier immune system
and help your body fight off illness more effec-
tively. STAY HOME if you are sick so you do not
infect others.
It is important for everyone to get a flu shot.
Now is the best time to get it, as it takes several
weeks to fully kick in, is effective for approxi-
mately 6 months, and will provide protection
through the peak flu months in January and
February. I cannot reinforce the importance of
flu and cold prevention enough.
Stay well and have a wonderful Thanksgiv-
ing.
Still smoking? Join the Great
American Smokeout on Nov. 15
The American Cancer Soci-
ety is marking the 37th Great
American Smokeout on No-
vember 15 by encouraging
smokers to use the date to
make a plan to quit, or to plan
in advance and quit smoking
that day. By doing so, smokers
will be taking an important step
towards a healthier life – one
that can lead to reducing can-
cer risk.
Tobacco use remains the
single largest preventable
cause of disease and prema-
ture death in the country, yet
more than 45 million Americans
still smoke cigarettes. Ashley
Swanson, Healthy Communi-
ties coordinator for the Public
Health Foundation, said that
more than half of these smok-
ers have attempted to quit for
at least one day in the past
year.
“Tobacco Facts,” compiled
and published by the Oregon
Health Authority Tobacco Pre-
vention and Education Pro-
gram (TPEP), reports that
there are 6,318 people who
regularly smoke cigarettes in
Columbia County, and 92 peo-
ple die from tobacco use each
year.
But there is good news.
Smoking among Oregon adults
has decreased 26 percent
since 1996, when TPEP was
initiated. Smoking has also de-
clined 54 percent among Ore-
gon’s eight-graders, and 46
percent among 11th graders.
Statewide, the percentage of
infants born to mothers who
use tobacco while pregnant
has decreased 34 percent.
Quitting is hard, said Swan-
son, but you can increase your
chances of success with help.
The American Cancer Society
will explain the steps you can
take to quit smoking and pro-
vide the resources and support
that can increase your chances
of quitting successfully. To
learn about the available tools,
call the American Cancer Soci-
ety at 1-800-227-2345 or go to
http://www.cancer.org/ healthy/
stayawayfromtobacco/greatam
ericansmokeout/index.
Swanson said that Oregon’s
quitline is highly successful in
connecting smokers who want
to quit with the local resources
to help them at no cost. The
quitline Teen Program is free
for Oregonians 13 and older.
Teens can connect online or by
phone at the general quitline
number. The numbers are 1-
800-QUIT-NOW (1-800-784-
8669) or there is a website too:
w w w. q u i t n o w. n e t / o r e g o n / .
Spanish: 1-877-2NO-FUME (1-
877-266-3863).
Columbia County
Mental Health
Domestic Abuse
800-294-5211
503-397-6161
-----------------
Suicide Hotline
or
Medicare enrollees: learn about your choices
It’s Medicare Open Enroll-
ment season now through Dec.
7. Everyone on Medicare
should evaluate their coverage
to see if their current plan still is
the best and most cost effec-
tive.
One way to do this is to go to
www.medicare.gov and click on
“Find health and drug plans”.
Another is to contact Columbia
County SHIBA (Senior Health
Insurance Benefits Assistance)
volunteers at 503-846-3094 to
schedule a one on one meet-
ing. A third is to attend a SHIBA
walk-in event at the Scappoose
Senior Center, every Thursday
from 11 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Thanksgiving week the open
house will be on Friday.
Even if you’re satisfied with
your medical coverage, every-
one who takes more than a few
prescription drugs – or even
just one that’s expensive –
should run their drug list
through www.medicare.gov to
check costs and coverage for
next year. If you don’t have in-
ternet access, or find the
process too hard, SHIBA volun-
teers can do this for you.
SHIBA
volunteers
are
trained by the state to help
people with Medicare insur-
ance questions and issues.
They do not recommend partic-
ular programs, but help people
sort through alternatives to find
the best fit for their situation.
Their help is free and unbiased.
State Farm ®
Providing Insurance and Financial Services
Home Office, Bloomington, Illinois 61710
Bunny Girt, Agent
503-901-1705
1229 N. Adair
PO Box 543
Cornelius, OR 97113-0543
Bus 503-357-3131 Fax 503-357-9667
bunny.girt.b71g@statefarm.com
1-800-
784-2433
or
1-800-273-
TALK(8255)
Hotline
866-397-6161
-----------------
Military Helpline
888-HLP-4-VET
(888-457-4838)