Can drinking whiskey relieve a cold? - Infobae

There are at least 100 viruses that can cause the common cold, but the most responsible is the rhinovirus, which appears strongly from the autumn equinox, as explained to Infobae Dr. Stella M. Cuevas. It is spread by secretions or the air near the infected person or by putting your hand to your face after touching contaminated surfaces.

This picture lasts about seven days and causes the following symptoms: runny nose; low-grade fever sometimes; nasal stuffiness; headache; tiredness; decreased smell and taste; sneezing; Irritated eyes.

That is why, in the midst of a pandemic, it is so important to monitor the symptoms and when in doubt that it may be a coronavirus, carry out a PCR test. It is essential not to self-medicate. The doctor should be consulted, who will surely indicate a decongestant or analgesic, hypertonic saline solution and hydration.

However, one of the most common popular beliefs is that whiskey helps relieve cold symptoms. What truth is there in this?

In the old school it is believed that the Hot Toddy - a cup of hot whiskey with lemon, honey, cloves and cinnamon - is ideal to cure a cold. “While a hot beverage may not necessarily cure a cold or stop it in its tracks, the ingredients in the warm beverage are known to relieve cold symptoms,” Dr. David Greuner, a surgeon at NYC Surgical Associates, told Fatherly.

Heating whiskey and serving it with spices would seem like sensible advice, as hot water relieves nasal congestion, according to different studies . For its part, honey can help soothe sore throats and suppress coughs, and the vitamin C in lemon juice helps reduce phlegm.

“Alcohol is a diuretic that draws fluid out of the body, so you have to drink plenty of non-alcoholic beverages, like water ,” Greuner warns, adding that sick people should limit themselves to just one hot concoction a day.

For Dr. Elisa Berhmann (Registration MN 51127), a pulmonologist at the German Hospital , "what people think is quite amusing and each culture puts beneficial health effects on the drink that is in its roots."

“There are also people who think that using ginger, lemon and honey helps fight colds. It would seem that it could be good, but there is still no scientific evidence to support that it has a concrete positive effect” , she specified.

“Alcohol is a diuretic that draws fluid out of the body, so you have to drink plenty of non-alcoholic beverages, like water ,” Greuner warns, adding that sick people should limit themselves to just one hot concoction a day.

Dr. Juan Razetti, from the Otorhinolaryngology Service of the Italian Hospital explained that stating that whiskey is used to cure colds is a myth. "The cold is a viral illness and nothing is going to alter its course for the next 7 or 10 days," he said.

And he added that “ whiskey in a short measure produces a vasodilatation of the upper airway, which generates easier elimination of mucus and easier breathing. But it is a feeling and in no way is it a healing thing.”

But not everyone agrees that drinking whiskey with a cold makes sense. For Dr. Janette Nesheiwat, “we are potentially adding an additional stress factor to our body. We run uphill and it gets steeper when alcohol is added.”

Instead of a Hot Toddy, Nesheiwat recommends hot tea. “Alcohol can cause nausea, dehydration, constipation, headaches, dry mouth, fatigue. Do we really want all that besides a cold?

There is currently no cure for the common cold. However, people can usually control their symptoms through home treatments and by taking over-the-counter medications.

Effects of each ingredient

The individual ingredients in a Hot Toddy may have beneficial effects that can improve the symptoms of a cold. Many people prepare them with lemon, honey, ginger and whiskey.

Lemon is rich in vitamin C, an antioxidant that may be helpful in treating colds. A 2013 systematic review suggested that regular doses of vitamin C can reduce the length and severity of a cold. However, the review also found that vitamin C reduced the risk of a cold occurring in the first place. Lemon is also an active ingredient in various medications for sore throats, a common symptom of a cold. However, currently there is little scientific evidence to suggest that lemon can treat a sore throat.

Honey has a long history in medicine, especially for treating cold symptoms such as sore throats . There is a reasonable amount of evidence to suggest that taking a dose of honey at bedtime can reduce cold symptoms in children over 1 year of age. This includes reducing cough and improving sleep quality. However, little evidence is available for these effects in adults.

Some people add other spices, like ginger, to a chili. Ginger is an herb with a wide range of uses in traditional medicine. Ginger has certain properties that can be helpful in treating a sore throat. For example, ginger has anti-inflammatory effects that could help soothe a sore throat. However, there is no evidence to support the effectiveness of ginger itself for treating sore throats.

Although some ingredients in a hot toddy might improve cold symptoms on their own, it's not clear whether the combination of these would reduce cold symptoms. It is possible that the element in the whiskey counteracts some of these effects or causes negative effects . Alcohol can cause dehydration and lower immune system function, which can worsen cold symptoms . Alcohol can also interact with popular cold and flu medications, so a person should be careful when mixing alcohol and medications, and always consult a doctor.

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