TempoLife › Features › Colds and flu self-care
Colds and flu: what actually helps
Zinc, vitamin C, honey, echinacea, antibiotics, exercise and fever — each intervention graded against the Cochrane and NICE evidence, with what to actually do.
| Intervention | Verdict | In one line |
|---|---|---|
| Zinc lozenges | Some evidence | A Cochrane review found zinc taken within 24 hours of the first symptoms shortens a cold by roughly a day in h… |
| Vitamin C | No clear evidence | The Cochrane evidence: regular vitamin C does not prevent colds in the general population, and starting it aft… |
| Honey for cough | Some evidence | For children over one year with a cough, a Cochrane review found honey probably reduces cough frequency and se… |
| Echinacea | No clear evidence | Cochrane looked at the trials: echinacea preparations do not shorten colds by a meaningful margin. The studies… |
| Antibiotics | Harmful | The common cold is viral, and antibiotics do nothing to viruses. They add side effects and drive resistance. T… |
| Exercise while ill | No clear evidence | There are no strong trials on training through a cold, so the guidance is physiological rather than proven: a … |
| Fluids and rest | Works | The two interventions with no controversy. Fever and a runny nose lose water, and dehydration makes every symp… |
| Fever in adults | Works | Fever is the body doing its job — most cold fevers in adults stay under 39 °C and pass in two to three days. P… |
The self-care that has no controversy
Whatever else you try: drink enough that urine stays pale, sleep more than usual, keep the room air slightly humid, and eat normally — appetite loss is normal and short-lived. Paracetamol or ibuprofen at label doses handle the aches and fever; they do not shorten the cold, and that is fine. A cold is a viral illness the body clears on its own, and the goal of treatment is a less miserable week, not a shorter virus.
Self-care reference, not medical advice. Children, older adults, pregnancy and anyone with a long-term condition should have a lower bar for calling a clinician. If symptoms are severe, worsening after improvement, or come with trouble breathing or confusion, get medical help — do not treat this page as the decision.
About the verdicts
Each verdict rests on the named Cochrane review or NICE guidance, linked on the topic page. The vocabulary is deliberately coarse — "some evidence" and "no clear evidence" are the honest spread for a self-limiting condition, and a verdict can change when better trials land.
Sources: Cochrane — zinc for the common cold (CD001364) · Cochrane — vitamin C for preventing and treating the common cold (CD000980) · Cochrane — honey for acute cough in children (CD007094) · Cochrane — echinacea for preventing and treating the common cold (CD000530) · NICE CKS — common cold · checked 2026-09-07