Reprinted from the ACJ - March, 1996
Normally when I sit down to write these articles, I try to think up a funny story or running joke to use. Not this time; indeed the truth is stranger than fiction.
The common cold has plagued mankind forever. But even with modern medicine we can not find a cure. The reason being that a "cold" is actually any one of over 200 viral infections that attack our nose and throats, causing similar immune system responses. We call these body responses cold symptoms.
It is the historical, or hysterical, approaches to the cause and cure of colds that lends levity to this article. As far back as pre-Christian times, a cold was thought to be demons and mischievous spirits who invade our bodies and cause excess waste to form on the brain. The runny nose and sneezing we experience was thought to be the overflow of this "brain waste."
In the year A.D. 23, in order to chase away these demons and cure the cold, a patient was told to catch a furry mouse and then kiss its nose. This was probably preferred to the other school of thought that the runny nose indicated excessive liquid in the body and that "bleeding" the patient by applying leeches would reduce the body fluids.
During the Middle Ages, a sneeze was thought to be the body's way of expelling the demons that caused colds. One side effect was that the person's soul was also expelled. By following a sneeze with the wish, "God bless you," only the clean soul was allowed to reenter.
Garlic and salt, both eaten and applied to the skin, helped as well. If it didn't cure the patient, at least it kept others away so they wouldn't be infected. Another cure was to make a sandwich out of the patient's hair and feed it to the village dogs. No one asked how this made the dog, or the local barber, feel.
It wasn't until the 12th century that medicine made a startling breakthrough with the prescription of chicken soup. During the late 1700s and into the 1800s, the discovery that viral cells were the cause brought medicine into the modern age. This discovery did not lead to a cure, but gave renewed vigor to "miracle" treatments and "remedies."
In 1840, a German company named "Bayer" invented aspirin for human consumption. Others, thinking this was too weak, developed literally thousands of cold "cures" and treatments. These ranged from herbal concoctions to elixirs of cocaine, codeine and heroin. They did little to cure the ailment, but no one cared after a dose or two.
With the discovery of the viral cell, medicine's understanding of the vehicle of attack has developed rapidly. Viral cells can live thousands of years. They can survive freezing, extreme heat and pressures exceeding 100,000 times the earth's gravity. They attach themselves to the cells that line our nose and throats. The virus then breaks through the cell membrane, moves inside and under gun point forces our own cells to reproduce the virus.
This new batch of viral cells then busts out of the host cell, killing it and releasing a new batch of viral invaders. This reproduction occurs at a rate of 90 million viral cells a day. The phlegm, mucous, runny nose and sneezing are the dead cells and liquid left behind as the cold makes us feel miserable.
Coughing, sneezing and blowing our nose not only rids our bodies of this waste, but it also unleashes live viral cells on our neighbors.In its own defense, our body produces chemicals called prostaglandins. These chemicals cause inflammation of the host cells and signal the white blood cells in our body to take up the fight. The white blood cells come to our defense by surrounding and ingesting the virus like drunks at a free buffet.
At the same time, inside each cell, our body releases histamines, a kind of glue that traps newborn viral cells and aids in their removal with the mucous. (I apologize if any one is eating while reading this.)
The fresh virus that is excreted from a sick person can be transferred via a number of methods. Air transference is possible, but only if some one coughs or sneezes directly on you. This is a common transfer methods among kids at day care. In adults, hand-to-hand infection is more common. The virus can live for hours on surfaces such as tool handles, papers, phones and doorknobs. Touch the virus on these surfaces then touch your eyes, nose or mouth and viola, you are infected.
Now that you are sick, what should you do? This part may sound familiar. Drink plenty of fluids, get rest and clean often any contaminated items such as Kleenex-filled waste baskets or bed linen. Over-the-counter medications are as popular now as they were way back when, though they're not as addictive.
The problem with these medications is that by stopping the flow of liquids from the body with decongestants and antihistamines, we are actually inhibiting our body's natural defense mechanisms. I admit I use them because they make the disease more tolerable, but be careful, the smallest dose that works is best.
The viral infection is not that bad. It is only when an additional infection jumps on the bandwagon that we run into real trouble, such as pneumonia, bronchitis or nasal infection.
The best defense is to keep yourself healthy so you can fight off an infection when it occurs, and watch the routes of hand-to-hand exposure. Failing that, keep the clippings from your last haircut and make close friends with a dog and a mouse.
The above article was written by David M. Brown, Chief Engineer of Johnson Manufacturing Company, Inc. and is published by JOHNSON with the expressed approval of the National Automotive Radiator Service Association and the Automotive Cooling Journal. Other reproduction or distribution of this information is forbidden without the written consent of JOHNSON and NARSA/ACJ. All rights reserved.
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