Did you catch a cold? If you have symptoms like sneezing, sore throat, general discomfort, etc., you’ve gotten a cold. And it’s likely, because of the symptoms, you’ll be decayed and with little desire to do things. But how long do these effects last?
In this article, we want to discover how long a cold lasts so that, so, you can know the days that this condition can be extended. In these cases, the most recommended thing is that you have patience, that you do not force yourself, and that you hope you will find well to recover your normality.
8 to 10 days, the time a cold lasts
The truth is that there is no exact time for a cold, as it will depend on the immune status of each person and how it has come to affect the condition. Overall, however, it is known that the symptoms of the cold take 8 to 10 days to disappear. This would be the minimum time our body needs to fully recover and be back in full shape.
This does not prevent symptoms from disappearing in some patients more quickly. It is possible that with a milder cold, you will only be bad for 2 or 3 days and then you will feel better. However, you won’t finish making it clean up until at least a week later when your body has already battled viruses that have caused this discomfort.
What is true is that the first symptoms of the cold do not all appear at once, something that does happen with the flu, but appear in a staggered way: one day you can feel a cough, another headache, and, little by little, the condition appears more complete.
Stages of a cold
The stages of a cold are as follows:
– Day 1 and 2. The appearance of the first symptoms is usually characterized by sneezing, mucus, and/or sore throat.
– Day 3 and 4. Nose congestion appears more evidently and mucus can affect breathing.
– Day 5 and 6. The cold reaches its peak and fever or chills may appear.
– From day 7, we start to feel better and the symptoms will disappear.
These stages can be shorter or longer depending on our state of health. But, in general terms, a cold lasts 8 to 10 days, as we have discussed.
In addition, the symptoms we have just indicated can vary greatly from person to person. Not everyone has a cough or fever; The most common symptoms are mucus and sneezing, but each person may react differently.
When do you go to the doctor?
A cold is a mild health condition and very common in society so in the first instance it is not necessary to go to the doctor. However, some indications may require you to visit the doctor; here we leave them:
– Duration of the cold: if you have more than 10 days with the cold and do not notice improvement, go to the doctor.
– Worse symptoms: if you have new symptoms such as vomiting, shortness of breath, diarrhea, etc., go to the doctor.
– High fevers: If you have a fever of over 40 °C you should also go to the doctor.
Bibliography
Rosas, M. A. (2008). Flu and cold. OFFARM, 27 (2), 46-51.
Carmona, R. M., & Montoya, F. C. M. (2006). Self-care in the face of the common cold and osteomuscular pain. Revista Clínica de Medicina de Familia, 1(3), 110-114.
Encabo, B., Fernández, J., Gaminde, M., Gurrutxaga, A., Rodríguez, E., Sakona, L., & Samperio, M. (2004). [Providing drug care protocols] Flu and cold. Professional pharmacy, 18(11), 32-42.