Students cold remedies vary

In addition to vitamins, sleep and lots of liquids, Boston University students are increasingly turning to Echinacea, Red Bull, spicy foods and ginger to try to get rid of the winter cold's pesky symptoms.

Although there are dozens of over-the-counter medications and experimental antibiotics available, students say they will try almost anything to get back on their feet.

College of General Studies freshman Dan Hazony said he had heard of these newer, unorthodox remedies and found one to relieve congestion.

"I've tried spicy food and it helped a little," he said.

CGS freshman Lauren Sutter said she prefers more traditional remedies when she has a cold.

"I've done the liquid [Echinacea] and I've done the pills, and it doesn't help you in any way, shape or form," she said.

Assistant clinical professor Joan Salge Blake said Echinacea was originally used by American Indians to soothe sore throats.

"Americans spend over 300 million dollars a year on Echinacea," she said, "but studies are coming up short in showing [Echinacea] to have any effect on the duration of a cold."

While many students rely on rest and hot tea to relieve their cold symptoms, some, like School of Management junior Stephanie Moulliet, said they also use old family remedies to get better.

Boiled Chinese winter melon is used as an all-purpose cure in her household, Moulliet said.

"It's sort of like your chicken soup," she said.

But while some students use unconventional remedies in hopes of kicking a cold, Student Health Services says time is the only cure, according to its website.

"Student Health Services sees over 42,000 individuals over the calendar year," BU spokesman Colin Riley said.

Many of those visits are concentrated in the winter months, he said.

With at least 200 varieties of viruses that can cause colds and flu, it is no surprise that college students living in close quarters often get sick, Blake said.

Many students said they believe viruses spread quickly throughout campus.

"I feel like the whole university gets sick at once," Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences junior Allyson Marvin said.

College of Arts and Sciences sophomore Megan Halpin said it is especially hard to dodge a cold while living in BU dorms.

"When one person on the floor gets sick, pretty much everybody gets sick," she said.

Because cold symptoms can last as long as two weeks, Blake said, students find that being sick interferes with their studies.

"I usually try not to miss class, but I'm not able to pay attention," Marvin said.

CAS sophomore Stephanie Sanger-Miller said when she did have to miss class because of a sore throat and high fever, her professors understood.

However, "it left a lot of reading to catch up on," she said.

Sanger-Miller said when she is sick, the high cost of over-the-counter medicine does not prevent her from buying it.

However, Sutter said she finds the "ridiculous" price of prescription drugs deters her from purchasing them.

"As a college student, you don't have a lot of money," she said. "I'd rather be sick and not starving."

SMG freshman Colin Gibbs said while "it definitely cost a lot to get Tylenol from [City Convenience], it was worth it."

"I didn't want to suffer through just to save five bucks," he said.

With or without medicine, colds generally clear up on their own, but Riley said it is important for students to pay close attention to their symptoms.

Although bad headaches, stiffness, fever and drowsiness are associated with the common cold, these symptoms can also be signs of meningitis, "an inflammation of the lining around the brain and spinal cord," according to the Meningitis Research Foundation website.

According to the Meningitis Research Foundation website, these signs include dislike of light, vomiting and a rash anywhere on the body.

"It's rare but it can be fatal ... so you need to be very attuned to what the additional signs [of meningitis] are," Riley said.