Good morning all. I hope everyone enjoyed his or her weekend. I
don't know about anyone else reading this, but last week felt like
the longest short week ever, it seemed as if that 4-day week was
never going to end. I think part of the reason why last week
dragged on was because I was still getting over a cold that I came
down with the weekend prior.
Speaking of the cold I came down with, I'd like to share how I
treated myself like a guinea pig with my remedy. So a couple of
Thursdays ago, I started the day with a ton of sinus congestion
that progressed to a nagging headache by later that afternoon. That
night as the headache persisted, my throat began to hurt, and I
developed a low-grade fever. Friday morning, Dr. Rudy Heiser wisely
sent me home so that I didn't get anyone else sick. But before I
took off, I was reminded of Dr. David Seaman's cold remedy by my
pal and 8th tri intern Khong Lamvichit.
The regime consists of mega-dosing vitamin D (1600 IU,
approximately 4mg), zinc (100mg to 250 mg), vitamin C and a ton of
fluids for three days. The solution sounded a little extreme, but
what better way to see if a remedy works for your patients than to
try it on yourself. So I did. The idea behind the treatment regime
is to kick-start your immune system. The zinc prevents bacteria
adhesion, the vitamin D helps the body produce its own natural
anti-biotic, cathelicidin, the vitamin C helps the immune system
vitality, and the fluids flush the system.
By Saturday afternoon I had no more fever, and my sore throat
was gone. Monday morning came around and, aside from my usual
allergy congestion, I felt darn close to being back to normal. So I
suppose the moral of the story is that this regime worked for me.
I'm not saying this is the cure-all for all colds, but at least now
you may have a tool in your mind to help out your future patients
who would rather not try the prescribed antibiotic route. As with
any intervention, there are inherent risks with benefits, and
should not be prescribed without a past medical history and exam of
the current issue.
This weekend I felt great and was at the Trop cheering on the
Rays from the third baseline against the Baltimore Orioles. Of
course the only game of the series I attended, we got spanked, but
it was a good time none-the-less. I hope everyone enjoys the blog
today and hopefully it helps some people developing a cold of their
own. Any questions, don't hesitate to send me an email. Hope
everyone has a good week, and a relaxing weekend.
Catch y'all on the flip side,
Dex