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The_Jazz · 02-23-2006, 02:01 PM

Wow, this post could have been written by me 10 years ago. Back in the day, I was absolutely convinced that my immune system could beat just about any bug out there given the time, rest and nutrients that it needed. It helped that I was stressing my system every day by running 8-14 miles, so a day of rest meant extre recuperation.

When I was 27 I ran into a sinus infection that I just couldn't shake. It lasted for 2 weeks before I went to the doctor and it was another week before I broke down and took the medicine he prescribed. I was well in 4 days.

Here's what I've learned about immune systems since then from my doctor friends - taking antibiotics doesn't build up unnecessary immunity in your body. They can potentially help diseases build immunities to the drugs if taken incorrectly, but they won't hurt your body when you take them or in the future. You're not doomed to taking antibiotics every time you get sick because diseases are constantly reinventing themselves (unless the intelligent design folks are right :-) ) and ever time you successfully fight off a disease, you tend to be resistant to it several years afterwards since your body sees the need to produce those antibodies that successfully fought it off.

To get back to the actual question - yes, it is possible that you'll never get well from the common cold. It could eventually kill you if your body can't fight it off. That's not likely, but different people react differently to the same strain of disease. If it catches your immune system off guard, or your system is fighting something else off (i.e. allergy or another cold), the new one could infect a large area that isn't ready to fight it off. Or your immune system could be compromised by something else. Your body is a lot smarter than you give it credit for.

02-23-2006, 02:01 PM	#3 (permalink)
The_Jazz Asshole Administrator Location: Chicago	Wow, this post could have been written by me 10 years ago. Back in the day, I was absolutely convinced that my immune system could beat just about any bug out there given the time, rest and nutrients that it needed. It helped that I was stressing my system every day by running 8-14 miles, so a day of rest meant extre recuperation. When I was 27 I ran into a sinus infection that I just couldn't shake. It lasted for 2 weeks before I went to the doctor and it was another week before I broke down and took the medicine he prescribed. I was well in 4 days. Here's what I've learned about immune systems since then from my doctor friends - taking antibiotics doesn't build up unnecessary immunity in your body. They can potentially help diseases build immunities to the drugs if taken incorrectly, but they won't hurt your body when you take them or in the future. You're not doomed to taking antibiotics every time you get sick because diseases are constantly reinventing themselves (unless the intelligent design folks are right :-) ) and ever time you successfully fight off a disease, you tend to be resistant to it several years afterwards since your body sees the need to produce those antibodies that successfully fought it off. To get back to the actual question - yes, it is possible that you'll never get well from the common cold. It could eventually kill you if your body can't fight it off. That's not likely, but different people react differently to the same strain of disease. If it catches your immune system off guard, or your system is fighting something else off (i.e. allergy or another cold), the new one could infect a large area that isn't ready to fight it off. Or your immune system could be compromised by something else. Your body is a lot smarter than you give it credit for. __________________ "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." - B. Franklin "There ought to be limits to freedom." - George W. Bush "We have met the enemy and he is us." - Pogo