How to get medicine for common cold?

She can go to any nearby doctor and get a prescription for cold. If she is not interested to go to a doctor and if there is no fever, he can try some common home remedies as detailed below.
She can take eucalyptus oil and apply on the nose. After that let her put a little oil in boiling water and do steaming that is steam inhalation. Let us her do two or three times a day.
If it is a common cold the following may work
1. Keep on drinking water. Always stay hydrated,
2. Take sufficient rest
3. Gargle saltwater
4. Drink warm liquid
5. Honey with tea may work.
6. Blow nose at regular intervals
But these days we should not take any risk. I still advise her to see a known doctor and get the correct advice.

The first thing in such cases is to visit any doctor near your area and tell him the symptoms and he will administer some basic medicines which are effective in treating the common cold. Now you are telling that the nearby clinics are closed due to lockdown or any other reason. So, this is a difficult situation but there are online solutions for it. There are many online doctor consulting agencies where you can select a doctor and ask him the treatment after telling the symptoms of the patient. You can even do a video chat with him and show him the patients face and apparent symptoms. You have to pay the fee online and then they would give you a digital prescription also which you can show to the pharmacy. Some of these agencies in online are -

1. Mfine - Their fee starts at Rs 149 and they have many doctors on their panel. You have to download their app 'mfine' and proceed ahead.

2. Practo - They also have a panel of doctors with them and their fee starts at Rs 249. They claim to be available for consultation round the clock and provide digital prescription.

3. Icliniq - This is a big site and claims for 24/7 online consulting service. In some select places lab test also can be booked through this portal. They answer your first query as free of charge. They have 3500 doctors linked to their portal.

4. Portea - This is a service which sends a doctor to your place for consultation. You have to check this site whether it covers your area or not. There are no details of fee also on this site. Appears to be a high end service.

5. Lybrate - They are also giving online consultation and claim to be available round the clock.

6. Apollo247 - They have more than 1000 doctors and more than 50 specialists on their online consulting panel and one can contact them by phone or video call.

Normally it has been told that the cold will be get cured in a week with any medicine and will be get cured without medicines in seven days. This means the cold will be sustained for seven days if comes to one.
For relieving from cold,
1. Vapor facing with neem leaves, eucalyptus leaves in boiling water.
2.Drinking Kashayam made of seven peppers, a bit of dried ginger and some jeera boiled in a good water.

If your friend is suffering from headache and recurring cold, she may undertake the following Ayurvedic tips to cure her problem relating to cold apart from boosting her immunity.
The tips are as follows -
1) In the empty stomach, she should take one tea spoon of Sitopaladi Churna of any reputed pharmaceutical twice daily morning and evening along with some amount of honey for at least a couple of days to take care of cold. This medicines contains a host of herbs taking care of cough, cold and bronchial disorders apart from boosting your metabolism due to presence of Dalchini, Pippali, Banshlochan, Mulethi, etc to take care of your disorder.
2) In the evening, she should take a cup of Tulasi Tea which will have the soothing effect for cough and cold, headache, enhancing your immunity etc. It contains Eugenol, which even controls the stress level of the body.
3) Whenever, she needs water, take warm water and should ensure that her consumption level of warm water should be at least 2.5 litres in a day. The best way of consuming water is half an hour after her principal meal so as not dilute the stomach acid responsible for digestion.
4) She should abstain from cold drink, curd, ice - cream and consumption of cold water during her ailing period.
5) Aswagandha is the best immunity enhancer and so one teaspoon of this powder along with warm milk during night after half an hour after her dinner should be taken for at least forty days to strengthen immunity.
6) She should take a small piece of Ginger prior to her meals and this should be chewed properly and this being antiviral in nature would eliminate this disorder. This will take care of her excess cholesterol level even.

If she is having blocked nose and headache and she is sure that she has no covid 19, then she can take some home remedy like
1. she can take steam inhalation regularly.
2. She can use Vicks inhaler
3. Otrivin can also be used.
4. Hot soup, hot tea can be taken.
5. Gargle with betadine.

Nowadays people are using kadha prescribed by Ayush Mantralaya. She should take this kadha. It can be prepared by using tulsi powder, turmeric powder, cinnamon powder, black peeper, clove boiling in water. Alternatively she can take Nilavembu Kudinir Kadha. It's powder can be bought from any online pharmacy like 1mg, Netmeds, medlife or pharmeasy etc.

She can also take giloy extract by boiling giloy leaves or twigs in water with a pinch of black pepper. Giloy extract is also available in almost all online pharmacy.

Further, if it doesn't work then she can consult online on practo app, docsapp, 1mg app, lybrate app. On these apps chat, phone call and video call options are available. After sending query, a doctor will be assigned and then doctor will call. It is hassle free and no need to go outside during this pandemic. After consultation doctor will share a prescription and she can buy medicine online or from any medical store.

Hope this will be helpful.

Nowadays many people who have difficulty to physically go to a doctor are taking the route of online consulting and getting the prescription from there for buying the necessary medicines. This is not very common in our society but slowly picking up especially in the present Covid-19 situation where online things are the safest ways to avoid contact with people. So one option in such cases is definitely to register in any of the online portals and then chat with the doctor and get help.

Alternatively, common cold is not such a thing that it requires strong allopathic medicines. One can manage it with home remedies. First thing is to take enough water and keep the body hydrated. Avoid dusty and allergic environment (like pollen grains in a green park) as it could worsen the cold and can covert it in rhinitis or sore throat or any such conditions. Second thing is avoid chillies and strong spices at least for some time. Next is to gargle with hot water once or twice a day and that would help in stopping the cold at that stage and not proceed ahead to sore throat. Another important tip that I can share from my own experience is take sips of hot water in the day many times. This helps immensely, whatever be the scientific principle behind it. The last thing that we have learned from our seniors in the family is to take a quarter spoon of turmeric powder in the lukewarm milk and drink it preferably before going to bed. Taking this for a few days is found to be very beneficial in these conditions.

A common cold will be having the common symptoms of running nose, stuffed or blocked nose, headache and general discomfort .There can be mild throat ache also.
In case you do not have any OTC medicines, do not worry. Boil some water. Dip a cloth in that water and after rinsing out the excess water; apply fomentation to your forehead and the sinus areas like side of nose bone, above the eyebrow area bone, chin bone, back of neck, at throat area below the ears etc. Do not apply at very high temperature, but at a tolerable and comfortable temperature. If the cloth loses heat again dip in boiling water and repeat the process.
You can slowly feel the nose getting cleared and you may start sweating also. At that stage stop the fomentation. You can repeat it if needed after a few hours. Continue this till the symptoms reduce and you feel comfortable.
Drink only boiled water. For that, boil water adding a few seeds of pepper, a few leaves of Tulsi, one or two leaves of ajwain leaves, a few seeds of dhaniya(coriander). You may drink this water periodically in comfortable warmth. You need not worry f you do not get all these ingredients. Boil with that is available.
Avoid all cold foods and drinks. Avoid curd also for a couple of days.
If the headache is too much and you do not have any ointment or liniment, then grind a little dry ginger with a little buttermilk or even water to a smooth past and apply it on forehead and back of the neck if there is also ache. Take care that it does not fall on your eyes.
If throat pain is there gargle throat with warm water mixed with a little salt and a pinch of turmeric. In case you do not have any nasal drops and your nose is stuffed, then take a little camphor and after powder in it mix it with the raw oil you us in your home. Ru the paste between two fingers and smell it for some time. Otherwise, make a very very mild salt water adding a little salt to a little amount of mild warm water. Use it as nasal drops. Wait after putting one drop to see you don't feel any discomfort. Then only put another drop. Or you can put a little camphor on steaming water and inhale the steam ensuring you don't burn your nose by extreme heat and smell.

A simple way to get rid of the common cold is to get enough sleep and take warm water the whole day and please advise her to take Honey after her breakfast, lunch, and dinner and not to eat or drink anything for an hour. She can also add extracted juice from ginger. Honey and ginger are antibacterial and antibiotic in nature which will help her get rid of the same. Let her also keep herself warm and take a warm water bath and take a good amount of vitamins and minerals by way of intaking a lot of vegetables and fruits. Usually, she should get fine in 7 - 14 days and in case she continues to feel sick, kindly ask her to get the see doctor and get the Antibiotics and get advised accordingly.

During this pandemic time, it is very difficult to get a consultation from doctors or to visit the hospital and online consultation is what everyone is opting out. Some of the online consultation site or app that is available are:
1. 1mg.com - It helps to get a consultation with Doctors over Chat, Video & Voice calls with across 22+ Specialities that will provide diagnosis and treatment for your condition.
Link: https://www.1mg.com/

2. icliniq.com - This helps to get instant medical advice and second opinion with doctors on face-to-face video chat or over the phone.
Link: https://www.icliniq.com/

3. practo.com - It provides Online Doctor Consultation with 25+ Specialities through a Private chat at a fee of Rs. 200/-
Link: https://www.practo.com/

4. lybrate.com - There are 1000 of trusted doctors available to provide a remedy to your problem over the phone by just giving a missed call to their given mobile number.
Link: https://www.lybrate.com/

5. docsapp.in - To get on-time and instant from qualified doctors which can be reached on Private Chat 24x7 from Top Hospitals.
Link: https://www.docsapp.in/

There are clear-cut guidelines that were updated in August last year from the Medical Council of India (MCI) to the Indian Medical Association as per August last year not to practice and issue medication and online consultations over telephonic as it is illegal and unethical.

Some of the home remedies that can be followed during the course of time for instant relief from the internal articles and answers from the ask expert forum.
a) Home remedy or Granny therapy for Cold and Cough
b) Home remedies for 15 common diseases
c) Home remedies for common cold during monsoon season
d) Natural Home Remedies For Cough
e) How to get rid of cough congestion

In the Corona period, it has been a cause of much trouble that even after a mild fever, the person is nervous about what kind of treatment would be right, but it is never right to take medicine without consulting the doctor.

If you are unable to go to the doctor due to any situation, then call and talk to them and then take the medicine.

The first thing to be understood is that no matter how low the fever is, it is never mild. Every fever is a declaration that something is going wrong in the body due to which the body is generating heat due to the movement of its arms. Mild fever is more dangerous in many ways

Some doctors you can consult online -

DocsApp - That will help you to consult a specialist doctor.
Practo - this is more than just an app for booking online doctor appointments. It is a one-stop-shop for all your medical needs where you can:
PEPID - is a doctor online type of the app designed especially for emergency room
Medscape will help you keep up with medical news, new drug releases, and similar.


Always consult a very good doctor on this because for the diagnosis of minor fevers, only a non-minor doctor who understands this complicated thing.

Before this, I would advise that if you have a fever, measure it with a thermometer and write it on paper. This information will help the doctor. Many patients say that we have a bone fever or internal fever which remains, but cannot come in any thermometer. You should tie a knot about this that there is no fever that is not recorded in the thermometer.


And the last thing, do not seek treatment by yourself. Fever is a disease that has the highest self-treatment. Remember that with every cold, a shivering fever is not malaria. Nor will the same antibiotic work this time, which was given to you in the last fever. In case of fever, take the medicine given by the doctor.

You can tell your friend to take Tab Febrex plus twice a day for 3 days after meals. It will give him/her relief from Headache and Nasal blockage as it contains Paracetamol ( analgesic), Chlorpheniramine which is a nasal decongestant and phenylephrine which is a antihistaminic antiallergic. This Medicine may cause little drowsiness, so don't drive or do heavy work requiring attention after taking this medicine.
You can also advise your friend to do warm saline gargle three times a day which reduces throat and nasal congestion by reducing hyperemia.
You can also advise your friend to use Nasivion-S saline nasal drops twice a day to reduce nasal congestion.