It's that time of year when everyone seems to be getting bogged down with coughs, colds and sore throats, with a surge in Brits reporting coming down with an unpleasant winter lurgy.
If you've been unlucky enough to catch a bug that's making you feel rotten, it can be difficult to know the best course of action when it comes to relieving your symptoms at home. While paracetamol and ibuprofen are often the first things people reach for when they're feeling under the weather, they may not always work best for your ailment.
The Mirror spoke to a pharmacist to find out how to treat some of the most common symptoms of the dreaded winter lurgy. Abbas Kanani, the superintendent pharmacist at Chemist Click, explained that there are some occasions where paracetamol will work best, while ibuprofen will work better on others - but in some cases you shouldn't take either.
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If you're suffering from a high temperature, paracetamol is usually the best course of action. "Paracetamol is probably more effective at bringing down temperature, so it's almost like a double-whammy, you get rid of your headache and bring your temperature down," Abbas explained.
However, if you're bogged down with body aches, you will likely be better off reaching for the ibuprofen. Abbas advised: "If you feel that you have more body aches, that's your main symptom, then ibuprofen is probably slightly better as it's an anti-inflammatory."
The pharmacist went on to point out that if you're not sure which one will work best, you can in fact take paracetamol and ibuprofen at the same time as long as you adhere to the individual doses - usually one or two tablets every four to six hours. "A lot of people don't know that it's not one or the other, you can put them together as they work in different ways," Abbas revealed.
But if you're plagued with a cough or nasal congestion, unfortunately paracetamol or ibuprofen won't do much to help according to the expert. He advised opting for specific cold and flu products instead, as these are designed to tackle these symptoms and can usually be bought over the counter at a pharmacy.
Medicines that contain a decongestant would be best for a blocked nose, while you will need expectorant for mucus coughs and a cough suppressant for a dry, tickly cough. But be sure to check the packet and leaflet information on any medicine you're taking to check which other products you can safely take at the same time.
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