I have a man cold and taking my usual bowl of chicken soup washed down with a Lemsip Max but now I’m thinking… if the main ingrediant of a Lemsip is paracetamol, why don’t I just have a paracetamol? It’d cost alot less.
Whats the point of a Lemsip other than the paracetamol?
Thank you.
Now that you’ve read this, you now have a cold sorry thats just how this one works.
It’s just nice. The hot lemon helps more than the paracetemol for me so sometimes I just make squash with hot water and it’s not too different.
I assume from context that the “squash” you are referring to is not a gourd. Is it a beverage? Does it contain or is it served in a gourd?
“Squash” is another word for cordial or diluting juice - that is, a concentrated fruit juice that you dilute with water to drink
TIL thanks!
Huh. That sounds like a good time and fridge space saver. Make your own concentrate. I have made my own ginger syrup concentrate before, tastes good but not exactly a fruit. Have you got a recipe you actually like drinking when you’re not sick?
I’m afraid I’ve never made any myself. There’s a wide variety of them available pretty cheap in most shops here, and also I am fortunate enough to live somewhere where the tap water is really good
Skua has answered most of your issues but I thought I’d add a link.
https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/258935230
This is the best lemon squash. It doesn’t need to be refrigerated, it can be kept in the cupboard for a year or two, I’m sad that it’s not common everywhere.
How exactly does the hot lemon help you?
It’s the hot water that helps, mostly. The lemon makes it taste better.
Personally, I do a ginger infusion with lemon and honey in it. The lemon moderates some of the bite from ginger, and the stuff in ginger eases the symptoms.
(Note- slice or grate fresh ginger and boil or steep that in hot water. “ginger tea” bags that have been sitting on a shelf for who knows how long…. Not helpful.)
The honey also helps with coughs and sore throats, but mostly just by coating the throat. (Same, for example, as cough syrup.)
Vitamin C is good for you. It’s been found to reduce the time you’re sick by 10%. It’s better to consume it regularly before getting sick though, as it significantly reduces the risk of developing a cold.
Clears your congestion which is what’s causing the headache and stuffiness.
What about the fever?
I’m no doctor but it just sounds pretty unlikely that congestion is what is causing the headache. Sounds more likely that a virus is causing both.
The virus is causing both in a roundabout way, but congestion does cause the headache in most colds and flu (and also covid, which is where I learnt this, working with covid patients). It’s because your sinuses are blocked, and they cause pain behind the eyes, across the forehead, and more generally the front of your brain as it spreads.
Most people will take a painkiller for the headache, but usually a decongestant is actually more effective and longer lasting.