“A woman should wear fragrance wherever she expects to be kissed”-Coco Chanel
Laura Reynolds looks at some of the cheapest beauty products available
Firstly let me clear up a common misconception: Freshers' Flu is not an urban myth or an excuse for a hangover. Although it is just a normal cold or flu living in close quarters with a group of run down students means that if one of you gets it all of you will.
As the saying goes: 'prevention is better than cure'. And as we're only in week two Freshers' Flu should not be too widespread, so start taking steps now to make sure you, and then inevitably the rest of your flat, won't be buying Costcutters' entire supply of tissues and Lemsip.
Although Viking Raid still looms over us, there should be a slow-down of nights out over the next couple of weeks, so take advantage of this and get some sleep. This may seem a little obvious but sleep is very important in keeping you healthy. When exhausted your body can’t combat infection so get some shut eye to help the internal defences.
If you start to feel the approach of a cold or flu invest in some Echinacea, a herbal extract which boosts your immune system. Unsurprisingly this does just taste of plants, but it is great at fending off the advancement of full on illness.
Keep the flat and communal spaces clean; you want to limit the spread of germs as much as possible. If you are holed up in your room feeling sorry for yourself at least open the window a couple of times a day to let in some fresh air. As soon as you feel better clean everything you touched while feeling ill, and I mean everything. Freshers' Flu is notorious for not just lasting for the aftermath of Freshers' week but hanging around all term as it re-circulates around the flat.
Another myth that I always believed was ‘feed a cold and starve a fever’. This is one of those old wives tales that has no basis in fact. Eat sensibly and as much as you can manage. Make sure that what you are eating is full of vitamins such a broccoli and the old faithful oranges for vitamin C, maximise your intake of fresh fruit and vegetables.
If you don’t manage to defend yourself from the full onslaught of Freshers' Flu stock up on Lemsip (as my STYC told me in the my first year: the Freshers' cocaine) or similar hot medicated drinks as they do help you get through seminars. At the risk of sounding like your mum, keep yourself warm and dress appropriately especially if you're coughing and sneezing like there’s no tomorrow.
All the boys I know are notoriously bad at seeking medical help or even taking any medication, so girls please watch out for them trying to prove their masculine prowess by going for a jog while barely able to walk. The other extreme of this is man-flu; in this case tell them to stop complaining and that they're not actually about to die from a runny nose.
If you truly feel awful the campus doctors and nurses are really very nice and if you actually need some medical attention they're extremely obliging. More than likely though you just need someone to confrim that you're a bit poorly and send you back to bed. When all's said and done this is all you can do in the end: if standing up makes you feel horrible your body is trying to tell you something - lie back down.
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