Does getting a flu shot make you sick? Can exercise help you get over your cold faster? Our quiz will help you sort fact from fiction.

Cold and flu myths CSIRO

It's that time of year when the cold and flu runs rampant. So what's fact and what's fiction when it comes to these everyday illnesses? Take our quiz to find out - click through all of your responses and then press 'submit' to see the answers


 

Being cold gives you a cold


 

Zinc, Echinacea and vitamin C help to relieve cold symptoms


 

Getting the flu shot will give you a mild flu afterwards


 

Hot whiskey (or hot toddy) is a natural remedy when you’re sick


 

Exercise helps you get over your cold faster


 

The cold and the flu are the same thing


 

Taking cold and flu medicine helps to relieve cold symptoms


 

Mum’s chicken soup will make you feel better when you have a cold


 

Flying on a plane increases your risk of catching a cold or flu


 

There is an effective medical treatment for the flu


 

Being vaccinated every year means we will create a resistant super flu


 

Man flu exists


27 comments

  1. Jeff

    3rd August 2017 at 12:55 pm

    Sponsored by Relenza

  2. Oscar Wilde

    3rd August 2017 at 11:57 am

    mmm – exercise when you have the flu will not help, but that is not what the questions asked. Cure for flu – again the question suggests we have one now, and we don’t (Relenza is NOT a cure, but a treatment for influenza only and to be used under specific circumstances), not that a cure might be possible. As to the complementary medicines – the evidence suggests that some might shorten the duration of symptoms a tiny bit. The questions need more specificity, but a fun quiz anyway.

  3. Peter White

    3rd August 2017 at 11:47 am

    Is this an add for Relenza?

  4. Peter Gowland

    3rd August 2017 at 11:36 am

    very good

  5. Gaille Abud

    3rd August 2017 at 11:00 am

    Your response to the echinacea question implies it may be true. And .. was it on the ABC someone assured us that manflu exists??

    1. Ellen Singleton

      4th August 2017 at 3:57 pm

      Hi Gaille,

      Scientific evidence to support Echinacea as an effective method for treating cold or flu is lacking. You can read more information on this here: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD000530.pub3/full

      You can also read more about ‘Man Flu’ at The Conversation: https://theconversation.com/health-check-is-man-flu-real-59909

      Cheers,
      Ellen
      CSIRO Social Media

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