Health Care Advice
Your pharmacy is ideally placed to be your first port of call when it comes to needing healthcare advice. Where else can you get to see a healthcare professional, on the high street, without needing an appointment?
Our pharmacy team here at Leedams' is well qualified to deal with a wide variety of questions and queries about the health of yourself and your family. From coughs and colds to warts and verrucas and all parts of the body in between, we can suggest a remedy to ease your symptoms or, if we can't help, we can point you in the right direction to get the help you need.
For information on some common ailments, please click on one of the links below....
Coughs
Coughs may be broadly described as either: a) chesty or productive cough and b) dry or non-productive cough.
What's the difference?
A dry cough doesn't produce any phlegm or mucus and is usually very irritating, whereas a chesty cough produces lots of phlegm which sometimes you can cough up and sometimes sticks on your chest and causes a rattle or wheeze.
What's the best treatment?
For a chesty cough, it is important to break up and clear the phlegm so it doesn't turn into an infection. The best way to do this is to take an expectorant medicine which liquifies the phlegm and helps you to clear it.
Since with a dry cough there is no phlegm to clear then the best treatment is a cough suppressant, which quite simply soothes the irritation and stops the cough.
How long will it last?
There is an old maxim that says "If you treat a cough it will last two weeks; if you leave it, it will last a fortnight." For the majority of coughs, this is very true. The medicines help to relieve the symptoms so that you can get on with daily life.
For a cough that has lasted longer than two weeks with no improvement or where the cough keeps coming back, then it is best to give us a call or pop in to see us, so we can assess whether you need to see your doctor.
Colds & 'Flu
Many people are unsure of the difference between the common cold and influenza ('flu).
So what is the difference?
With the common cold you usually suffer from a blocked and/or runny nose and sneezing. The blocked nose (congestion) can also cause a headache, particularly if the sinuses are involved.
With influenza, the symptoms of a common cold are often present, but usually accompanied by malaise, myalgia (aching muscles) and a fever.
What's the best treatment?
Sadly, there is no cure for the common cold. The best we can offer is to help relieve the symptoms.
For a blocked nose - inhale over steaming water with menthol & eucalyptus or tea tree oil in it and, if they are suitable for you, take a decongestant medicine or use a decongestant nasal spray.
If you have a runny nose or are sneezing as well, then a combination product containing an antihistamine may help.
For headaches, high temperatures and general aches and pains then paracetamol or aspirin (over 18s only) are the best remedies.
For both colds and 'flu it is important to drink plenty of fluids.
How long will it last?
The common cold can last anywhere from a few days to a fortnight. If your symptoms have not cleared after two weeks, then it may not be a cold and needs reassessing.
Influenza can take anything up to three weeks to clear.
Sore Throat
Coming soon
Sickness & Diarrhoea
Coming soon
Headache
Coming soon
Pain Relief
Coming soon
Sleeping Problems
Coming Soon
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