Tropical Weather Alert: For the latest updates on closures or modified hours for our UF Health clinical facilities, click here
Colds and flus - antibiotics
Definition
Antibiotics DO NOT cure colds and flus.
Alternative Names
Antibiotics - colds and flu
Information
Antibiotics fight infections that are caused by bacteria. They do not treat infections that are caused by a virus. Colds and flu are caused by viruses. If you have a viral infection, antibiotics WILL NOT make you better.
The overuse of antibiotics can:
- Kill normal ("healthy") bacteria that live in your body. This may cause nausea and diarrhea. Women can get vaginal yeast infections.
- Increase the risk of drug-resistant bacterial infections.
- Put you at risk of an allergic reaction.
Do not take antibiotics when they will not treat an illness.
References
Husain AN. The lung. In: Kumar V, Abbas AK, Aster JC, eds. Robbins & Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease. 10th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2021:chap 15.
Lopez SMC, Williams JV. The common cold. In: Kliegman RM, St. Geme JW, Blum NJ, Shah SS, Tasker RC, Wilson KM, eds. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 21st ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2020:chap 407.
Roginski MA, Atchinson PR. Upper respiratory tract infections. In: Walls RM, ed. Rosen's Emergency Medicine: Concepts and Clinical Practice. 10th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2023:chap 61.
Related specialties
News and Patient Stories: Colds and flus - antibiotics
University of Florida Health researchers win $75 million grant to help develop new antibiotic
January 14, 2021
In the medical and military fields, antibiotic-resistant bacteria can be formidable foes. Now, University of Florida Health researchers and their collaborators…
College of Medicine, +2 more
To fight antibiotic resistance, we need to fight bad prescribing habits
John Gums, University of Florida May’s announcement that a strain of bacteria with genes conferring resistance to colistin, our antibiotic of last resort, was…
