Are There Any Prescription Medicines I Can Take To Prevent The Flu?

— -- Question: Are there any prescription medicines I can take to prevent the flu?

Answer: Well, let's start out with the common cold. There are no prescription medicines that you can take to prevent or treat the common cold as far as killing the actual viruses. Now, that is different for flu. There is a prescription medicine named Tamiflu that is effective against both the influenza A strains and the influenza B strains of the flu.

You can use it to prevent the flu especially when you know there's a case in the household or somebody in close contact with you. And you can also use it to treat the flu, but you have to start the medicine within 48 hours of onset of your symptoms.

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