With the weather turning, and cough and cold infections being on the rise, people end up relying a lot on over-the-counter cough syrups and medication.However, doctors in the UK say they are of no use really . One expert even says that that there is no evidence to suggest cough medicines actually work. The British National Health Service officially recommends opting for “a homemade cough remedy containing honey and lemon.“ Honey, they state, is a demulcent, which means it coats the throat and relieves the irritation that causes coughing.On its website, it says “There's no quick way of getting rid of a cough caused by a viral infection. It will usually clear up after your immune system has fought off the virus.“ Dr Tim Ballard, Vice Chairman of a medical college, said, “Medical evidence behind cough medicines is weak and there is no evidence to say that they will reduce the duration of illnesses as such, and doctors are unlikely to prescribe them.“ He also added, “If the cough lasts longer and is affecting young infants, or is associated with coughing up blood, shortness of breath, confusion, or high fever, then they should contact doctors.“
Research released last year showed the average time for a cough to last after a virus is 18 days -with many coughs sticking around for even longer. “It's your body's way of keeping unwanted stuff from getting into your lungs. But unfortunately, post-virus, this irritating symptom can really linger.“ said Dr Ballard. However, any cough that remains for more than three weeks definitely needs to be looked at by a doctor and that here too, overthe-counter medications may not work, since cough could just be a symptom for something more than a throat infection.









Guess who will appear in the upcoming episode of Gutur Gu 3? It's none other than CID's Dayanand Shetty, popularly known as Daya. He wil be seen in an interesting role in the silent comedy.The innocent and hyperactive Balu (played by Kunal Kumar) is always known to find his way into misadventures in his routine life. This time around, he will be seen taking on Daya, who makes fun of Balu's lanky physique. Balu, who is not used to getting mocked at, takes offense at this and in turn, hurts Daya's sentiments. But just when they are about to get into a tiff, Kumar's family steps in and salvages the situation.However, the incident remains etched in Balu's mind and he plans to take revenge. He decides to prove to the bigframed Daya that he is tougher than him.Kunal says, “Competing with Dayanand on the set of the show with vigour was astounding because in real life, we are the best of friends. All of us spend a lot of time together during and after the shoot.“

Will Balu succeed in defeating Daya in a physical bout?
Gutur Gu-3 airs every Saturday and Sunday at 7 pm on SAB TV.









Hiten Tejwani might have been playing Manav in Pavitra Rishta for three years now, replacing Sushant Singh Rajput in the serial. But the makers recently brought Sushant again to shoot the last episode of the show. Did the decision bother Hiten? “I was cool with it. Sushant shot just the last scene. The show is coming to an end, the souls of Manav and Archana finally meet.It was a creative call and I didn't have any problem with it. I thought it was fair enough that Sushant shot that portion,“ he says. Meanwhile, the actor, who has two films in his kitty , is also shooting for the new show, Hamari Sister Didi. “My role is different because my character is not present in the show; only his memories are alive. I speak to my family in the show; it's more like ghost appearances,“ he smiles.









Sumona Chakravarti, who plays Kapil Sharma's wife on Comedy Nights With Kapil, will be seen as a rockstar -an avatar that's dramatically different from her demure, sari-clad image so far -in an episode of Yeh Hai Aashiqui.She will be seen dressed in ripped denims teamed with waistcoats and jackets, replete with a guitar. “I play a guitarist with a rock band in my college. Contrary to the general perception of the bands indulging in drugs, my character is of a girl who believes in Indian values,“ she elaborates. However, playing a rockstar wasn't a cakewalk for the actress. “I don't play the guitar.Fortunately, my brother does and hence, I had some idea.I've tried my best to make it look as authentic as possible,“ she says.