Lectures, labs and discussions are alive with the sound of echoing coughs. It is a sign: Cold weather has officially arrived, bringing with it cold and flu symptoms to Columbia.

Amanda Findall, a pharmacist at the Walgreens on East Broadway, said she has noticed more people coming in to the 24-hour pharmacy. Many are buying over-the-counter medicines to fight off their symptoms.

“(It is) a lot of the combination cold and flu medicines, like DayQuil and NyQuil,” Findall said.

In the University Physicians Medical Building’s pharmacy, more patients have been coming in for cold-type medicines, MU Health System spokesman Jeff Hoelscher said.

“It’s been a gradual increase (in cold-weather illnesses) over the past month, as the weather turns cooler,” Hoelscher said. “(Mostly) these are upper respiratory infections, which are consistent with what we see every year.”

For those who are feeling ill, the Student Health Center is an option with hours from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Influenza, unlike other winter-related illnesses, can’t be vanquish by antibiotics, Hoelscher said.

“There isn’t medication for it,” he said. “It has to run its course.”

Susan Even, a family medicine physician and executive director of the Student Health Center, said influenza usually peaks around December or January.

“We have not had any positive influenza tests yet,” Even said.

Even said most patients come to the Student Health Center with variations of upper respiratory infections such as colds or bronchitis.

“Winter and winter viruses mean that people are inside and in enclosed environments more frequently, so (infections) spread rapidly,” she said.

For the common cold, which is easily passed around in close quarters, there are non-prescription medicines to reduce the symptoms, said Beth Stubbs, a pharmacist at Kilgore’s Medical Pharmacy.

“(Students) should avoid anything with histamines because they make you drowsy,” Stubbs said. “It’s real common in cough and cold medicines.”

As finals week approaches and fall semester ends, waiting to feel better is not an option for many students who need to study. Even said this time of year especially, drinking healthy fluids and hand washing as much as possible can help prevent an illness.

“If (students) have a choice between cramming for an extra hour and going to bed, they should go to bed,” she said.