By Osayi Aghahowa
Cold
Benin, Aug. 24, 2026 (NAN) A pharmacist, Mrs Nkem Ogbidi-Emmanuel of Bestcare Pharmacy, Benin, has warned that wrongly treating pneumonia as an ordinary cold could delay diagnosis and treatment, increasing the risk of serious complications, especially among children.
Ogbidi-Emmanuel gave the warning in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Benin on Monday, emphasising that pneumonia was a distinct lung infection and not merely a consequence of exposure.
She explained that although pneumonia might share symptoms with common colds, being exposed to rain, air-conditioning, fans or cold weather did not automatically mean someone had contracted the potentially dangerous disease.
“Common cold is not pneumonia. Pneumonia is not caused by being cold,” she said, urging people to distinguish between temporary discomfort from cold exposure and symptoms requiring prompt medical assessment and care.
The pharmacist said many clients presenting with cough, sneezing, fever, chills, chest discomfort and breathing difficulties often assumed their condition resulted from prolonged exposure to cold environments rather than possible infection.
According to her, some clients specifically request medicines for “cold” without undergoing professional evaluation, particularly when they believe rain, low temperatures or air-conditioned environments are solely responsible for their symptoms.
She said that such assumptions could cause people to underestimate the severity of their illness, delaying appropriate treatment when symptoms were actually linked to respiratory infections requiring urgent medical attention.
“When you tell them to go to the hospital, they ask, ‘Isn’t it a common cold? Why would I go to the hospital?’ They do not know that it might be something more serious than what they think,” she said.
Ogbidi-Emmanuel advised members of the public against self-diagnosis whenever symptoms such as persistent cough, fever, wheezing, chest discomfort or breathing difficulties continued or worsened in spite of initial treatment measures.
She also cautioned against using medicines recommended by friends, relatives or acquaintances merely because symptoms appeared similar, noting that underlying illnesses might differ significantly and required separate treatments.
“Some people come to buy particular drugs because somebody told them about the drug and they feel that because they have similar symptoms, it will work for them,” she said.
The expert emphasised that pharmacists must carefully question clients about symptoms, provide appropriate counselling and promptly refer them to doctors or hospitals whenever further clinical evaluation became necessary.
She particularly urged parents and caregivers to treat respiratory symptoms in children with urgency, warning that pneumonia could rapidly become severe and potentially life-threatening when treatment was delayed unnecessarily.
Ogbidi-Emmanuel recalled that her son developed bronchopneumonia after an older sibling had been coughing, explaining that what initially appeared mild later worsened significantly and eventually required hospital-based treatment.
She further explained that pneumonia and asthma might present similar symptoms, including breathing difficulties, but remained separate medical conditions requiring different diagnostic approaches, management strategies and treatment interventions.
The pharmacist urged the public to seek professional medical assessment instead of assuming persistent respiratory symptoms were merely caused by exposure to cold weather or temporary environmental conditions.
NAN reports that pneumonia is an acute respiratory infection affecting the lungs. Caused by viruses, bacteria or fungi, severe cases can make breathing difficult by filling lung air sacs with fluid or pus.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
OSA/AMM
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Edited by Abiemwense Moru
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