Phrasal verbs related to health and the body podcast Hello and welcome to this podcast brought to you by That's English!, the Spanish Ministry of Education's official distance learning English course. To find out more about That's English! go to www.thatsenglish.com or contact your local Official School of Languages. In today's podcast, we are going to talk about some of the phrasal verbs we use when talking about our health and our body. When, for example, you catch a cold, you might find it difficult to shake it off or throw it off, meaning to get rid of it. We could say, for example: I've had this cold for over a month now and still haven't managed to shake it off. In that case, your family doctor (or GP as they say in the UK) will probably put you on, or prescribe you, a course of antibiotics. Personally, when I take antibiotics, I find that they really knock me out, that is to say, they make me very sleepy and they also take a lot out of me, making me feel weak and tired. I am often tempted to come off them, that is, to stop taking them, without finishing the course that my doctor has prescribed, though I know I shouldn't. The best thing to do is to eat lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, with lots of vitamins, to build yourself up again, that is to make yourself stronger. If you are unlucky, instead of catching a common cold, you might come down with the flu, which, as you know, is much more serious and usually takes longer to get over, that is to recover. Symptoms of both the flu and a cold include running a temperature, which might make you break out in a sweat, or having a bunged up or stuffed up nose which makes it difficult for you to breathe. As you will also sneeze and probably cough, it is easy to pass the illness on to other people. As a result, we might say: With everybody coughing and sneezing on the subway, it's hardly surprising that there's so much flu going around. That's how one person passes it on to another. So, let's recap: With so many viruses going around in this weather, you may come down with a cold or the flu. If you do, you'll probably feel a bit knocked out, with a stuffed up or bunged up nose, a headache and maybe a temperature that may make you break out in a sweat. Try not to pass it on to other people around you by always sneezing into a tissue and if you feel the symptoms worsen, you should consult your GP, who may put you on a course of antibiotics to help you get over the illness. Although taking antibiotics may take a lot out of you, you shouldn't come off them until your doctor tells you to. So, let's move on to other common phrasal verbs which are used when a person faints or loses consciousness. For example, a person will low blood pressure might pass out or black out and it might take a minute or so for them to come round, that is, to regain consciousness. Be careful not to confuse the verb pass out with pass away, as pass away means to die. We could say, for example: Many people pass out at the sight of blood but: My grandfather passed away in his sleep when he was ninety years old. There are also several different phrasal verbs that we use to talk about feeling tired. For example, if you've had a really busy week, by Friday evening you'll probably feel tired out, worn out, done in or even wiped out. We use the verb burn out in cases in which a person's workload is so heavy that they become mentally and physically exhausted and can no longer work. We could say, for example: My supervisor was off sick for more than a month after working non-stop on the new project for over a year. He was really burnt out. Notice how we use the particle "out" to indicate total exhaustion in verbs like "tire out", "wipe out" and "burn out". We've also seen that "pass out" means to lose consciousness. So, in this case, "out " means disconnect. Let's talk now about another common ailment which is to have an allergy. When you have an allergic reaction, you might come out in a rash, which means that spots will suddenly appear on your skin. Usually, the rash will clear up or disappear if you put an antihistamine cream on it. If you eat something that upsets your stomach, it will probably make you vomit or throw up, as we also say. Accidents are another source of health problems. You often hear doctors say that most accidents happen at home. Who hasn't cut their finger opening a tin of sardines? A silly cut like that might take days to heal over, that is, to get better. Or you might fall down the stairs and sprain your ankle. As a result, your ankle will no doubt swell up and you'll have to put it up, that's to say, keep it in a horizontal position in order to make the inflammation go down. If you hurt yourself badly and have an acute pain, we would say that you are doubled up with pain. Another way of ending doubled up with pain is to put your back out, that is to hurt your back, if you try to pick something up that is too heavy. In fact, to prevent putting your back out, even if you are fit, before you start doing any physical exercise or sport, you should always warm up or loosen up by stretching and doing gentle exercise to prepare your muscles. Let's recap a little: If you have an allergic reaction to something you've eaten, first, you might throw up or maybe come out in a rash and you'll need cream to help it clear up. On the other hand, if you hurt or sprain your ankle, it may swell up, so you may have to put it up to make the inflammation go down. In order to avoid injuries, make sure you warm up or loosen up your muscles and joints before and after you do exercise, and don't try to pick up things that are too heavy or you may put your back out and end up doubled up with pain. Finally, if you want to fight off any illness and stay healthy, remember the saying: "An apple a day keeps the doctor away!" Well, we hope you have found this podcast useful. We hope you have enjoyed this podcast, brought to you by That's English! Please follow us on Facebook and Twitter. We look forward to hearing from you. Bye for now!