Combine the cold and flu season with the coronavirus pandemic, and experts will tell you now is the time to stock your medicine cabinet.

“It’s important that individuals be empowered to take control of their health, and this is one way to do it,” said Dr. Amesh A. Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security

Adalja recommends over-the-counter pain reliever such as ibuprofen, acetaminophen and naproxen.

“As well as over-the-counter cough and cold aides, and they come under many different brand names,” he said.

“There may be runs on these types of medicines as people get sick, even this happens during normal flu seasons.”

There are other important reasons. You could consider it a public service.

“If you can avoid having to expose other people when you’re sick, even if it’s not COVID, if it’s a cold or influenza, you want to try to do that,” Adalja said.

Being prepared can help if you become sick unexpectedly, especially during a pandemic.

Do you really want to drag yourself out of your home to wander around a drugstore, considering various remedies, when you feel miserable?

If you do get sick and are not prepared, there are options to going out.

“Grocery stores which stock many of these [medicines] do have delivery services as well as online ordering platforms like Amazon,” said Adalja.

He also recommended stocking adhesive bandages and triple antibiotic ointment.