How to Prevent The Flu and Colds at any Age

It’s that time of year and especially now with all of the H1N1 hype (Don’t get me started on that one) colds and flu are probably on your radar screen. As most of you probably know, I’m all about prevention and getting to the root cause of things, instead of just popping a pill to make a symptom go away. So that being said, I thought it would be a good idea to lay out a few easy things we can do to stay healthy through this cold and flu season no matter what your age.

• Limit sugar and alcohol – I realize this doesn’t sound like much fun, especially if you’re living in the fast lane keeping up with your career, starting a family and keeping up with your social life. And what that usually means is that you wind up eating meals on the fly, eating sugary snacks for energy and then also partake in social drinking on the weekends. Although you may be having a great time, you’re also compromising your immune system .  For example, if you drink a soda (some contain up to 11 teaspoons of sugar in 12 ounces) it can temporarily impair your immune system by lowering your white blood cell activity by 50% for up to 5 hours. This means your body’s little white cell army can’t deal with infection and sickness like it’s supposed to. In addition, anything more than a few alcoholic drinks per week reduces the number of immunity-providing cells your body produces

•  Workout smarter not Longer – Exercise, even though it’s a good stress can turn into a bad thing if you do too much. Long boring robotic cardio falls into that category. Studies show that moderate exercise, however, helps immune cells circulate through the bloodstream at a more rapid pace, making it less likely that bacteria or viruses will slip through unnoticed. And its effect also accumulates over time.  So your best bet is to shoot for about 20 minutes of aerobic exercise (walking, hiking, biking or jogging) plus about 15 to 20 minutes of strength training three times a week like "The Cellulite Circuits" program. Then try to add some yoga or Tai Chi for an extra energy boost. It’s been proven that stress reducing and energy restoring activities like yoga will also boost your immune system.  

• Go to bed earlier – This is one I really struggle with myself. And you also may really enjoy your vege-time in front of the TV or reading a book before bed. Who doesn’t want an hour to unwind from your crazy day? But if you relax at the expense of getting real sleep, fighting off the flu and colds gets harder. As little as an extra 30-60 minutes of sack time per night is enough to really boost your immunity. Sleep is when your body repairs and restores its energy and it’s necessary for your immune system and your whole body as a matter of fact to function properly. Even a nap can help. When you feel like catching some zzz’s don’t fight it. It’s your body’s way of telling you it needs to re-boot and re-charge.

• Learn new ways to unwind – Chronic stress, whether it’s from the daily grind at work or family stress at home will also slow down your immune system and make it less efficient at protecting you from colds and flu. To help prevent this from happening you need to get some calm into your life and practice some heavy duty relaxation. Dr. Jacob Teitlebaum, MD medical director of the nationwide Fibromyalgia and Fatigue Centers recommends transcendental meditation.

• Amp up antioxidants – When you reach your 50s, your risk of disease begins to rise pretty fast. So to crank up your immunity, add more antioxidant-rich fruits and veggies to your diet. Research from the University of California, Berkeley, suggests that broccoli, cabbage, and kale offer the biggest immune system boost because they contain an important cancer-fighting compound called indole-3-carbinol.

• Get your groove back Stella – If you have kids and they’re out of the house for long periods, make more time for sex. Or even if you don’t have kids, be sure to make the time because a study from Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., found that men and women who had one to two sexual encounters per week had a 30% increase in IgA, antibodies found in saliva and mucous membranes.   These antibodies are considered the first line of defense against cold and flu viruses. They’re not sure exactly how or why sex causes the increase, but most would agree that sometimes science is just there so enjoy!

Even though I’ve highlighted a couple of pointers that fall within each specific age decade, it certainly won’t hurt to practice all of them. So get busy and I bet you’ll be cold and flu free this winter. Feel free to add any of your prevention methods in the comments section below too.