Any immune boosting ideas?

[stubbs]

Winter's here and I'm constantly getting colds and stuff. I'm not overtraining, I haven't been drinking alcohol recently, and I feel fit and healthy apart from I keep getting a cough or cold every week.

I have a well balanced diet but I still keep getting run down.

I haven't been sleeping properly recently either so that might have something to do with it.

Any ideas?
________
Silver surfer vaporizer (http://vaporizers.net/silver-surfer-vaporizer)

[scotty1]

Do you smoke?

Are you stressed?

Try some Echinacea. Works good for me (I think)

[mickey]

Hi stubbs,

It could be dust allergens.

Try taking a a few days break from practice.

You may need more water.

You may be allergic to something in your diet. Something that you may have recently started taking.



mickey

[FngSaiYuk]

Ever try cold tempering? That whole jump in a freezing lake, dump freezing cold water over your body thing.

Supposedly it temporarily increases the temp in your body to somewhere around 108F which pretty much kills off most infections.

[Oso]

pepper...black, red, white or whatever as long as it's hot.

you can get a mixed blend of all of them in most stores.

ginger, licorice, cinnamon can all help as well.

Celestial Seasonings makes a tea called "Bengal Tiger Spice" that is spicy hot. Only issue I have is about 5 years ago they added vanilla to it...IMO, to make it more palatable to the general public.

[Chief Fox]

Vitamin C
or
Have you tried that Zicam stuff?

[FngSaiYuk]

That zicam stuph is great! Use it as SOON as you feel something may be off...

[IronFist]

Airborne (http://www.airbornehealth.com/).

[IronFist]

PS. Don't use any intra-nasal zinc spray because it can cause permanent loss of smell. There are class action lawsuits going on right now against Cold-Eeze, who produces an intra-nasal spray.

Of course, the Cold-Eeze tabs work great. Just stay away from the intra-nasal spray.

[Oso]

try to determine the source.

over the last 5 years I've become allergic to dust and animals.

this causes a sinus infection every fall as the air dries out.

just got in from the doc myself with intibiotics and codiene based cough syrup....nap, here I come.

[stubbs]

Thanks for all the advice.

I've got a bottle of Echinacea tincture that I use when I'm feeling a bit iffy. Usually works great!

I also have lots of hot water with a slice of lemon in the mornings and evenings and maybe a couple of small oranges during the day so I think my vitamin C intake is pretty decent.

I've got a feeling like a lot of you have suggested, that it might be allergies. I'll try to book an appointment with the Doc's sometime to see if they can do some tests.
________
Bondage xxx (http://www.****tube.com/categories/14/bondage/videos/1)

[Reggie1]

I haven't been sleeping properly recently either so that might have something to do with it.

This is probably the biggest cause of it. Lack of sleep and stress are very detrimental to your immune system. Most of the time they feed into each other.
Lack of sleep naturally leads to increased stress inside your body, which hurts your immune system.

Here's a list of a lot of common stuff you can do if it's not allergies:

*Wash your hands VERY regularly. Try not to touch doorknobs, handles, or anything where a lot of people are touching (toilet flush levers, etc.) with your bare hands.

*Don't touch your hands to your face. The most common transmission of cold + flu is from a sick person touching a doorknob, which is then touched by a healthy person. The healthy person then touches their face, and the germs get into the respiratory tract from there.

*Increase your water intake. You should be drinking AT A MINIMUM 8 glasses of water a day. One glass = 8 oz. water. So at least 64 oz. a day. And this only includes water. Feel free to drink other fluids, but on top of them drink your 8 glasses of water a day.

*This one's obvious, but stay away from sick people.

*Foods/herbs that will help boost your immune system.
-Ginger root
-Garlic
-Echinacia
-Citrus fruits or anything w/ lots of vitamin C
-Fresh berries (rasperries, blueberries, blackberries)

It does sound like it could be allergies, though. Look in a local newspaper and they should put an "allergy report" on the same page as the weather. If something on the report is high, then you could possibly be allergic to it. If you suspect it is allergies, go get some Claritin. If the Claritin solves your 'cold', then most likely it's allergies and not a cold.

[manofkent]

Hey stubbs!

I found i got cold like symptoms in the mornings and that turned out to be because of dust.

[packard]

Hey Stubbs,

I have worked with many people who say they have a diet that is balanced. My advice to them is write down everything you eat and drink over the week (and I mean everything) Then look at it and see if it is really that balanced.

More often, it is not.

People are very good at lying to themselves. They believe they are doing well when in fact they are eating loads of processed foods, not enough water, too much or too little exercise, not enough fruit or veg, the list could go on.

The truth is, if you are eating well, exercising correctly and allowing your body to rest, you should remain fit. If you are not well, look at one or more of these in detail.

[Toby]

Reggie1 beat me to it. Lack of sleep is what gets me. Otherwise, if I feel like I'm going to get sick, I eat a couple of cloves of garlic each morning. Does wonders and keeps vampires away. If I do get a sore throat, I like to put a tablespoon of honey or two in a mug with hot water and the juice of a lemon. Might not do much, but it tastes good. Supposed to give Vit C and soothe the throat.

[IronFist]

Originally posted by Toby
Otherwise, if I feel like I'm going to get sick, I eat a couple of cloves of garlic each morning.

Only when you feel like you're getting sick? Or every day. How's that work for you?


Does wonders and keeps vampires away.

Oh, I guess you just answered that question. And that's a bonus about the vampires.

[Toby]

Originally posted by IronFist
Only when you feel like you're getting sick?Only when I feel like I'm getting sick. E.g. I've been doing it for about a week now. Usually I'll start at the first signs of a sore throat/blocked nose.
Originally posted by IronFist
How's that work for you?Works for me. Dunno how everyone else feels about it :D. I will e.g. press it in a garlic press and then put the whole two cloves worth on a spoon and swallow it raw and wash it down with my morning shake. I find it important to wash it down with a milk drink. Only milk, 'cause it's thick enough to mask the flavour almost immediately and sort of coat your throat. There's an unpleasant 2-3s while you've got the raw garlic in your throat but that's all. Oh, I've also mixed it in yoghurt - that works too, but I still like a glass of milk after.