Do you know how to boost your immune system this winter?
Winter is a time when a lot of people get the common cold and easily sick. So, is your body ready for it?
Here are some tips on how to make your immune system ready for winter.
Tips on How to Boost Immune system this winter
Fall is here and I’m already seeing patients with the common cold. My son commented that everyone at school is sick too. So this is a good time to think about building up your immune system to fight off colds and flu.
Colds spread through the office and school classrooms like crazy at this time of year, but you don’t have to join in the suffering. Most adults and kids continue to go to work and school while sick unless they are just too sick to get out of bed. So that means, colds get spread very easily by just touching a doorknob or a keypad where germs can live for hours, then touching your face where viruses enter through your eyes, nose, or mouth. This is how most kids catch a cold and spread it to their parents.
Here are some easy tips you can add to your life this winter.
1. Sleep.
It’s essential for good health any time, but even more so when everyone around you is coughing and sneezing. Make sure you get 7-9 hours starting at 9-10pm.
2. Food.
Eat healthy whole foods like leafy greens that are filled with nutrients. Warm foods will help your digestion too.
3. Sneeze into a tissue or your elbow.
Then wash your hands immediately. Only about 40% of your sneeze makes it into the tissue, the rest ends up on your hands. So wash them whenever using a tissue. If there are no tissues handy, use our elbow to catch your sneeze.
4. Exercise.
Aerobic exercise pumps up your heart and moves oxygen from your lungs to your blood. This helps increase the body’s natural virus-killing cells and immune response.
5. Hand washing.
Do it several times a day and try not to touch your face. When you wash your hands, lather up with the soap while singing happy birthday, twice. Then rinse your hands.
6. Meditate daily.
A daily practice of meditation or even just thinking happy or calming thoughts can boost your immune system. Try 5 minutes of deep breathing, as this will lower cortisol levels, which increase when you feel stressed. Stress, on the other hand, has been proven to lower your immune response.
7. Take your USANA cellsentials twice daily.
Because NOT taking care of yourself (like taking a daily multivitamin) is easy to do. Join the CellSentials Challenge. Get support and win prizes. The challenge is to actually take the vitamins consistently. In a world where we are barraged by information overload, simply doing the steps to take care of yourself becomes a challenge.
8. Do a gut cleanse.
I’ve got a great 4-week program that will get your gut healthy. Remember 85% of your immune system is in your gut. The Clear the Way program.
9. If you’re already on the CellSentials, try adding the new immunity pack.
It has probiotics, Proglucamune and Booster C all in one discounted pack. Available until October 11th.
Be Aware of Your Body
If you are on the verge of a cold with symptoms such as a scratchy throat, feeling a bit off, or increased fatigue, that’s when to start taking a commonly found remedy called Yin Chiao. It needs to be taken right away and several doses at the first sign of anything feeling like a cold. The other home remedy to try is the wet sock treatment. This is where you take a pair of cotton socks, wet them with hot water and ring them out. Put them on your feet and cover them with a pair of wool socks and go to bed. When you wake in the morning the scratchy throat and congestion will be gone and the socks will be dry. To read more about why this works, here is a blog I wrote about it.
http://healthcoachdonna.com/wet-socks-helping-a-cold
Sometimes a cold can’t be avoided, but if you follow these guidelines, you will most likely end up with a much milder version of what everyone else has. If this does happen, stay home and in bed. And sleep, it’s the best way to support your body’s healing process.
Follow these simple tips all year round to stay healthy and boost your immune system.
If you need help with any of this, I’m here to support and guide you. Have a great week. Donna
