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HELPFUL HINTS—FLU AND COLDS
The threat of Swine flu and the arrival of the cooler seasons has brought to mind the necessity to help our body’s own immune system to deal with various external threats. This segment provides a number of helpful hints to lessen the chances of falling ill, or if you become unwell, heightening your body’s defences to assist fighting off sickness.
Tips to keeping your immune system—your body’s defence system operating at maximum efficiency.
1) Stay well-rested. If your body is tired, your body’s resistance will be down, and if you get ill, it will be more difficult for your body to fight off the illness. 2) Eat a healthy diet containing plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables. 3) Drink your daily water requirement to keep your body flushed and cleansed. Some herbal teas which can be very helpful to the body’s self-defence mechanisms including rosehip (high in vitamin c), lemongrass (relaxing, cleansing and helps fortify the immune system), and camomile (which has anti-inflammatory properties whether drunk or applied to the skin for other external ailments). 4) Olive Leaf Extract (found at health food stores and some pharmacies) taken twice daily is known to provide a powerful boost to the body’s immune system. Best to take regularly before getting ill, but also helpful to take to fight off illness if you are already sick. 5) (Further tips of Dr Joseph Mercola ) —Avoid sugar and processed foods. Sugar decreases the function of your immune system almost immediately, and as you likely know, a strong immunie system is key to fighting off viruses and other illness. Be aware that sugar is present in foods you may not suspect, as an added ingredient. 6) Dealing with stress - We all face some stress everyday, but if stress becomes overwhelming then your body will be less able to fight off the flu and other illness. If you feel that stress is taking a toll on your health, consider using an energy psychology tool such as the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFI) which is remarkably effective in relieving stress associated with all kinds of events, from work to family trauma. You can check out my free, 25-page EFT manual for some guidelines on how to perform EFT. 7) Exercise—When you exercise, you increase your circulation and your blood flow throughout your body. The components of your immune system are also better circulated, which means your immune system has a better chance of finding an illness before it spreads. Increase your intake of healthy and essential fats like the omega-3 found in krill oil, which is crucial for maintaining health. It is also vitally important to avoid damaged omega-6 oils that are trans fats and in processed foods as it will seriously damage your immune response. 8) Omega Three Oil—Increase your intake of healthy and essential fats like the omega-3 found in krill oil, which is crucial for maintaining health. It is also vitally important to avoid damaged omega-6 oils that are trans fats and in processed foods as it will seriously damage your immune response. Flaxseed contains the highest amount of omega 3 oil and most environmentally-sustainable. 9) Wash your hands—Washing your hands will decrease your likelihood of spreading a virus to your nose, mouth or other people. Be sure you don't use antibacterial soap for this -- antibacterial soaps are completely unnecessary, and they cause far more harm than good. Instead, identify a simple chemical-free soap that you can switch your family to. 10) Eat Garlic Regularly—Garlic works like a broad-spectrum antibiotic against bacteria, virus, and protozoa in the body. And unlike with antibiotics, no resistance can be built up so it is an absolutely safe product to use. However, if you are allergic or don't enjoy garlic it would be best to avoid as it will likely cause more harm than good.
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Helpful hints should you get ill 1) Plenty of rest. 2) Plenty of fluids—in particular water and herbal teas. And the traditional remedy of lemon juice and honey, or ginger tea and honey can be extremely helpful for a sore, inflamed throat. 3) Eat good healthy food especially fruit and vegetables, and avoid sugary, processed, and junk snack food. 4) Use tissues (recycled product is best for environmental reasons) and dispose of used tissues immediately and thoughtfully. 5) When you are ill, avoid crowded places or confined spaces such as airplanes, shopping centres and workplaces. You are a vehicle for the germs to spread—be a considerate citizen and keep them to yourself.
How does the immune system—the body’s defence system work? How does the immune system work, is a question that most people ask when they are sick. However, the immune system is always at work whether you are sick or not. Your immune system is your body's natural ability to get over an illness or take care of harmful microorganisms that try to invade your body. You would be surprised how many of these organisms try to invade your body every day, and your immune system works tirelessly around the clock ensuring you stay and feel healthy. The immune system is made up of many different cells, organs, tissues and substances within your body, which each play their own role in eliminating these foreign organisms and protecting you from various diseases and illnesses. These foreign organisms come in the form of viruses, bacteria, parasites and fungi. They are known as “microbes.” The human body is the ideal environment for these microbes and so they try to break into your body and use its resources for their own ends. This is what makes you sick. Your immune system's job is to keep these organisms out, or if they have managed to get in, track them down and eliminate them. It's like your body's 'defence force' – each cell or organ playing its own part in eliminating the invading, foreign microorganism that wants to harm you. How does the immune system work in our cells? The cells in the immune system are known in layman's terms as the 'white blood cells' (the Leukocytes) and are different to your red blood cells (erythrocytes), which are responsible for carrying oxygen and carbon dioxide. The white blood cells are remarkable in many aspects, one of which is that some of these cells are capable of 'remembering' the millions of foreign organisms that have tried to invade your body in the past and are also capable of detecting a foreign organism early and easily. Some of these cells 'tag' the organism, while others work at producing secretions to wipe the organism out. As you can see the immune system work, each white blood cell also has it's own role in discovering and eliminating these invaders. If we did not have an immune system, we would never get over the flu or even a minor cold and would end up dying due to the simplest of illnesses. Some people have such a strong immune system that they don't catch a cold or get sick at all in some cases. This doesn't mean that their bodies were not invaded by the bacteria or virus, only that their immune system was strong enough to defeat it Two people can often be exposed to someone with the flu, and only one of them will 'catch' it and the other won't. It had everything to do with the immune system, not with who was lucky enough to avoid the flu and not contract the virus. Some people may catch the flu only much later when their immune system is weaker. How does your immune system work against bacterial and viral invaders? The immune system has a remarkable ability to be able to distinguish between what is your body's own cells (known as 'self') and what is foreign (known as 'nonself'.) Each cell in your body has a marker to distinguish it as 'self.' When a cell travels without this marker, or a foreign molecule is attached to the cell, the immune system immediately recognizes the invader as 'nonself' and gets to work. You can see your immune system functioning through various every day occurrences. When you get cut, many kinds of viruses and bacteria invade your body through the cut in your skin. This is why it's a good idea to wash the wound, just to ensure that you can help the body out a bit. Your immune system gets to work immediately and destroys the foreign organisms that have invaded your body quickly and easily, while the skin heals and closes the cut. When an infection occurs, however, this is a clear sign that the immune system has missed something. The infection is usually inflamed or filled with pus, which is simply a side effect of the immune system. You would also be surprised how many germs and bacteria you eat every day. Not to worry, many of the bacteria are actually good for you, and those that aren't, are killed in the saliva or stomach acid. Food poisoning only occurs when a germ gets through, and your body will work tirelessly to get rid of it from your system. How does your immune system deal with environmental factors? When you itch from being bit by a mosquito, this is a sign that your immune system was at work and pushed out the poison that was trying to invade your body. Another example is when you get a splinter, the skin pushes out the splinter and the immune system destroys any harmful organisms that tried to get in. Allergies are also a clear sign of the immune system at work. However, allergies occur when the immune system is over-reacting or over-compensating for a foreign organism. This is why some people suffer more than others. You can see the immune system react in a very similar way during organ transplants when certain organs are rejected by the body. This is the immune system at work. With all this in mind, it is easy to see why it's so important to know the answers to: how does the immune system work. There are a number of factors which can contribute to a weak immune system – and these factors are usually the LACK of doing regular things that help in boosting your immune system Good nutrition is important for normal function of the immune system. Information on immune system provided by www.whole-food-supplements-guide.com |
