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Fight off Colds and Flu

Follow these five tips to avoid that sniffling, sneezing, achy feeling this year.

Story by Debby Waldman

If you’re determined to ward off colds and this season and you can’t afford to spend the next few months in an isolation chamber, don’t despair. There are easier ways to stay healthy. Here are some proven tips to help you avoid the sickbed this year.

1. Wash your hands

Washing your hands frequently and thoroughly is one of simplest and most effective ways to keep yourself germ-free.

Cold and flu viruses are easily transmitted by hand. If you shake hands with someone who has just used a tissue or covered his or her mouth to sneeze, the virus is transferred to your hand. Rub your eyes or put food into your mouth before washing up and you could easily get infected.

If you’re near a sink, use warm water and soap. If not, use wipes or an antibacterial hand sanitizer. How long you scrub is less important than making sure you’ve cleaned the entire surface of your hands, says Dr. James Talbot, Capital Health’s associate medical officer of health.

2. Eat your vitamins/minerals

Keep your immune system strong by getting adequate sleep, exercising regularly, staying hydrated and eating nutritious food and you will have a better chance of keeping infections at bay.

To optimize your “nutritional status,” you should be having balanced meals three times a day, says Dr. Tapan Basu, a retired professor of nutrition at the University of Alberta in Edmonton. Balanced meals include those that contain foods like fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and animal proteins such as milk products, meat, fish and poultry. By eating these foods, you take in vitamins A, C, D, and E, and beta carotene and zinc, which help keep the immune system in fighting form.

For instance, zinc helps the body produce  neutrophils, one type of white blood cells which help fight infections. Oysters are the richest sources of zinc. It’s also found in other animal proteins including meat, chicken, turkey, and shellfish, and also in nuts, seeds, legumes, soy, and whole grains. Beta carotene is an antioxidant (as are vitamins C and E), which means it’s been shown to reduce cell damage. It can be found in some deep green leafy vegetables and orange vegetables, including romaine lettuce, spinach, squash, carrots, sweet potatoes and apricots.

Most experts agree that if your diet is healthy and balanced, you shouldn’t need supplements. But as we age, our ability to absorb and use certain nutrients decreases, which may make vitamin supplements necessary for some people.

3. Get a flu shot

It won’t protect you against a cold, but an annual flu shot is the single most effective way to prevent yourself from getting influenza, a contagious respiratory infection also known as the flu. Because the flu virus changes from year to year, it’s necessary to get the shot every year. The best time to get the vaccine is in October or November.

In Alberta, the province provides free shots for those people considered most at risk of developing complications from the flu as well as people who are in contact with those at risk. That includes children between six and 23 months, people over age 65, those with a compromised immune system, diabetes, and cardiac or lung problems. People who don’t fall into any of these categories can still benefit from the shot.

Talbot stresses that it is impossible to get the flu from the vaccine, which contains only the parts of the virus needed to help the immune system produce antibodies. The vaccine takes seven to 10 days to become protective. If you do get the flu within days of being vaccinated, it’s because you were exposed to the virus before that period ended, he adds.

4. Take a tablet

Developed by Edmonton-based CV Technologies, COLD-fX is a natural supplement derived from an extract of ginseng that is said to stimulate the immune system. Preliminary studies indicate that it can reduce a person’s chances of catching a cold. Studies also suggest that it can decrease the severity of cold or flu symptoms and the length of time that a person is sick.

The recommended dose for prevention is two capsules a day throughout the cold-and-flu season, a protocol followed by an increasing number of people in North America, including members of many NHL teams.

“I can confidently say that COLD-fX will prevent the common cold,” says Basu, who helped conduct a clinical trial last year and takes two capsules a day himself.

5. Have some chicken soup

What if you’ve done everything you can to stay healthy but you still get hit by that dreaded cold or flu bug? Try spooning up some good old-fashioned chicken soup. Long touted as a remedy for colds and the flu, it turns out there may be some scientific basis for the soup’s reputation. Chicken soup contains cystine, a sulphur-containing amino acid that acts as a decongestant. It’s not a cure, but it can provide temporary relief for your suffering sinuses, Basu says.

Another benefit of chicken soup is that it’s an easy food to eat and digest if the cold or flu viruses have also affected the gastrointestinal tract and caused us to lose our appetites.

Warm liquids are also quite soothing, says Basu, who recommends a drink made with hot water, lemons and honey. The lemon provides vitamin C, the honey provides glucose which gets turned into energy, and the warmth will provide a balm for your irritated respiratory system.

Whatever measures you take this season, it’s clear that keeping your immune system strong is worth the effort. “One does not get a cold when the immune system is in top shape,” says Basu. So stock up on healthy foods and COLD-fX, get in line for a flu shot and keep your hands squeaky clean. You may just avoid getting sick this year.