Flu season usually strikes this time of year and the best way to avoid contracting the flu, a virus, or the common cold is to practice simple prevention. Maintaining a strong immune system is our best protection against “catching” a cold or the flu.
Begin with getting enough sleep. Our bodies regenerate during a good night’s sleep of 7-8 hours. Short afternoon naps are most beneficial, especially after a poor night’s sleep.
Consuming great amounts of sugar feeds bacterial infections that further weaken our immune system. Did you know current statistics show that the average American consumes over 135 pounds of sugar a year?
Drink more water. Hydration is critical to optimal health and it is recommended that we consume one ounce of water for every two pounds of body weight. Say a person weighs 200 pounds, they should ideally be consuming 100 ounces of water daily, 8-10 glasses. Most folks simply don’t drink enough plain water and this exposes them to greater health risks.
Eating whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, while avoiding fast foods and highly processed foods is critical for building stronger immunity. It is now a common and accepted fact that a major relationship exists between diet and disease. Eating a more healthy diet leads to less disease.
Aerobic exercise for at least 20 minutes three times a week promotes better health and increases our immune response. Stretching and yoga add to our well being as does meditation and deep breathing exercises. Staying positive and trying not to focus our energy on issues beyond our control benefits the mind-body connection and maintains better health.
There are times when, despite our best efforts, a cold or the flu strikes and we succumb to the symptoms. At Mountain Peak Nutritionals, we offer Acute Immune formula™ as an effective means to strengthening the immune system and shortening the time of infection. Acute Immune formula was conceived by Bill Turska, ND, who formulated Opti Biotic in the 1970’s, which was designed to primarily address bacterial infections that were more prominent in that era. Times have changed and we are now seeing more viral infections than bacterial infections. Taking this new trend into account, we made Acute Immune more anti-viral to better and more effectively deal with these new strains of viruses.
Chronic Immune formula™ is also available to effectively address chronic, longer-term, immune deficiencies such as AIDS, chronic fatigue, Epstein-Barr and fibromyalgia. This unique formula has shown consistent positive patient outcomes for immune deficient conditions. Chronic immune contains both eastern and western botanicals, organic mushrooms, vitamins, minerals, amino acids and other specific ingredients that synergistically enhance immune function.
For the younger generation we offer our Children’s Immune Support formula™ –a complete immune booster for children that is safe, highly effective, flavorful and contains little sugar, which can actually feed the infection.
We encourage you to follow these simple steps to a healthy, enjoyable autumn!
Dr. Jim Massey, ND
