Page 64 - Southern Oregon Magazine Winter 2015
P. 64
GOOD LIFE Ask Nish WITH COLUMNIST Nisha Jackson
Wash Your Hands!
TIPS FOR AVOIDING AND PREVENTING THE SPREAD OF WINTER GERMS
Once you feel that telltale tickle in the back of your throat or the nasal congestion lurking, it’s too late. Symptoms of the flu rear their
ugly head at about four days after you have been exposed to a virus. But the good news is if you take the right precautions, you
can save yourself a lot of torment and downtime. As the wise medical experts have always said, “An ounce of prevention is worth
a pound of cure.”
You know your immune system plays an important role in warding off infections, but you may not know how powerful this system is at protect-
ing you from foreign invaders like bacteria, fungi, viruses, and other pathogens. If you are one of the thousands of people that get sick without
fail each winter, this article is for you!
There is a common myth that if you get the flu it’s because you were exposed to the flu virus, but the truth is that germs are literally everywhere.
Americans actually touch about 300 different surfaces every 30 minutes, and while taking commonsense measures to avoid germs like hand
washing is very smart, it is silly to think you can avoid germs entirely.
To prove this point, researchers at the University of Michigan infected 17 people with the flu virus, and only half of them got sick. The other
half? They felt perfectly normal! The difference? An active immune system working overtime to clear the virus. The interesting thing is that even
if you don’t notice the flu, your immune system actually does. The researchers found changes in blood took place up to three-days before flu
symptoms showed up, and everyone had an immune response to the virus. The differences in the subjects that got sick versus staying healthy
were primarily related to the immune response.
So if you want to stay well this winter, your best bet it to alter your lifestyle in order to power up your internal defenses and ignite the immune
response to ultimately “pass” on the next virus coming down the road.
Check and optimize your Vitamin D level To boost your success in the food department, sprint (don’t walk)
Vitamin D helps ignite your immune system. Research published to kitchen cupboards and pantry and clean out sugary, flour
laden, processed junk-like carbohydrates. These foods really do
recently showed that when your body is exposed to a virus, your nothing for you except build up more free radicals, raise insulin,
T cells (white blood cell important for immune function) extend increase inflammation, promote fat gain and make you miserable.
a vitamin D receptor in order to search for vitamin D in your Just stop eating these foods. If it is high in sugar or processed or
system. If you do not have enough Vitamin D, the T cell will not mostly white unnatural man-made food—step away!
be able to activate, and then your immune system will not be able
to defend you. Exercise daily—Besides the fact that the brain and body should be
in balance and the only way to do this is to get off the couch
Antioxidant-rich diet—One of the best ways to ward off free-radi- and start moving, you desperately need exercise to enhance your
cal damage in your body while optimizing your immune system is antibody and natural T cell response. Research continues to show
to eat a very colorful wide range of fruits and veggies. Glutathione that people who exercise are about half as likely to catch a cold
(found in asparagus, whey protein, avocado, and parsley) is one of than those who do not, and even if the exercisers do get sick they
the most powerful antioxidants that help quench the damage of will recover much quicker with fewer overall symptoms! Better
circulating free radicals. immune system AND better body? Who wouldn’t want this?
62 southernoregonmagazine.com • winter 2015
Wash Your Hands!
TIPS FOR AVOIDING AND PREVENTING THE SPREAD OF WINTER GERMS
Once you feel that telltale tickle in the back of your throat or the nasal congestion lurking, it’s too late. Symptoms of the flu rear their
ugly head at about four days after you have been exposed to a virus. But the good news is if you take the right precautions, you
can save yourself a lot of torment and downtime. As the wise medical experts have always said, “An ounce of prevention is worth
a pound of cure.”
You know your immune system plays an important role in warding off infections, but you may not know how powerful this system is at protect-
ing you from foreign invaders like bacteria, fungi, viruses, and other pathogens. If you are one of the thousands of people that get sick without
fail each winter, this article is for you!
There is a common myth that if you get the flu it’s because you were exposed to the flu virus, but the truth is that germs are literally everywhere.
Americans actually touch about 300 different surfaces every 30 minutes, and while taking commonsense measures to avoid germs like hand
washing is very smart, it is silly to think you can avoid germs entirely.
To prove this point, researchers at the University of Michigan infected 17 people with the flu virus, and only half of them got sick. The other
half? They felt perfectly normal! The difference? An active immune system working overtime to clear the virus. The interesting thing is that even
if you don’t notice the flu, your immune system actually does. The researchers found changes in blood took place up to three-days before flu
symptoms showed up, and everyone had an immune response to the virus. The differences in the subjects that got sick versus staying healthy
were primarily related to the immune response.
So if you want to stay well this winter, your best bet it to alter your lifestyle in order to power up your internal defenses and ignite the immune
response to ultimately “pass” on the next virus coming down the road.
Check and optimize your Vitamin D level To boost your success in the food department, sprint (don’t walk)
Vitamin D helps ignite your immune system. Research published to kitchen cupboards and pantry and clean out sugary, flour
laden, processed junk-like carbohydrates. These foods really do
recently showed that when your body is exposed to a virus, your nothing for you except build up more free radicals, raise insulin,
T cells (white blood cell important for immune function) extend increase inflammation, promote fat gain and make you miserable.
a vitamin D receptor in order to search for vitamin D in your Just stop eating these foods. If it is high in sugar or processed or
system. If you do not have enough Vitamin D, the T cell will not mostly white unnatural man-made food—step away!
be able to activate, and then your immune system will not be able
to defend you. Exercise daily—Besides the fact that the brain and body should be
in balance and the only way to do this is to get off the couch
Antioxidant-rich diet—One of the best ways to ward off free-radi- and start moving, you desperately need exercise to enhance your
cal damage in your body while optimizing your immune system is antibody and natural T cell response. Research continues to show
to eat a very colorful wide range of fruits and veggies. Glutathione that people who exercise are about half as likely to catch a cold
(found in asparagus, whey protein, avocado, and parsley) is one of than those who do not, and even if the exercisers do get sick they
the most powerful antioxidants that help quench the damage of will recover much quicker with fewer overall symptoms! Better
circulating free radicals. immune system AND better body? Who wouldn’t want this?
62 southernoregonmagazine.com • winter 2015
