“An ounce of prevention, is worth a pound of cure.” –Benjamin Franklin
It seems like everyone I know has now either HAD the Swine Flu, or knows someone who has. I’m seeing Facebook and Twitter updates every day from people whose kids are getting sick, or who are getting sick themselves.
And the regular, seasonal flu hasn’t even hit yet!
In light of all of the flu craziness, I wanted to share with you all a few things that our family is doing to try to prevent the swine flu (or the seasonal flu) from entering our household.
1. Drink lots of purified water. To generally stay healthy, we need to be drinking AT LEAST half of our body weight in ounces daily in water. That means if someone weighs 150 pounds, they need to drink 75 ounces of water a day – almost 2 ½ QUARTS! When we are sick or fighting illness, we should drink even more.
2. Cut back on sugar. WAY back. The consumption of sugar greatly decreases the correct functioning of our immune systems.
3. Wash hands. A LOT! I also keep a small bottle of hand sanitizer in my purse and use it often. If you are going to be around people for long periods of time, or you will be at a place where you can’t frequently wash you hands, I would recommend getting something called Hibiclens. Hibiclens is a hand washing cleaner that continues to kill germs up to 6 hours after washing. (I found it at my local Walgreens.)
4. Cut back on dairy. Over consumption of dairy products can cause an overproduction of mucus in the respiratory tract, which supports the growth of viruses and bacteria.
5. REST/De-Stress. Our body was designed to heal through rest. When we aren’t up and about, our body can focus on fixing the things that are wrong. Stress is also an immune system blocker. If your life is full of stress, consider brainstorming what you can do to slow things down a little. Maybe you could convince your husband that a professional massage would TOTALLY be worth the cost. 
6. Take vitamins. Especially Vitamin D3 and Vitamin C. These two are both proven to be greatly effective at helping our body to fight disease. We also take a good multi-vitamin everyday (make sure to get one that your body can absorb, not just one that will pass through your system – chewable or liquid is best).
7. Eat garlic, apple cider vinegar, and other antibacterial and antiviral foods. I can’t quite handle raw apple cider vinegar, so I take it in pill form (found at my local heath food store). During cold and flu season I try to make recipes with LOTS of garlic and onions, both of which help our bodies to fight disease. Other antiviral/antibacterial foods include ginger, aloe vera, kelp (seaweed), cloves, yogurt, pineapple, coconut oil, oregano, basil, raw honey, Echinacea (found at your local health food store) … there are SEVERAL!
8. Take Colloidal Silver. Okay, so this is a pretty controversial one. It is something that we have chosen to do with our family, but I highly recommend doing the research on it yourself before you try it. We have used it to immediately get rid of sore throats, pink eye, and other infections. During flu season, we each take about a teaspoon a day. Instead of paying $30 for a 2 oz. bottle, we invested in a Colloidal Silver Generator a few years back and I am SO thankful that we did! After the initial investment, we can make colloidal silver for just the cost of Distilled Water.
NOTE: Please don’t send me nasty hate comments/emails about colloidal silver.
9. Have Oscillococcinum, Sambucol, and Zinc on hand to take at the first sign of symptoms. I heard just yesterday about a doctor that recommends Oscillococcinum over Tamiflu! And with the Tamiflu shortages, it might be wise to have this on hand just in case. A 6 dose box will cost you around $10, and you can get it at most health food stores and at Walmart. Sambucol is a natural Black Elderberry supplement that can be found at almost any drug store or health food store. Both of these are known in the “natural/homeopathic world” for dramatically shortening the length of cold and flu symptoms.
As I said at the beginning of this article, these are things that WE are doing. You, of course, have to make the decisions you feel are best for your family.
If you are into natural remedies like I am, you can find more information on naturally dealing with diseases HERE and HERE.
Please feel free to add any other ways that you are preparing for the flu or your favorite natural remedy links in the comments section.
Disclaimer: The information on this site is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please confirm any information obtained from or through this web site with other sources, and review all information regarding any medical condition or treatment with your physician. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking medical treatment because of something you have read on this website. This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, or cure any disease.
Yikes! Didn’t know that about dairy. My girls drink milk and eat yogurt by the ton! We need to change that for the winter!
Thanks for a GREAT, informative post. I like your ideas… and you are going to have to tell me more about this colloidial silver generator!
All of hte ideas are great, but beware of collodial silver. Here is an article about the possible side effects:
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/500255/argyria_and_colloidal_silver.html?cat=70
It can cause irreversible effects on skin color. Just be careful!
@L Shepherd, Which is why everyone needs to do the research for themselves and come to a conclusion that they feel comfortable with for their family.
Thanks for posting your article!
Also, as with any medication, never take more than the recommended amount. The recommended amount for colloidal silver is about a teaspoon. Those that have had adverse reactions to it typically drink it by the glass over a long period of time.
I take Airborne (and it’s off-brand versions) often and I make sure to NEVER touch my face in public unless A. it’s necessary or B. I know my hands are clean. Just combining this with lots of sleep and water has kept me well…except for when my husband got sick a few weeks ago which pretty much always guarantees me getting sick. Ah well.
I would LOVE to know your experiences with colloidal silver. I’ve heard of it, but I’ve never spoken to someone who swears by it. Tell me all about it! lol
Feel free to email me
Rachel, I love your blog (it’s the only one I read daily) but as a dietetics major, a lot of this advice makes me cringe.
1. You should drink 8-12 8oz glasses of water a day, not half your body weight. That would cause water poisoning.
4. Americans do not get enough dairy in general, so advising people to cut back in not a great idea. The mucus our body produces is there for our protection. It captures pathogens to prevent them from getting into our respiratory system. It is not a bad thing. And while dairy can slightly increase the production, that does not counteract the benefits of dairy. Furthermore, dairy products with active beneficial bacteria BOOST immune system responses.
6. and 9. Vitamins and minerals are best (have the highest bioavailability) when taken in foods. If you eat a balanced diet, and are a typical healthy person, you are more than likely getting your recommended daily intake of vitamins and minerals. More vitamins and minerals is not better. There are toxicity levels for everyone we consume. Taking new vitamins is like taking any pharmaceutical, only to be done under the supervision of a trained professional (in this cast, ideally a dietitian, but a physician is okay). This is especially true for fat soluble vitamins, such as Vitamin D. Because they are fat soluble, they are stored in the body (unlike water soluble vitamins, which we pee out when we get too much to a certain point). Because it is stored, not excreted, this greatly increases the risk of toxicity. Taking a multivitamin for a typical, healthy adult is fine, but be very wary of adding on other individual vitamins without professional supervision.
@Elli, Thank you so much for your comments!
If you don’t mind, I would like to respond.
1. Sorry about the confusion with the water. I forgot the crucial words “in ounces” in my second sentence. I didn’t forget to put ounces in my example, though, so hopefully everyone got the point. Everyone should drink between 64 – 96 ounces a day, which typically falls into the “half your body weight in ounces” category. Again, sorry about the confusion there.
4. I am in complete agreement that we do not need to be cutting back on the “active beneficial bacteria” forms of dairy such as yogurt. These are crucial for our well-being, and I mentioned it in #7 as an antibacterial food as well. As far as dairy in general goes, I guess we’ll just have to agree to disagree.
The doctors that I trust recommend raw, unpasteurized milk as a source of nutrients, but warn to stay away from the ultra-pasteurized forms that we have on the shelf today. I know many doctors disagree on this point though, so it’s not something I would argue. Again, it’s something that we have read about and are doing with our family.
6. & 9. – Since we are staying inside a good portion of the time, I do not feel that our family is getting enough Vitamin D3. We are taking only the recommended dose, and I would recommend for others to only take what their healthcare provider recommends as well. I try to stay away from recommending dosage amounts on here.
I agree that the best form of vitamins is in food, but with the way most Americans eat, this just doesn’t happen.
For clarification purposes, this is what we take every day (in addition to eating healthy): A multi-vitamin, a super-fruit chewable, a super-veggies chewable, a drop of Vitamin D3 (the recommended dose) and fish oil. I also take Apple Cider Vinegar in addition to the above (it has completely cured my eczema!)
Thank you so much for your input, and yes, I completely agree (thus my disclaimer at the end of the post) that everyone should consult with their healthcare provider before trying anything new.
I heard that gargling salt water helps kill any germs in your throat that can cause illness. That is a pretty simple thing that doesn’t hurt to do.
ELLI I understand that you are a dietetics major and that is great for you. I have to say that my 90 yr old grandmother can teach us ALL a little something. She does not take ANY Rx. and is big on fruits and veggies with little meat. Her #1 thing is a shoe box FULL of vitamins. If I told you how many and what kind of vitamins you would pass out and think she is crazy!!!! But I must say again she is healthy and not on any meds. and did I mention she is 90 yrs old? I understand what you are taught in school is nice but living poof is better! Be WISE and PRAYERFUL!