Every year as the summer starts to feel like a distant memory and life seems to be consumed with work and home duties, you find yourself surrounded with people getting the flu.  With the pressure to keep up on all fronts, the last thing you need is to be sidelined by a bout of fever, aches, congestion and physical misery. Whether you get the flu shot or not, you can still be knockdown by it.

According to the director of Centre for Disease Control (CDC), Dr. Tom Frieden, last year, the vaccine’s effectiveness rate against the H3N2 strain was just 13 percent.  Normally, the flu vaccine is between 50 to 60 percent effective 

There’s no quicker way to erase the rejuvenation of summer than to get sick as it gets colder and darker.

With just a little proactive empowerment you can turn yourself into a cold and flu season warrior!

They call it flu season for a reason.

Multiple things are adding up to make you more likely to go down. You are bombarded by “friends” and strangers getting too close to you in between blocking coughs with their hands and blowing their noses.

Colds and the flu can be can be caught in several ways.

Most experts believe that flu viruses spread mainly by droplets made when people with flu cough, sneeze or talk. These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby. Less often, a person might also get the flu by touching a surface or object that has flu virus on it and then touching their own mouth, eyes or possibly their nose.

When it comes to the flu, it is highly likely that you will be exposed to it and the flu shot is not guaranteed prevention.

You need to turn your body into a suit of armor by supercharging your immune system.  A strong immune system is constantly maintaining your health and defending you from outside invaders which requires multiple body systems to work well.  This is the real difference between a hard flu season and making it to the spring unscathed.

Here are 7 ways you can strengthen your immune system, improve your functioning and roundhouse kick flu season’s attempt to knock you out:

1. Nutrition

Let Food Be Thy Medicine and Medicine Be Thy Food – Hippocrates

As summer fades away, often our good nutrition goes with it.  More people tend to eat fresh fruit and vegetables in the summer and watch their weight by eating cleaner foods and drinking more water.  With the change of seasons, people start leaning toward comfort foods, have a harder time eating larger quantities of fresh produce and care less about their waistline as the colder weather lends itself to being more clothed.

From antioxidants to amino acids that actually assist the body in fighting dis-ease and building new healthy cells, good nutrition is vital for health.  While you can get by on poor food choices for awhile, it’s only a matter of time before the build blocks in your body start to fail.  Maintaining the right diet for a strong immune system requires greater attention in the Fall.

ACTION:

1. Increase your vegetable intake by adding 2 EXTRA servings to your daily intake each day in the form of salads, smoothies, stir-fries, juicing, etc.   Embrace the Fall harvest veggies, like squash, pumpkin, and others.
2. Consider supplements if you suspect deficiencies or even get tested for micronutrient levels, for example, vitamin D, magnesium, zinc, etc.  Gaps here will cause the body to work harder to maintain homeostasis and tax your immune system that needs to be robust to fight the onslaught of viruses.

2. Movement

Lack of activity destroys the good condition of every human being, while movement and methodical physical exercise save it and preserve it – Plato

With a return to Fall schedules, sedentary habits increase.  Through the good weather, especially with more time off, people tend to be more active and get into better shape.  A body in motion and pumping fresh blood and oxygen is stronger in every way.  Exercise itself is a form of detoxification and improves everything from brain function to mood to cellular health, which all lead to a better immune system.

The lymphatic system requires movement to work and this is key to immune function.

ACTION:  Make the effort to keep up exercise, walk outside, break up long periods of sitting and be aware of getting trapped into back to back screen marathons, i.e., from smartphone to computer to TV to tablet.

Action:

1. Set the timer at work or at home and make sure to get up every 30 minutes and move your body by doing a few sets of jumping jacks, go for a 5-10 minute walk outside or to the washroom and back, listen to a favourite tune and dance.
2. Gym sessions and dedicated activities are not enough to maintain great health.  By doing little things like walking to work, taking the stairs, talking on the phone standing up and making choices that lean towards greater activity in day to day tasks will far outweigh an isolated hour of exercise each day.

3. Light

The function of our entire metabolism is dependent on light – Dr. Fritz Albert Popp

Shorter daylight hours, more time inside and colder weather reduce our sun exposure and our vitamin D levels.  Vitamin D is often regarded as the most essential hormone, (no, it’s not a vitamin), for the immune system, cancer prevention and so many other crucial aspects of health.  While you can supplement, vitamin D from the sun is the most effective form.

Getting out even when there are fewer daylight hours is especially important.  It is equally important to limit artificial light when you should be winding down and sleeping.  Being in rhythm with the natural light cycles both increases metabolic function and allows the body the most effective form of recovery – sleep.

ACTION:

1. Strive to get some sunlight first thing in the morning, even if it’s only 5-10 minutes.  Get out at lunch and take an afternoon break for another healthy exposure.  Get some extra on your days off.
2.  Practice good sleep hygiene and reduce your blue light exposure after 9 pm.  Sleep in as dark and quiet room as possible.  This allows your body to make enough melatonin for sleep to rejuvenate, detoxify and de-stress your body.

4. Energy

The world belongs to the energetic – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Often Fall sees the excitement of summer dwindle, and in turn, so does our enthusiasm and adventurous spirit.  With people getting back into the grind, side projects, personal learning, and activities can be dismissed for time management’s sake.  Without some excitement and newness in our life, energy starts to lull.

The “blahs” are not just a psychological downer, they can affect our decision making, our resilience and our energy reserves which all tend to spiral up or down depending on our prevailing attitude.  It might sound unscientific but there’s plenty of evidence to proof that people jazzed about their life get sick less, get better quicker and don’t go down as hard either.

ACTION:

1. Take up a fall/winter project, class or work on a skill.  Pick back up a passion from your past.  Do something that will have you waking up excited and lead to better choices (e.g. getting enough sleep, eating for energy not comfort, etc.) so you have the energy to keep up your new focus.

5. Attitude

I have decided to be happy because it is good for my health – Voltaire

Generally, summer is more carefree for most of us than the rest of the year.  When we are exposed to others who are feeling the escalating  pressures of work, school, etc., we can adopt a higher baseline of stress.

You might not have any control of the added pressures you face at work, home or in life but you do have control of your attitude.  With the right perspective, you maintain a “glass-is-half-full” outlook and improve your body’s ability to stay healthy.

Techniques such as meditation, gratitude journaling, movement, listening to music and helping others all have been shown to lower stress and cortisol, boost mental health and alter brain waves, neurotransmitters and oxygen profusion leading to a robust immune system.

ACTION:

1. Begin a simple meditation practice (refer to the C.R.E.A.T.E. Your Day Method)
2. Take 5 minutes each morning and write down 3 things you are grateful for in a journal
3. Set triggers to lighten your mood.  E.g. As soon as you get out of your car at work, put a smile on (even a fake one) and notice how your attitude can change

6. Connection

The power of community to create health is far greater than any physician, clinic or hospital – Dr. Mark Hyman

Socializing and enjoying events in the community peaks in the summer for most of us.  Going back to the grind can result in more isolation, less camaraderie, and laughter.  Similarly, to the Energy and Attitude, Connection improves the mental and emotional health of all of us and directly impacts our physical wellbeing as well.

Whether it is spending time with friends, being part of a community, feeling connected to nature or a bigger cause/mission, all are crucial to realizing our full potential as humans.  We are social creatures.  We are intertwined with the natural world around us and we feel best when we are part of something meaningful.

In the busyness of our lives, we can become isolated, disconnected and reject our place and our purpose.  People who lack friends and meaningful tasks to keep them busy are challenged by physical and mental health difficulties more than those that don’t.  Depression, hypertension, and stress management can all be positively affected by connection to people, nature, and purpose.

ACTION:

1. Get out in nature and feel how all living things are dependent on each other.
2. Carve out hard dates on your calendar for socializing and connecting with people and things that are important to you but not part of your regular routine.  By having and realizing you have a support network, you will remain healthier and more resilient throughout challenging times.

7. Balance

Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated – Confucius

Often, we work hard, give ourselves wholeheartedly to help others and neglect to balance this out with self-care.  If we were to take a step back and do an inventory of all the advice we give to others we care about, I bet we’d notice that most of this good advice is seldom put into play for ourselves.  Balancing out the efforts you put into work and friends and family with the effort you place on your own self-care is often neglected.

Sometimes saying “no” at work or to friends is key to having the time to do what you need to do for your own health.  Finding the right balance of nutrition, movement, light, energy, attitude, and connection for you as a unique individual is the art of self-care and at the base of the maxim: “know thy self”.

ACTION: The best rescuers, and those who are of any use to others, have first made sure they are safe (e.g. their oxygen mask is down and over their mouth), prior to helping those around them.

Action:

1. Spend some time and figure out where you are in each of the 6 areas outlined above.  On a scale of 1 to 10, label each.  Now look at which areas are lacking, it’s time to put more effort into those.  Be honest.  Be selfish because if you are not, you won’t be any good to anyone else either.

THE TAKE HOME:

A strong immune system is your best bet to being bombproof against the constant attacks and exposures you can’t avoid.  Boost it with physical, mental and emotional levers and you’ll be the most vibrant, energized and happiest one at the office and the office holiday party

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Now it’s your turn.  What can you do to keep the flu at bay?  Do you utilize any of these techniques to improve your resilience?  Let me know in the comments below.