- Avoid sugar. This is number 1 because it’s that important! Consumption of sugar (even fruit sugars) can decrease your immune system by 30% for up to 4 hours.
- Sign up for the Winter Wellness treatment, what I like to call the Chinese flu shot
- Get acupuncture. It is especially effective when your acupuncturist performs moxabustion on your immune boosting point.
- Vitamin D – 3-5000 iu/day even in the summer if you are low. It’s a good idea to get tested. There are “normal” levels and then there are optimal levels, try to stay around 50 for optimal.
- Eat plenty of mushrooms, especially Reishi, Shitake, Maitake mushrooms. Or, you can take a immune boosting mushroom supplement.
- Improve your sleep and get plenty of rest. Schedule in downtime, if you need to.
- Keep facial orifices clean and clear:
- Nose: use a Neti Pot or Nasopure with salt water.
- Ears: Put 3-4 hydrogen peroxide drops in each ear while laying on your side. Let it sizzle then fade before dabbing it with a tissue. Repeat other side.
- Throat: gargle with hydrogen peroxide and water.
- Face: Change your pillow case every night if you do get sick.
- Mouth: Pour boiling water over your toothbrush every day.
- Take probiotics – 1-2 capsules a day, change your brand/strand of bacteria every 3 months (My teacher used to say you’ve “gotta keep your gut guessing”).
- Get cupping from your local acupuncturist or trained massage therapist. This has been used for thousands of years to boost the immune system.
- Eat one clove of fresh garlic daily (cooking destroys much of the immune boosting properties).
- Drink elderberry tea daily or several times a day.
- Vitamin C – minimum 1 gram a day but can take up to “bowel tolerance” (which means if you get diarrhea, you’ve taken too much).
- Take 1-2 Zinc-Elderberry-Vitamin C lozenges per day during cold/flu season.
- Take adrenal support if colds happen when you get run down; weak adrenals can really decrease immunity.
