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10 Natural Tips To Boost Immunity This Winter

Posted: 11/15/11 07:00 AM ET

Flu season is headed our way and in a few weeks many will suffer, but you don't have to be one of them if you start boosting immunity now. Here are 10 simple ways to prep your body so it's strong enough to repel viral invaders all winter long.

Best wishes for a flu-free winter!

1. DO Your Ds.
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Adequate levels of Vitamin D are essential for our immune systems to function the way it is designed to. Unfortunately, there are no significant dietary sources of Vitamin D -- most of our intake comes from exposure to sunlight. To optimize your Vitamin D levels, you'll need to take a Vitamin D3 supplement daily. This is the most important step you can take to prevent the flu!

To find out how much Vitamin D you'll need, get your 25 hydroxy Vitamin D level checked by your doctor. If that's not an option, you can self-test your level with ZRT labs. For optimal health, you'll want your level to be between 50 and 70ng/ml. It may require several months of taking 5,000 - 10,000 IU of Vit D3 daily (especially during winter) under a doctor's supervision to achieve this -- but it will be well worth the effort.

Monitor your 25 hydroxy Vitamin D status every three months until you are in the desired 50 and 70ng/ml range, then cut back to a maintenance dose of at least 2,000 IU a day.
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Flu season is headed our way and in a few weeks many will suffer, but you don't have to be one of them if you start boosting immunity now. Here are 10 simple ways to prep your body so it's strong enou...
Flu season is headed our way and in a few weeks many will suffer, but you don't have to be one of them if you start boosting immunity now. Here are 10 simple ways to prep your body so it's strong enou...
 
 
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kokobell616
Your micro-bio is pending approval
07:01 PM on 11/19/2011
Why is it that a doctor dose not include nutrition as a way to fight off the common illnesses that afflict most of us. I am surely stumped by the insistence that man made curatives are the answer to slight discomfort or infections. Most of us have had rudimentary instruction on healthy living as instructed by others in a teaching profession.
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madcityy
12:41 PM on 11/17/2011
DO THISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
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sabelmouse
my micro bio is emty
06:35 AM on 11/17/2011
sensible advice although lettuce is not a wintergreen .
11:59 AM on 11/16/2011
Great advice!
I tell my patients to prevent germs from entering their bodies with two important practices: 1) wash hands frequently with soap and warm water, and 2) keep your hands away from your face.

Of course, it’s impossible to completely avoid coming in contact with all germs. This is why it's important to build a healthy immune system, so it can fight off any germs it may encounter. An ideal way to strengthen your immune system is through the use of nutritional supplements. One such supplement is an immunity formula called Body Guard, by Vitalmax Vitamins, which is a favorite of mine- http://www.vitalmaxvitamins.com/ourproducts/bodyguard/

For more information, check out one of my articles on flu prevention: http://www.healthyanswers.com/general-health/2009/11/guard-against-colds-and-flu-with-a-strong-immune-system/
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
No death panels
There's no man with a trumpet. Only me.
05:56 PM on 11/16/2011
"An ideal way to strengthen your immune system is through the use of nutritiona­l supplement­s. One such supplement is an immunity formula called Body Guard, by Vitalmax Vitamins, which is a favorite of mine- http://www­.vitalmaxv­itamins.co­m/ourprodu­cts/bodygu­ard/"

a.)This is spam
b.)Scrolling down your link, below your picture, it says, "These products are not intended to diagnose, prevent, treat, or cure any disease." What are they intended for? And why are you wearing a nurse's stethoscope?
08:43 AM on 11/16/2011
Drink herbal tea with lemon and honey.
01:42 AM on 11/16/2011
Flu. Shot. Is it that hard?
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ddanimal
11:17 PM on 11/16/2011
Here is one the problems with the flu shot:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19740540

The other problem with the flu shot is that it has never been tested in a randomized controlled trial. There are significant confounders int he studies that have been done, like selection bias. People that get the flu shot tend to do other things to prevent sickness, so they appear healthier. This bias is strong enough to account for most of the supposed effect of the flu vaccine, and maybe all of it (i.e. to the point where the vaccine effect is not statistically significant).
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onionboy
Blessed are the Cheese Makers
12:50 AM on 11/16/2011
When the first "natural" suggestion was to take pills, I quit reading.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
No death panels
There's no man with a trumpet. Only me.
08:16 AM on 11/16/2011
Some people are so cynical. I know it seems like a lot of "woo", but look at the endorsements Dr. Lipman has http://www.bewellbydrfranklipman.com/testimonials/.
I think he is on to something.
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ddanimal
01:50 PM on 11/16/2011
Vitamin D is a natural substance. The vitamin D in supplements is exactly identical to vitamin D produced in the body and obtained in the diet.
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onionboy
Blessed are the Cheese Makers
02:14 PM on 11/16/2011
Aluminum is a natural substance. Cyanide is a natural substance. Mercury is a natural substance.

And a pill is not a natural source of anything, good or bad.
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06:07 PM on 11/15/2011
Flu shot I have not got one for a few years to many strains of virues in my opion take vit C and eat right use hand sanatiz::: also boiling fresh Ginsing in a pot let it simmer throughthe kitchen ect,,, takes germs out you can find it in produce section fresh:) good luck !!
02:21 PM on 11/15/2011
Don't forget Vitamin C ... much better than depending on flu shots
01:44 PM on 11/15/2011
No known cures for the cold and flu, however.

Mindset, vitamins, aerobic exercise never hurt.

Barat zich mit vemen du vilst; un tu miten aigenem saichel!

-Yiddish quote.
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ddanimal
04:49 PM on 11/15/2011
Vitamin C is a cure for the cold and flu, as proven in placebo-controlled randomized trials.
robertaruth
The answer is in the music
05:21 PM on 11/15/2011
There's no "cure" for the common cold and flu. It has to run its course and the best you can do is get plenty of rest, stay hydrated and eat chicken soup.
06:53 PM on 11/16/2011
Except for endurance athletes in stressed situations, no.
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madcityy
12:27 PM on 11/15/2011
do it
11:54 AM on 11/15/2011
My wife and I have three children, all below the age of 10. I have been taking increased levels of Vitamin D for several winters. Last winter all three of my children took Vitamin D supplements for the first time and not one of them got sick - not a cold, nothing. Anyone who disputes the medical facts plus the countless stories is just "not wanting to see this clearly".
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11:47 AM on 11/15/2011
Here are a few more tips & tricks (in list format, so very easy to read) from a mom who has been around the block a few times when it comes to her health as well as all the germs children bring home from school. Definitely worth a read.

Ideas for Boosting Your Immune System & Staying Healthy
http://www.skinnyscoop.com/list/Erin/ideas-for-boosting-your-immune-system-staying-healthy
garystartswithg
el sueno de la razon produce republicans
10:59 AM on 11/15/2011
garlic's antiviral properties cook out and break down after a few hours. try gazpacho or guacamole with extra garlic. i make a quickie version of white gazpacho -- just put 3 cloves of garlic in the blender, a generous pour of olive oil and turn on the blender. stream in some almond milk , maybe 2/3 a cup, you aren't making a giant smoothie, its not the most pleasant of drinks , the idea is to get the garlic down. works great on head/sinus infections that antibiotics miss. if you do this maybe 4-6 times a day it will clean you out better than anything else you ever tried. bombs away!
12:28 PM on 11/15/2011
Awesome. I tried telling people to eat garlic and other healthy food ilo the flu shot and they WWW.lynched me!! haha.
garystartswithg
el sueno de la razon produce republicans
01:06 PM on 11/15/2011
garlic produces an enzyme called allycin when its flesh is broken, its assumed its to keep critters from eating it in the wild. i have no idea why but the the garlic/olive oil/almond milk won't make you shriek in horror from the raw garlic. i love ajo blanco -- i just made the above rendition and it works great for getting raw garlic down.
most of my friends want to still go to doctors and pay too much for antibiotics, i don't much care. with proper food i have gotten people over all kinds of colds and flus in less than 48 hrs. two other quick tips -- homemade onion soup -- hold the cheesey top -- onions are full of sulfer, so much they can kill dogs and cats, we are blessed with better insides., and alka seltzer -- its a co2 bomb. most things won't survive.
10:19 AM on 11/15/2011
Frankly, Vitamin D and probiotics is just kidding yourself. A healthy diet, exercise, a proper night's sleep (which you're more likely to get if yoyu eat properly and exercise) are basics the being fit enough to fight off an infection once you've got it. You won't avoid infection, though.

If you really must avoid the 'flu, for yourself or the sake of those around you, either never go out in public or else get the 'flu shot.
12:55 PM on 11/15/2011
you are wrong anarchic teapot. I was an international airline pilot for 34 years and in the beginning got the flu quite regularly due to being exposed to unhealthy conditions all over the world. I started taking supplements recommended by the Nobel prize winner Linus Pauling in 1970 and have not had the flu or any other illness since. Supplements work but they must be taken regularly. By the way, I avoid flu shots like the plague- and any other prescription drugs for that matter. Physicians treat symptoms and it is in their interest (financially) not to have healthy people.
01:45 PM on 11/15/2011
Lucky you for not getting the flu (or had it so mild you didn't realise you'd caught it). The vitamins didn't prevent anything. Supplements don't work, unless you have a deficiency. Recent studies tend to show that taking unnecessary supplements can be harmful.

Please note that Linus Pauling was not an immunologist or virologist, so his Nobel Prize is quite irrelevant in this precise case.

It's sad you buy into the "doctors make people sick to get rich" conspiracy nonsense. Doctors treat illnesses not symptoms (that's a lie put about by magic water salesmen). For people in whose financial interest it is not to have healthy people, my doctors seem abnormally keen to keep and my family out of their surgeries for as long as possible.

I have my flu vaccination annually, take the prescription meds which keep me alive (they don't cost much), and refuse to line the pockets of the alt-med and supplements vendors.
07:34 PM on 11/17/2011
"A meta-analysis of 30 placebo-controlled prevention trials found that vitamin C supplementation in doses up to 2 grams/day did not decrease the incidence of colds"

"vitamin C is ineffective as a prophylactic against the common cold."

From the Linus Pauling Institute:
http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/vitamins/vitaminC/
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ddanimal
03:10 PM on 11/15/2011
You are 100% wrong about vitamin D.
03:58 PM on 11/15/2011
One small study showed that Japanese schoolchildren might be *slightly* less vulnerable to influenza A if they take D3 supplements. There is no proof it can help significantly, and it may not provide any extra resistance against influenza B later in the season.

The usual caveats about only taking supplements under medical supervision were repeated: you can overdose on fat-soluble vitamins like D