Monday, January 14, 2008

Cold and flu season - although it does seem to be all year sometimes

What do you do to prevent colds and flu in your neck of the woods? There is, of course, the old "wash your hands properly" way. I wrote a post on hand washing last August; you can read that post here: Handwashing.

For influenza, my regular readers know that I'm pro-vaccine, but if you have influenza as you're reading this; it's obviously too late. Many people wonder why we can't come up with a vaccine for colds too. The problem with that is there are so many cold viruses, that it's not an easy task. I wonder if it ever will be viable.

In our house, I discovered Airborne, the supplement put together by a teacher who was fed up with getting sick all the time. I bought it the first time when I was in California in 2006. I looked for it specifically, because we don't have it here in Montreal. I bought it and fell in love with my new cold prevention method.

I had tried Cold FX, which some people swear by, but I found that it just made my colds worse. It held off my cold for a while but then when I stopped taking it, I'd get one of the worst colds ever. So, I tried the Airborne. I haven't had a cold since. Once home, I could only find the generic kind, so I tried that. It worked for me too. So, now I'm convinced that it works for me.

Placebo effect, maybe? I don't know and to tell you the truth, even if it is, that's ok with me!

News for Today: (not much to pick from!)

Tips for boosting your immune system

HPV infections common in women with one partner

Ruling loosens regulations for medical marijuana (Canada)

3 comments:

Crabby McSlacker said...

I don't know if it's just getting older or if it's an accumulation of healthy habits, but I don't seem to get colds (or flu) anymore. Every now and then I get the ominous scratchy throat thing--but I nuke it with vitamin C supplements for a few days and it goes away rather than turning into anything.

(I know I've seen studies saying loading up on C doesn't help, but I'm like you--if it's a placebo and it works for me, what the heck.)

Terrie Farley Moran said...

Hi Marijke,

As a diabetic, I am always interested in anything that is supposed to help the immune system.

A while back, I was at Kennedy airport in NY and they were giving out free samples of Airborne. I took it, liked it and didn't get sick after that flight, so I am a believer although my drug of choice is still Zinc.

Terrie

Marijke Vroomen-Durning said...

Hi Crabby and Terrie,

I figure, if it isn't hurting and can help, why not give it a try, right? I haven't tried Zinc yet. I did try big doses of vitamin C for a while, but it was only partly effective for me.