Winter is coming.

As the days get shorter and colder, more people will find that they start to feel worse

– perhaps symptom wise, mood wise, and / or get a cold.

But can we do anything to help minimise the chances of this?

In the UK its estimated that the average adult will suffer 2-4 colds each year. 

The body is normally able to fight most colds off in 5-14 days, meaning that a fair chunk of your life can be spent experiencing colds which are never much fun, impacting all areas of life.

The reason it has not been possible, to date, to create a cure for the common cold is that more than 200 viruses have been identified that can result in a cold, and these are constantly evolving.  

A drug that manages to target one of these viruses wouldn’t necessarily be effective for all the others.

But it is worth considering what can be done to help mimimise the chance of picking up a cold in the first place, and then once you do have it, reducing the length of time you suffer with it for.

Supporting (not “boosting”) your immune system is a really critical step in doing that as ultimately it is this which helps to protect us 24/7 against the bugs that our bodies are constantly faced with.

Normally when we get a cold its because our immune system is weakened in some way and so hasn’t been able to protect you as well as it needs to.  

That weakening can occur for many reasons (including stress, lack of sleep, poor diet, infections and the use of immunosuppressing drugs).

Here’s some ways to help…

Sleep

A lack of sleep can seriously compromise your immune system.

For most people 7-9 hours is appropriate but the quality of that sleep is also important.

Sleeping through the night, without waking, for example, can make a huge difference.

Diet 

A good, nutritious diet, preferably with plenty of fruit and veg, can be very important for your immune system.

It can be very easy to build up deficiencies to certain important vitamins and minerals, which can be very important for overall health and your immune system, and the diet should be the first place you start to address that.

Vitamins A, B12, C and D, as well as Folate and Zinc, have all been shown, for example, to contribute towards the normal function of the immune system, all of which are found in their most effective forms in our multivitamin.

This is one reason why we offer our “Advanced Multi” as it can help to act as an important insurance policy against nutrient deficiencies.

Friendly Bacteria

Products which help to boost levels of friendly bacteria have been linked with helping to support the immune system.  

There’s no doubt that gut health is critical for overall health, and the bacteria in our gut plays a big part in that.

Alcohol

I’m not suggesting that alcohol needs to be cut out completely but its worth being aware of the fact that excessive alcohol consumption, especially when binge drinking, can suppress some parts of the immune system.

Reduce Stress

When I think about the times I personally have picked up a cold or a bug, 90% of the time I would say its where I’ve been through a period of stress in the days beforehand.  

It is very clear that stress suppresses the immune system and that leaves you very exposed to picking up colds and other issues.,

Therefore, taking steps to reduce stress are very important.

Exercise

Studies have shown that regular exercise can, over time, strengthen your immune system.

You have to be careful to get the balance right though – doing too much (or not getting enough rest) can weaken the immune system, so balance here is very important.

Cleanliness

Taking simple steps such as making sure you always wash your hands, keep your environment clean, preparing food properly, etc is really important for avoiding picking up bugs.

This becomes especially the case if a member of your household starts to come down with a cold, and you want to avoid it. Wiping down surfaces regularly to avoid germs being spread can really help.

I really hope that helps.

To find out more about our Advanced Multi then click here, and for our range of supplement that can help support immunity then visit https://autoimmuneinstitute.com/collections/immunity