The FLU SHOT...WOW now there is a topic we can go back and forth on forever. Does it really work? Do I even need it? Will the potential side effects out weigh the gains? Let me see I could be sick for a week or I could get a risky flu shot. (I am not even going to start on the H1N1 vaccine that is just a bees nest waiting to be poked.) So let us avoid all those topics, I will let you research that on your own and consult with your personnel health care provider, so you can make up your own mind. What we really need to talk about is, keeping your immune system as healthy as possible and functioning to its' fullest potential. With that, you will have a great defense system already in place, no matter what attacks your body.
So here it goes- Your immune system is a complex system that can learn and grow with us as we get older and have different environmental stresses affect our body. In order to grow and remember how to fight off attacks, so they do not affect us again, our immune system needs to stay strong. In just the same way that our skin darkens in response to increased levels of sun exposure to protect us against harmful UV rays, our immune system bulks up to fight off infections. But unlike our skin which goes back to its normal color after being out of the sun for a few weeks, our immune system does not regress completely, IT REMEMBERS, that is, if we feed it, nourish it, and love it.
Immune System Vitamin
To be, or not to be Healthy that is the question: Well, not really, we all want to be healthy, it is just a matter of focusing on the important parts and not getting to wrapped up in all the details. So let us focus on the basics, vitamins, because there are so many places we could start. For this topic we are going to focus on the main vitamins that help our immune system. Vitamin C is easy to get, just drink your orange juice, not from concentrate of course. Most other fruits you eat will help you with that one as well. Vitamin D is usually easy to get all we need to do is to get some sun and play a round of golf every week, but wait a second, what about us stranded up here in the frozen north. Well, milk is fortified with it, so that helps, but cod liver oil supplement is a better way along with eating eggs and other fish. Omega- 3 has numerous health benefits, but one of those is improved immune function. Omega-3 is found in fish oils and also as supplements. So if you love sushi or just hate fish all together there are ways to get your omega-3s'.
Another important focusing point is probiotics. Probiotics are very important, 80% of your immunity comes form your digestive system and if anyone has ever taken antibiotics you have wiped out the good defensive bacteria along with the bad and need to replace it. You get probiotics from fermented foods such as yogurt, the only problem is that today's yogurts and other dairy products have been ultra pasteurized and the probiotic level is very low, so, it is important to either eat organic yogurt or take a probiotic supplement, to allow the digestive system to do what it does best, break down organic material we can use and get ride of all the other junk.
Finally, Exercise....Exercise.... Exercise....Three times a week. Our bodies whether you know it or not thrive on being active. I suggest getting a physical before undergoing any radical new exercise programs, but just walking a few miles three times a week is better than nothing at all and will help you stay healthy. Exercise helps keep the circulatory system functioning properly which is important in delivering the immune complexes to different areas of your body and it removes the waste. It also helps keep the respiratory system, your lungs, functioning at their best. This helps keep your body oxygenated and strong. So if you are anything like me, you love to eat and if you are even more like me you have a hard time remembering to take your vitamins. So what I do to avoid all those cooties is just remember what I learned in grade school, eat plenty of fruits and all your vegetables, play chase at recess, and get plenty of sleep to heal and recharge for tomorrow.
Oh wait one more thing, get ADJUSTED. Keeping the nervous system functioning properly in turn keeps the immune system at the top of is game. Since the nervous system is the major information system of our body any decrease in its' function can have a direct affect on the other systems of the body including the immune systems potential to fight off harmful infections. So it is important to get to your local Chiropractor today, get your spine checked, and get adjusted.