Every year, December seems to creep up on us and we find ourselves rushing around, trying to make the holidays just perfect for our families. With all the extra pressure we place on ourselves, it’s no wonder we tire ourselves out and end up feeling run down and sick. Throw in all the extra socializing during winter’s classic cold and flu season and the odds are stacked against getting to the end of the year in good health.
Happily, there are steps that we can take to keep our immune system strong:
- Wash your hands. This may be basic information but Mom was right: washing your hands with soap and water helps prevent spreading the cold or flu virus. Aim to scrub hands for at least 20 seconds. And contrary to what is generally believed, hotter water doesn’t kill germs and bacteria better than cooler water. A recent study by Vanderbilt University found that washing hands well and often is more important than the temperature of the water used.
- Don’t forget the vitamins. Eating well is tough at the best of times but throw in the endless errands that are part-and-parcel of the holiday season and it’s easy to find ourselves missing dinner and staring into an empty fridge at 10 o’clock at night. Now’s the time to keep up with your regular supplements, including vitamin D, the “liquid sunshine” that has been shown to enhance the body’s immune responses.
- Find the time to exercise. Not only will regular exercise help balance out the extra calories that we are bound to consume over the next few weeks but staying active also improves overall health and the ability to fight off germs. The theory is that regular exercise stimulates circulation and blood flow, thus increasing the movement of immune cells within the body. This allows them to better search and destroy invading germs and viruses.
- Get more sleep. Think of this as preventive medicine. Allowing ourselves to get run down lowers your ability to fight off illness. Many studies have indicated that sleep deprivation lowers the production of T-cells, a type of white blood cell that searches out cellular abnormalities and infections. In fact, a 2009 study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine concluded that poor sleep habits lower our resistance to fighting off the common cold. The subjects who averaged less than 7 hours of sleep every night were almost 3 times more likely to develop a cold than those who averaged at least 8 hours of snooze time.
- Relax. Chronic stress leaves the immune system unable to respond normally, producing levels of inflammation that allow illness to flourish. One way to lower stress levels is by treating yourself to a massage. Researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles discovered that even a single Swedish massage can have profound effects: a decrease in cortisol (stress hormone) and an increase in lymphocytes (white blood cells that are part of the immune system).
So, take a deep breath this holiday, relax and stay strong. Realize that not everything has to be perfect. Family and friends will remember the time spent together and not necessarily the food, decorations or gifts.
