Your body is an incredible complex of systems. Your lifestyle choices and behaviors will determine how well those systems function, especially your immune system.

If you’re trying to make a change to your body, be it building more muscle, burning fat, jumping higher, running faster, or just keeping up with your kids, staying healthy is key to your progress and maintenance. Your health is the summation of the thousands of daily choices you make that have an impact on how well you are.

What follows in this post are very specific recommendations backed by a LOT of scientific evidence on ways to avoid getting sick and what do you when you are sick to speed your recovery.

1. NO SUGAR

You know how you’re supposed to take Vitamin C when you have a cold? A lot of people think this is just pseudo-science, but taking large doses of Vitamin C does boost immune function. Without Vitamin C, your white blood cells can’t function properly and clear out the invaders that are making you sick.

So what does this have to do with sugar?

Vitamin C and sugar are almost identical in their chemical structure. In fact, most species make their own Vitamin C from glucose (sugar). Glucose and sugar are SO ALIKE that they enter your cells in EXACTLY the same way: via insulin.

When you consume refined sugar your body responds appropriately by elevating insulin to store the excess. This is OK once in a blue moon, but if you’re eating sweetened foods (even natural sweeteners like honey) several times a week your cells start to become resistant to insulin. When your cells become resistant to insulin then insulin can’t do it’s job, namely storing sugar, or when you’re you’re sick, getting Vitamin C into your white blood cells.

No sugar while you are sick if you want your body to be able to fight off infection.

2. Drink Lots Of Water

It sounds so basic, and it really is. Your body is over 70% water. Water is the medium that life conducts itself in. Dehydration promotes histamine production, which promotes mucus production and inflammation, which further weakens your immune system.

Drink lots of water and water ONLY when you are recovering.

3. Get Plenty Of Rest

Again, it sounds so simple, but a lot of people drop the ball on this one. In America we hold those who “push through it” in high esteem – but to what end? You abuse your own metabolic machinery just so you can “push through it”. Value what your body is telling you, then listen to it.

• Postpone Your Workouts: Exercise is great for your body and is key to remaining healthy. However, while you are sick you should hold off on the tabatas and cardio circuits. Your immune system requires enormous amounts of energy to function properly. Exercise will divert that energy when it is needed most.
• Stay Warm: Maintaining temperature is another huge metabolic cost for your body. One way you can divert more energy to your immune system is to stay warm. Again very basic. Mom always knew best when she had you bundle up in a sweater when you stayed home from school due to a cold.
• Reduce Mental Stress: It really is possible to worry yourself sick. I used to be an expert at this back in high school. Be aware of the thoughts you think and the internal dialogue you run – they both have tremendous impacts on your well being. Identify and then change the pattern.

4. Get Adjusted

You’ve heard us say it a lot: Go to chiropractic. If you already have a chiropractor, go again, and make sure to tell them what is going on. Often times subluxated joints will impact movement or nerves that play a critical role in immune function. Subluxations cause stress, and stress reduces immune function. Get adjusted and then take note of your posture and movement.

5. Eat To Heal

This means…

1. No added sugar and limited fruit
2. No refined or processed foods
3. No simple carbs
4. Reduce animal protein

Animal protein requires larger amounts of digestive energy than does plant protein and roughage. Keep it green.

Avoid anything pro-inflammatory: dairy, wheat, all gluten-containing foods, refined carbohydrates of all types, added sugar. All of these increase inflammation which further taxes an already overburdened immune system.

Eat whole foods. This means LOTS of vegetables. High water content, low carbohydrate, high vitamin and nutritional value, vegetables are loaded with everything your immune system needs to fight off invaders. The only things you should be eating with wrappers are bananas and oranges.

6. Boost Your Supplements

Healing happens inside out. Supplements are designed to supply the raw materials for optimal bodily function (inside-out healing in this case).

NOTE: Supplements DO NOT get to replace whole foods. Ever.

Make sure you are getting…

1. Whole Food Vitamin: made from whole fruits and vegetables, low temperature dried, no additives or fillers.
2. Probiotics: You’re probably sick because these guys have been taking a beating. Take a quality probiotic supplement twice daily with fresh fiber (fruit or vegetable) and they’ll help you maintain proper stomach pH, outcompete bad bacteria, and break down toxins in your digestive system.
3. Essential Fatty Acids: Make sure you are taking a fish oil (for the long chain EPA and DHA) instead of a flax oil.
4. Vitamin C: Large amounts of Vitamin C will help your body fight off infection faster. Paired with reduced sugar intake this will be even more effective. Cancer patients have been treated with up to 250,000 mg of Vitamin C per day and have had no side affects other than thirst and feeling a bit woozy due to all the IV fluid.
5. Vitamin D: If you can, get some real sunlight on large portions of exposed skin. Arms and legs are not enough. Recommended supplement amount is 5000 IUs.
6. Zinc: Another essential for proper immune function and energy production. Consume a lozenge for a slow release, or consider colloidal drops underneath the tongue. Great for upper respiratory tract infections.

7. Let Your Body Fight It Off

Let your body fight off the infection and it will get smarter and stronger. When it more important for you to be comfortable than healthy your body will become weaker and dumber. It’s immune response will become dulled and less effective.

This means….

1. If you have a fever DO NOT TAKE TYLENOL. Tylenol will reduce symptoms (the fever) but will not make you better. Just like we boil water to kill pathogenic bacteria, your body raises it’s temperature to kill harmful invaders. A fever is not the illness. A fever is your body cleansing itself. Let it do it’s job.
2. Avoid anti-biotics if at all possible. Sometimes antibiotics can be lifesavers, but often times they aren’t needed or can even be wrongly prescribed for things like viral infections. Antibiotics wipe out your good bacteria as well as the bad, leaving you defenseless and weak to re-infection.

Having just turned the tide on my recent case of the sniffles (because I wasn’t take good enough care of myself), I’m ready to get healthy and STAY healthy.

Remember, health is an inside-out choice, not an outside-in chance,

- Casey

P.S. – Let me know your comments below!

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