I’m not much of a football fan, but I have heard the saying “The best defence is a good offense”. I think that cliché fits rather well when we are talking about the immune system. Waiting until a major crisis hits is like planning on the defence protecting you all by itself.  Instead, with advance preparation, you can have a good offense and much less to worry about.

In a nutshell here’s what’s important this very minute considering how many people are getting ill:

1)    A pandemic only means a lot of people are expected to develop the disease. The same percentage of people die in pandemics as die in normal flu seasons. People die from the flu vaccines every year. There are side effects to the flu vaccine. Decide what risks you are willing to take by doing a lot of research on the pros and cons of the vaccine before you do anything that is irreversible.

2)    Eliminate all refined sugar in every form from the diet. Sugar paralyzes the white blood cells for at least 6 hours at a time. Halloween candy is a no-no this year and that goes for Christmas sweets and Valentine’s sweets, too. If you haven’t already, buy the Halloween candy from your kids or offer to trade them ALL of their candy for something bigger, better, more appealing even if it costs you 20x what their candy is worth.

3)    Drink lots of plain, clean water. This helps to flush out toxins and keeps mucous membranes moist so they can flush. Do not drink artificial beverages. Many sources are saying warm drinks are more beneficial – so focus on hot water or good, caffeine-free (not decaf) herbal teas.

4)    Get enough rest. If you feel run down rest more. Fatigue is often the first sign that your immune system is working harder.

5)    Get daily physical activity to keep the lymphatic system flushing.

6)    Nature’s Sunshine Silver Shield liquid has been proven to kill many types of microbes (and holds patents to that effect). Consume small doses of the liquid daily during ‘at risk’ seasons. Silver Shield Gel is a great alcohol-free hand sanitizer. These products are totally safe for toddlers and infants also. See my website for other recipes for all natural hand sanitizers.

7)    Build and support the immune system. For kids use Herbasaurs Chewable Elderberry. Adults can use it also at a higher dose.

8)    Vitamin D₃ is reported to be a valuable immune support.

9)    Eat your veggies – at least one fist-size serving for every 25 lbs of body weight every day. Eat more servings if/when you can. Remember to get as many colors in your veggie choices as possible.

10)  Eliminate stress. Hugs & kisses & love & laughter & fun are some of the best immune builders.

11)  Avoid constipation. A sluggish bowel provides a breeding place for microbes. Using probiotics daily may be helpful.

12)  We have been seeing good results with Nature’s Sunshine Products High Potency Garlic, Cat’s Claw, and Olive Leaf Extract when people start to develop symptoms. You probably don’t need all three at once, but do consider using at least one of them alongside Silver Shield Liquid.

13)  If you do develop symptoms go to bed and stay there! What I am seeing is people who go to bed and stay there for 3 – 4 days seem to get better faster. People who ‘tough it out’, crawling around in their ‘head-achy, body-achy, sore throat, painful chesty cough’ misery are staying sick much longer in spite of taking the good herbs!

14)   It’s interesting to note the last time swine flu reared it ugly head was in the financial collapse of the late 70’s. Kind of makes you wonder, doesn’t it? 

Dr. Mercola is saying that people should only use supplements that are NSF GMP certified. Guess what? Nature’s Sunshine Products is certified and meets those standards on its regular audits!!!

Judith Cobb