Fight the Flu — Before it Strikes

While the flu season is just beginning and the number of cases is low throughout the country, they are expected to grow as the calendar heads into the winter months and peak in January and February, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Health officials say your best protection is the flu vaccine, which is recommended for everyone older than six months. This year’s vaccine covers the same virus strains as last year, as well as the H1N1 virus, and supplies are reportedly abundant.

But while getting a flu vaccine is important, a recent study in The Lancet Infectious Diseases journal found that the most common vaccine in the United States works for 59 percent of healthy adults, not the 70 percent to 90 percent that previously had been reported.

The study, led by Michael Osterholm, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Minnesota, also found little data on how well the vaccine worked in two groups at greatest risk of illness and death from the flu: children and adults older than 65.

So to help boost the benefits of the vaccine, consider getting your immune system in top shape as we embark on this flu season. That means remembering the basics of good health practice, like frequent hand-washing and avoiding touching your eyes and nose, getting regular exercise and adequate sleep, and considering some natural remedies shown to help improve your immune system and fight the symptoms if you do get sick.

David Kiefer, MD, a board-certified family medicine physician and clinical assistant professor of medicine at the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona, shares his anti-flu and anti-cold advice with Newsmax Health.

Sing ‘Happy Birthday’ while you wash. We’ve been told to wash our hands since we were children, but you have to scrub long enough to get rid of germs. Kiefer recommends scrubbing for as long as it takes you to sing “Happy Birthday” to yourself twice. “Don’t forget your thumbs,” he tells our Health departmant. “Those are often ignored.” In a public restroom, use a paper towel to turn off the water faucet and to open the door when you’re done washing. Can’t get to a faucet? Use hand sanitizer and rub for 20 seconds or until it evaporates.

Take vitamin D. During the colder months, we generally spend less time outdoors in the sunshine. The less time we spend outdoors, the more likely we are to have inadequate vitamin D levels because the body makes it in response to sunlight. Vitamin D is important for bone and cellular health, and research has shown it may help prevent seasonal flu in children. Kiefer advises taking daily vitamin D3 supplements of 2,000 international units during winter months or getting tested and supplementing as needed.

Consider astalagus. This plant root is popular in traditional Chinese medicine as an immune system booster and has “pretty good data behind it,” Kiefer says. If you’re the type of person who always seems to catch whatever illness is going around, he advises taking it. Astalagus can be purchased at a health food store or integrative pharmacy as a root or in capsule form, which is more potent. The root is boiled in water and drunk like a tea, or it can be added to a soup. (Consult with a practitioner if you’re taking it this way, he advises.)

Echinacea may help. Of all the three species of Echinacea commonly used for medicinal purposes, Echinacea purpurea has the most evidence supporting its effectiveness for boosting immunity, Kiefer says. It works best against colds and flu and has an anti-viral effect. Take it in the form of an alcohol- or glycerine-based tincture three to four times a day swallowed straight or with water.

Soothe with honey. A teaspoonful of honey is not only soothing, but its sweetness causes us to salivate, thinning mucus and helping clear airways. (Never give honey to a baby younger than one year because of possible botulism poisoning.) Black elderberry syrup, another taste-good, feel-good remedy, can help decrease the duration and severity of flu, Kiefer says.

Drink in warmth. Like honey, warming teas such as ginger and peppermint tea help clear mucus. Drinking fluids also helps stave off dehydration, which can occur if you are vomiting or have a fever. Chicken soup feels and tastes good, too, and helps relieve congestion. Nasal irrigation using a Neti pot also fights congestion and may help prevent sinus infection, Kiefer says.

Consider OTC meds. Should you take over-the-counter medications like decongestants and antihistamines? “They may help with symptoms but do they help the virus go away? No,” Kiefer says. He doesn’t discourage his patients from taking them to relieve symptoms, he says. Pain relievers such as ibuprofen, acetaminophen, and aspirin (adults only) can help with fever and body aches.

What about anti-virals? The CDC says most healthy people with the flu don’t need anti-virals, medications available with a doctor’s prescription that help shorten the duration of the illness and prevent serious complications. Those medicines, such as Tamiflu and Relenza, are primarily recommended for people who are very sick with the flu and likely hospitalized, and for those who are more susceptible to getting complications, such as children younger than 2, adults 65 and older, and people with some chronic health conditions like heart failure.