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How to Stay Healthy
What Are We Up Against?
Our bodies are constantly fighting for us. Even while we sleep, our immune systems, in their God-given diligence, continue to keep us healthy by combating viruses, bacteria, and more. Nowadays, we are getting into the colder season, where we primarily get to fight off the flu, COVID-19, the common cold, RSV, and norovirus (just a fancy word for a stomach bug). Yes, there are a lot of germs out there, but that shouldn't be our only concern when it comes to the most wonderful time of the year.
We are also up against the things we choose to put into our bodies. Since about 80% of the immune system is sourced in the gut, it is crucial to eat as healthy as possible, according to what whole foods are best for you. Water intake, regular exercise (or lack thereof, as in my case), and proper stress management all play a role in the strengthening your body against seasonal illness.
Another battlefront we ironically face is the pharmaceutical industry. When you go down the cold and flu aisle of a corner drug store, you'll find pills, tablets, meltables, and cough syrups of all colors and kinds. Do your research, though; most of the products that are sold for managing symptoms when you're sick aren't always the healthiest for you. They usually suppress a cough, lower a fever, and so on. Believe it or not, even though those symptoms can be annoying when you're already feeling terrible, your body needs to do those things to help get rid of the infection plaguing your cells! Of course, if you have a high fever over 103 degrees, you definitely should seek medical help, as that can be serious or even life-threatening.
Natural remedies actually boost your existing immune defenses so your body can fight back stronger than it could when you first got sick. Usually, the natural methods take a little longer to kick in, but with consistency comes results that leave you feeling much better without the side effects!
Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash
How to Stay Healthy
1. Limit touching your face in public.
One of the easiest ways for viruses and bacteria to enter the body is through direct contact with the eyes, nose, and especially the mouth. As humans just living our lives, we touch a lot of things with our hands. Imagine what is getting transferred from your hands to your face that could cause you to get sick!
2. Wash your hands thoroughly and often.
In the practice of good hygiene, you should always wash your hands when you return home from being out, before and after eating, and after using the toilet.
3. Give your body a fighting chance with immunity boosters.
Turmeric contains curcumin, which has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits. You can easily add it to meals as seasoning, or boil as tea. It has a strong, earthy flavor, and will stain everything it touches bright yellow!
Ginger contains gingerol, the powerful antiviral substance that gives ginger its kick. Ginger is delicious juiced or boiled into hot tea, and will give your body the umph it needs to stay healthy!
Cinnamon is also a powerful antimicrobial, great to eat with food, gargle with, or drink with milk.
Elderberry has potent immune boosting properties, especially when taken in tincture or syrup form. Elderberry tea is also very effective.
Apple cider vinegar is a spectacular bacteria buster! It doesn't taste great, but gargling every few hours with it will keep viral infections at bay, specifically in the back of the throat. When used a few times, it can also bring some sore throat relief, but keep in mind that the action of gargling can also irritate your throat more if you do it too often. You'll always do well to listen to your body, and start with gargling 2 times per day to see how your throat takes it. This remedy is especially useful for fighting strep throat.
Staying hydrated and taking in enough electrolytes is crucial to sickness prevention and recovery. While there are so many brands and flavors of drink mixes out there, those can often contain artificial sweeteners and other chemicals that your body will end up having to process and fight off anyway. These three ingredients contain all the essential electrolytes your body needs to strengthen your cells and provide relief for sick symptoms like a sore throat. For a simple but effective recipe, mix these together in hot water:
Honey - an immune-boosting, throat-soothing sidekick
Lemon juice - citrus naturally helps the immune system
Himalayan salt has all three of the body's essential electrolytes (sodium, potassium, and magnesium). Electrolytes manage the immune response through nerve function, and are a crucial antimicrobial. If you're hypertensive or being mindful of your sodium intake, feel free to skip this step.
4. If and when you do get sick...
Get plenty of rest.
Follow my sick regimen to shift your immune system into overdrive!
Ride out that low-to-mid-grade fever! When you are sick and run a fever, your body is actually trying to help you! Many bacteria and viruses thrive at warm temperatures, but turn up the heat too much, and they lose their ability to reproduce and spread. God knew this of course, so He created your body to induce a fever as a fail-safe to greatly help itself to heal and purge the germs out. But while sweating out a low-grade fever is harmless (and actually helpful), you'll need to keep an eye on your temperature to make sure it doesn't spike up too high. Here's a handy guide from Kinsa Health on fever temperatures!
...praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.
Be considerate of others--just stay home! You can prevent someone else from being sick if you are not around them. I understand that we all have to work to make a living and pay the bills, but you may consider staying home to make sure your coworkers are still well enough to do their jobs, too.
Be considerate of your family--if you're sick, try to contain your germs as best you can, especially if there are others living in your household. Frequent hand washing and disinfecting surfaces constantly will help tremendously with this.
5. Consume whole foods > processed foods.
Eat: fermented foods and beverages. Grab a kombucha! Eat some sauerkraut! You like pickles? Eat them!
Eat: antioxidants (blueberries are delicious and full of them!)
Eat: lots of veggies to give you the nutrition your body needs.
Limit: sugar, caffeine, and processed foods. These bog down the gut, home to 80% of the immune system.
6. Fast.
Not only is it Biblical to push away your distractions to fully focus on God, but fasting will also divert the energy your body spends in digestion to other places, such as cleaning out toxins from your body for a better, stronger immune defense. Be sure to reintroduce foods gradually to properly re-acclimate your gut.
7. Pray.
When you're sick, pray for God's healing, intercede for the needs of others, and soak in God's Word to keep your spirit fed while your body's down. If you're at home resting, it can be easy to get bored, and before you know it, you've doom-scrolled all day! Instead, close your DMs and spend time talking with God. His presence is the sweetest place to be, especially when you're feeling isolated under the weather.