How to Prevent a Cold and Flu Symptoms All Year Round

It is easy to get a cold. It is also easy to avoid a cold. So, it all depends on the mindset of the individual or ignorance. A cold or the common cold as it is commonly known as a nasal or respiratory tract infection. So are its related ailment like flu and catarrh. These are mind-blowing ailments.

Can cold weather or condition cause a cold? The answer is negative. One can reside in a cold polar like region and not get a cold. Persons like me fisherman have defiled a very cold weather while going fishing. Think of sea-faring mariners! Business offices for example, banks, had air conditioners running to reduce the warm temperature. But how many staffer complained of having a cold issue? Is the chilly effect a cold? The chilly condition can still be reduced to a desirable minimum. A glass of warm (not hot) lime-pineapple juice can help alleviate the chilly feeling. Take a cup of warm black tea with added honey and lime or lemon juice instead.

The virus causing cold are many but rhinovirus is the most common. There is no need to get alarmed when a cold virus strikes, and an infection shows. It can go on its own within a week or two. You also have to take a remedy to alleviate the symptoms of an attack. But you can prevent an attack with ease.

Traditionally, the below methods were recommended as a preventive measure:

• Wash hands in contact with infected persons and objects.
• Steer clear of second-hand smoke from cars, cigarettes, and flames.
• Cover nose and mouth with disposable tissues when coughing and sneezing.
• Never share towels and eating utensils used by affected persons.

In addition to the above, here are the 10 holistic methods that I used regularly:

• Have a dilute glass of warm lemon or lime juice every morning three times a week no matter what. Add crushed pineapple, juice to enhance the value.
• Have a pre-breakfast of alkaline-based fresh fruits an hour or two before your main breakfast.
• Always include green leafy vegetables in all your diets whether launch or super. Or have a launch or super of only green vegetables and fruits.
• Regularly exercising the body at least three times a week takes 30 minutes.
• Acid-forming foods cannot be entirely eliminated from any meal. But you should avoid excessive intake of those so that they are enough alkaline reserves in the bloodstream.
• Tone your skin at least 30 minutes in the morning sun.
• Avoid convenience food much of the time. No one can do without them including me. These are de-vitamins and chemical additives added. These additives can upset the acid-base balance of the blood unless you know what to do.
• Learn to relax your mind and body and avoid tension.
• Learn to sleep well and rest for 9 to 10 hours.
• Adequate circulation of air should be encouraged at all premises.

In 1946, the Common Cold Research Unit, Harvard Hospital, Harham Down, Britain solicited volunteers in other to undertake research into the common cold. It aimed to reduce the human and economic costs to the treatment of a cold.

Thirty volunteers were initially accepted for this test. A cultured cold virus is obtained to infect the volunteers. These were isolated in groups of twos and threes. Permission for the volunteers for a walk or sightseeing is allowed only in the countryside, but not in residential areas.

It was during this trial period that the human coronavirus virus was first isolated. This research unit has been closed.

More than forty-five years later, another research as to what causes a cold was done at Fort Banks, Massachusetts. Ten young, healthy, and strong army personnel volunteers, were the subject of the study. Like the Harham Down research, control was made that the soldiers be isolated for some days to guarantee that they are in good health and that no cold symptoms and issues were detected in them.

Then, a cold virus of an infected person was isolated and each soldier received a spray of the isolated virus in their nasal passage. Within a time period of “thirty hours”, nine out of the ten volunteers were affected by the virus and developed a cold symptom. This shows that a cold problem does not arise within the human body. It was a foreign invader into the human body. In this case, it was introduced to our ten volunteers. This unfriendly visitor is bent on doing some harm to the body. Likewise, they are a friendly virus in the respiratory system that protects the body against unwanted visitors via, immunity. It is the reaction of the positive against the negative that produced cold symptoms like nasal discharge, cough, and watery eyes. It is through this medium (nasal discharge) that the virus and its effect get out of the body.

The result of this research was received with some reservations but continued with the use of animals and chimpanzees. Chimpanzees seem to be susceptible to the cold virus too. The test with the chimpanzees was done with the same methods as the ten army volunteers. But the chimps were given a 'repeated'; dosage of a 'cultured virus'. that was made in the laboratory. This virus was in the first place, taken from infected humans. Both research with humans and the chimps soon becomes a pointer to a much deeper human experiment.

This test was carried out under two groups of school children under the supervision of medical personnel. The first group A, the ideal group received natural organic foods rich in vitamins A, B, C, and D. Some milk was added to the diet. The other group B in the same school is the normal or control in which the daily meal was normally given. At the end of one year, the vast difference was clearly noticed. Children in group A did well in their school work, improved in good health, and had ¼ of the cold symptoms as group B.

Those whose immune system is not strong can get a cold. These include both adults and children alike. But the later seems more prone to a cold virus. The older one gets, the immune system becomes strong or weak. That is why children and the frail elderly are easy prey for a cold virus. Babes too are easily susceptible to cold attacks from nursing mothers and others who are infected if care is not taken.

Nevertheless, elder citizens should take precautions to avoid being attacked by a cold virus. As one aged further, the immune system tends to become weak; perhaps, because it was not developed very early in life.

It takes at least six to ten days for the symptoms to vanish. You do not have to see a doctor or health worker for treatment. But if you experienced severe discomfort of any form of the symptoms, you can consult your doctor. The cold is a nose, throat, and mouth infection. It is harmless but should not be taken lightly.

Below are 5 causes of a cold. It will be good to peruse the facts well.

A cold is caused by an unfriendly filtered virus in the nasal passage or upper respiratory tract of the mouth, nose, and throat. The results are a cough, sores on the tongue, nasal discomfort or discharge, a feeling of ill health or fever, watery eyes, and a long list on the drawing board runs into a hundred. It can last from six to ten days and disappear without using any drugs or remedies. But it should not be taken lightly. Adequate and serious attention should be paid to the cause rather than the effect.

A cold is also caused by poor diet or nutrition. A diet that lacks fresh fruits and vegetables stands a good chance for you to get a cold virus. So you should include fresh fruits and vegetables regularly in your diet. The rule is that half of your chop plate should contain fruits and vegetables. Fresh herbs and spices like green cayenne pepper (capsicum), garlic, ginger, and onions are recommended. These act in perfect synergy. Be always generous with them, but limit fresh ginger to the desired taste.

Stress can trigger a cold virus like catarrh and a running nose. This is true of the carrier of the virus. Stress is when the mind and body are not in harmony with each other and with nature. Perhaps, you are going a little too far on an issue or two. Your mind reacts against your body or your body against your mind. This can trigger the cold virus in a carrier. If you are overworking, take time to have plenty of fun too. Go like a butterfly to relax the mind and body, and you release all tensions that would trigger a cold virus.

A strong, healthy body easily resists a cold virus. Jogging and swimming are good outdoor exercises. Did you get a cough while jogging and swimming in the early morning? Of course, not in the least. Swimming brings out all the bodily muscles to vital play that builds the body. So is jogging. I am a fisherman by nature, and I regularly swim in the open waters while on a fishing expenditure. At other times, I do take pleasure and delight in soaking my mind and body in the cold waters of the morning or evening for health's sake. I swim. When the cold weather comes on, I jog building my leg muscles and other parts of my body. I round this off with the jumping jack, press ups, and downs, making my body a negative avenue for a cold virus.

By this, I mean eating fresh fruits and some root vegetables without their skins. The skin of fruits and vegetables helps in bowel movement. Mangoes, cucumbers, and apples; and fresh sweet potatoes, for example, should be eaten with their skins. These fresh items contain more than 75% vitamin C in their skins than the juice succulent flesh. Vitamin C factors in reducing cold symptoms.

You should therefore do yourself a lot of good by eating certain fresh fruit with their skin on. Apple, carrots, and guava, for example.

1. The common cold can affect every person. Like some other ailments, it has not got a cure. Drugs, vaccination, and antibiotics that provide help and relief are not even recommended on a universal basis.

2. International health institutions do not hold agreed opinions. In fact, those sources of help and relief from drug manufacturers can bring in serious side effects and destroy friendly and beneficial bacteria in the human body, making the body less protective and subjecting it to the vast invasion of many and various viruses that is relatively unknown.

3. The cold virus numbered over two hundred. The immune, the digestive and the respiratory system will be work below capacity. When last did you complain of poor digestion?

4. Various study and research have shown that the number one step available for a person to get relief from fervent occurrence is to get a glass of a Lime or lemon juice. I do regularly keep limes and lemons in my fruit basket along with garlic and ginger. I take a dilute juice of this citrus fruit in the morning. It is the first thing I did to flush my system. Occasionally, I will prepare a dilute mixture of this with fresh ginger and pineapple juice plus wild honey. The good thing about this mixture is an energizing drink in the morning.

5. Signs of running nose, headache, cough, sneezing, and fever, except high fever, usually follow a cold. The list of symptoms runs into hundreds as said before. A mature adult should see a doctor if body temperature is over 103F plus high fever and swollen glands. As for children, they should be immediately taken to the doctor. The immunity system is weak and is much sicker than adults.

You can make your herbal remedy at home if you ever had a cold. You can also make it prevent a cold. I do regularly. You need some limes. Three to four pieces of lime or lemon is enough for an adult at the onset of cold symptoms. Lime obtained from organic gardens works best. Beat or pound the greenish skin of the limes against a hard object until the inside becomes a soft pulp. This will release most of the medicinal juice. Wash and peel them. Now, half fill a glass with warm water. In another glass, put in cold water half likewise. Cut the limes into two halves and squeeze their juice into the glass with cold water. The rinds should be soaked in the glass with warm water. Allow it to simmer for 10 minutes. This will extract the 'bitters' in the lime rinds. Pour this into the glass of dilute lime juice and add one tablespoonful of wild honey to the mixture.

Add a tablespoonful of honey or pineapple juice to the mixture. It is best to take this in the morning on rising when the stomach is empty. This cleansed your digestive system well in the first place and hence, your respiratory system. Take the last preparation in the evening an hour before supper. It acts very fast if you had a cold. This action will give you better relief within 36 hours. You can continue taking this for two more days. Each should be a fresh preparation.

Nevertheless, the habit of taking fresh lime or lemon juice or any other citrus fruits daily before a cold strike should be encouraged. Squeeze lime or lemon juice into a glass of warm water. Gaggle a mouthful and spew it out. Drink the remainder. This works best in the morning.

You can enhance the value of your remedy by adding an extract of ginger juice, from the ginger root. Wash and cut a ginger root one-third the size of the thumb finger and wash it. Beat this into a pulp or cut it into pieces and blend. Add a little water to extract the juice. Filter this into the lime or lemon juice. Take 25 ml of the mixture morning and evening.

In all queries, expert opinions are always sort for to resolve an issue in dispute. Below renowned organizations have mandated more than one person to make a considerable study and disseminate their findings.

• Mayo Clinic on 'treatment' of a cold: 'There is no cure for the common cold. Antibiotics are of no use against a cold virus. Over-the-counter (OTC) cold preparations won’t cure a cold or make it go away cold virus enters your body through your mouth, eyes or nose'.
• The World Health Organization (WHO) on:

(i) Drugs: 'Many commercial cough and cold remedies contain several ingredients including cough suppressants, mucolytic, oral decongestants, and expectorants. Most drug combinations in cough and cold remedies have no rational basis, e.g. ineffective ingredients or ingredients with opposing effects are often combined, such as an expectant with a cough suppressant…combination drugs such as those should be avoided'.

• Some combination drugs are justified for use by adults (or school-age children) if they combine effective and safe drugs intended to relieve two or more concurrent symptoms of the cold. For young children, however, such a combination cannot be justified.
• 'the use of safe, soothing, homemade remedies for sore throat (this is one effect of a cold issue-my comment) such as lemon tea should be encouraged'.
• Traditional cough and drug remedies: 'There is no reason to believe that a safe soothing home-made remedy is less effective than a commercial remedy…unlike commercial preparations, which may contain potentially harmful ingredients, home remedies are harmless…ingredients such as menthols and camphor may be used in topical preparations to be rubbed on the chest (you can also make preparations for joint pains with these two ingredients-my comments). However, these products may be a toxin and should not be used in teas and oral preparations'.
• National Institute Of Health on:

(ii) Treatment: 'One reason why there is no cure for the common cold is that more than 200 different viruses can cause cold symptoms'

• 'there is no experimental evidence that exposure to cold temperatures increases the chances that you will get a cold…On the other hand, several research studies show that people who exercise regularly have a significantly reduced number of respiratory tract infections, such as the common cold, compared with those who don’t exercise. Research also suggests that allergic diseases that affect the nose or throat and psychological stress may increase your chance of getting infected by cold viruses'.

A banana a day is said to keep the doctor away. This succulent tropical fruit with its sweet starchy flavour is very easy to digest. Though a slightly alkaline foodstuff and is easily acid forming in the bloodstream. It triggers mucous in the nasal system. The result is catarrh, flu, and nasal discomfort. Soft sugary drinks can produce the same reaction in certain persons, particularly children. Our nasal duct required an alkaline medium in the bloodstream to function well. That is why lime base fruits are good for our respiratory system. If you are sensitive to citrus fruits, try fresh grapes instead

Milk can act the same way as a banana in some people. You should avoid any food that you're allergic to. .

• The more you undertake to prevent an issue of ill health, the less it becomes endemic. However, the human body's tolerance of the preventive measure can be a plus or a minus 100%. This means that despite the best possible methods one takes, one can still be infected. But the best thing about this is that the body becomes more immunized against a further threat of the issue, perhaps, a new virus threat. So, if you had a cold once a year, your body is responding to an immune complex.

The table below is only a three days guide for you to cleanse both your digestive and respiratory systems if you had a cold.

This will ensure you derived maximum benefit to recover your health.

This article is really on to a good thing. I had experienced all the issues therein, and took all the steps to get relief and a cure. Now, I am only preventing a cold to strike any time within my family. This is a regular weekly adventure.

1. Wiki common cold

2. Adenovirus cold infection.

3. Mayo Clinic common cold

4. Common cold cause.