Winter Wellness

After 3 weeks of being sick myself and subsequent weeks of hearing that apparently everyone else is ill as well, I've decided to offer up a few tips on staying well this winter (or getting well if you're one of the unlucky ones who's already under the weather.) So here you are my friends: Stephanie's Winter Wellness Guide.

Prevention:
#1: Practice good nutrition. If you're not already taking a multi-vitamin, start now! I've noticed that nearly every time I get sick, it's because I've been skipping out on my vitamin, eating tons of junk food, not drinking enough water, or all of the above. I used to give the excuse of not eating a big enough breakfast to take a vitamin with it, or skipping breakfast altogether and then forgetting to take a vitamin later in the day. But of course there's always lunch... and dinner... so that's not much of an excuse at all. And now they make chewable vitamins even for grown-ups, so even my aversion to taking pills is being thrown out the window. Alright, vitamin! You win!

#2: Take care of your body. Get plenty of sleep, exercise (don't forget to stretch!) and wash your hands! If you're prone to catching the flu, get vaccinated. And don't be stupid; if someone in your family is sick, don't eat or drink after them, and especially don't kiss them. You'll just end up getting them sick and passing it back and forth between you, extending the cycle of sickness and possibly creating drug-resistant strains of whatever you've got. Not good!

Treatment:
#1: Clear those sinuses! Most of what seems to be going around looks like a particularly nasty sinus infection, so make sure you're taking a good decongestant/expectorant like Mucinex. I used to prefer Aleve Cold & Sinus (or any other decongestant with pseudoephedrine) but my doctor informed me that those types of decongestants could do more harm than good because they don't clear out the drainage and that actually leads to a bacterial sinus infection. Go figure. He suggested using Mucinex, Afrin twice a day, and breathing steam to break up the congestion. I would add using a neti pot or sinus rinse bottle to the mix, especially if you're like most of us here in the Tennessee Valley who have chronic allergy issues.

#2: Soothe your throat. My personal favorite remedy is hot lemon and honey. In a teacup mix two teaspoons lemon juice and two teaspoons honey in hot water. Drink this "tea" several times a day, along with plenty of water. The lemon juice cuts through the crud and has vitamin C to boost your immune system, and the honey soothes your sore scratchy throat, and is also a natural antibiotic. When my throat infections are particularly bad, I'll eat a teaspoon or two of honey, and it actually works better than Chloraseptic.

#3: Take it easy. Get plenty of sleep, and don't push yourself. There may be a day when you start to feel better, but if you try to do too much you'll only end up tiring yourself out and delaying your recovery. Take time out to rest and make sure you're completely well before you go back to work, school, or otherwise risk contaminating others.