It’s that time of year again, isn’t it? It’s cold in every which area of life and it’s the perfect breeding ground for loads of awful, horrible germs and you just know it is coming. The flu season, for all we try and avoid it, is going to get you whether you like it or not. I’m sorry, but it’s true.
The number of times that we swear down on our lives that this year, we’re going to avoid getting the flu or a nasty cold would probably lean into the tens and hundreds, but sometimes it’s just something we really can not avoid. Germs are more stealth than we could ever hope to be in our defense of them, so it’s really best if we find out what is causing them, where the particularly susceptible places are and how are can go about minimizing the effects of the dreaded winter bug. There are some pretty great ways to do this, but first of all, you’ve got to understand: what is causing me to get ill every winter?! Even more so, what is causing me to get ill multiples times, and how do we stop it briefly ruining our lives!
Depending on where you work, you could be more or less vulnerable to getting the flu virus than other people. If you’re in an office, for example, with enclosed spaces and overly circulated air and lots of common rooms and meeting spaces for other people to pass on their germs to you. When the germs have this space to spread and grow, you’re a sitting duck to a grimy virus. Door handles and door knobs are other places for you to pass on germs, but what can you do?
In working environments, it’s always worth making sure you wash your hands, mugs and anything else possibly communal after you’ve used them. A thorough wash of these things can stop the spread of germs at the source and give everyone else a fighting chance of staying flu free.
Sometimes, though, there is nothing you can do. You’re going to pick up a bug and it’s going to make your life a misery for a week and a bit, maybe even longer. When this happens, you need to make sure you’re getting yourself fully fit and ready to get back to the life you left behind before your flu episode.
If you’re really, truly ill then you need to make sure you’re not going to work. People often spend longer than they want being unwell being they aren’t ready to take a few days out of their schedule to recuperate and rest up. You need to rest, you need to find some great remedies and you need to be ready to be a little bored in the process. But don’t worry, it’s all for the greater good. If you follow a few of these hints and tips of how to get better, you stand an excellent chance of fighting fit soon, and stronger than before.
Getting Fit from Flu - Home Remedies
There are a couple of great, age-old ways of helping - be that soothing or clearing - a flu virus when it decides to rear its ugly face. One great way I’ve found of soothing flu symptoms is to mix honey, lemon and hot water and cook up a cocktail of goodness. The honey helps to soothe and repress the symptoms of having a cold because of the natural elements in the honey. There’s a school of thought that also adds a little bit of whiskey to the other ingredients. What this is supposed to do I’m not too sure, but this - known as a ‘hot toddy’ - is a classic mixture that your grandma would give you if you suffered from flu.
Ginger is another great little ingredient that is known to help in the treatment and prevention of the flu virus. It’s a great home remedy for a couple of reasons. Firstly, it’s easy to find and cheap to buy. You’ll be able to pick up a piece of ginger from any local supermarket and it won’t set you back too much. A couple of the elements that are in ginger - gingerols and shogaols - are biologically proven to attack the root cause of a sore throat and cold quickly, also killing the bacteria that cause colds in the first place. Integrating this into your diet on a regular basis is a great way to keep a flu virus at bay for as long as possible.
Drinking a variety of teas with natural elements is another great way of getting the right sorts of ingredients into your body in a nice, tasty way that will go a long way to getting you better, sooner. In the likes of green tea and lemon tea, there are natural antioxidants that will help your body fight the symptoms of the flu while you’re resting up and recuperating in your own little ways.
READ Top 45 Natural Antioxidant Sources
The best way to get rid of the flu quickly is to make sure you’re still eating and still drinking enough throughout the day. When you’ve got a sore throat, runny nose, and a tight chest, you need to make sure that you don’t become dehydrated and unwell by not eating what you need to get better. Fruit and veg is a great source of nutrients, making these into a soup or smoothing is a simple way to intake these, as sometimes we’re guilty of losing appetite and forgetting to eat what we need to while we’re ill.
There are no sure-fire ways of recovering from flu sooner than usual. The main thing you need to concentrate of is resting and warmth and making sure you’re eating well. Fast food and stodgy foods aren’t the best way to go, whether you want to or not, as it can often be tempting to be lazy and skip meals or get take out. Try and steer clear of this and allow yourself to get better before you get back on the work and activity train.
- Photo courtesy of freepik.com
Your thoughts on this