If your weight, health and overall quality of life weren't reason enough to get active on a regular basis, here's another one that might get you off the couch: Working out can help you fight the flu this winter season. Well, that's according to a study on mice anyway. Researchers from Iowa State University have found that mice who regularly run on a treadmill experience flu symptoms that are far less severe than the symptoms suffered by their lazier counterparts. Even mice who only started exercising right before the flu had less severe symptoms, though the ones who were regular gym-rats (pardon the pun) had longer-lasting positive effects -- meaning their symptoms were diminished throughout the course of their illness, not just in the first few days.

The findings, published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, suggest that exercise can really boost the immune system, and while it's not clear whether the results can be applied to humans as well, researchers are optimistic. And besides, it's already the general consensus that regular, moderate exercise helps improve your odds against illness.

Still, don't overdo it -- you can get too much of a good thing. According to Jeffrey A. Woods, a professor of kinesiology and community health at the University of Illinois, prolonged and intense exercise sessions can lead "to increased susceptibility to viral infection." His advice on navigating flu season? "I would recommend everyone get the annual influenza vaccination and the new H1N1 vaccination," he tells The New York Times.

The flu isn't the only thing that exercise is good for -- cardio is more effective than heart surgery.

Here at That's Fit, we often talk about how a healthy diet is good for you. But what does "good for you" actually mean? According to Diet-Blog, a healthy diet can have a positive impact on your immune system -- important information as we head into cold and flu season.

How does diet affect your ability to prevent or fight off nasty bugs? It gives your body the nutrients it needs to not only run efficiently, but also to fight off invaders before they infect. Since eating these foods won't stop a cold once it starts, you'll need to make these highly nutritional choices part of your daily diet.

For a healthy immune system, eat foods like:

• leafy greens, carrots, and sweet potatoes
• 100% juice
• high-quality protein like lean meats and fish, beans, lentils, or soy
• vitamin E-rich nuts and seeds, like sunflower, almonds, and walnuts
• whole grains, oats, quinoa, and brown rice
  
  

Of course, the choices are endless and Diet-Blog has even more ideas for you. Pair a healthy diet with sleep and exercise, and you can say bye-bye to those bugs and hello to a healthy winter.

Source

I know it got me. Did it get you? Despite getting the flu vaccine last fall, I was down for the count with one of the nastiest bouts of flu I've ever had. According to US health officials, I wasn't alone. This flu season has been the worst in four years.

According to the CDC, the flu vaccine was only 44% effective against the strains of the flu viruses that were out this year. While it gave 58% protection over the most predominant strain, it was completely ineffective against other types of the flu virus.

In previous years, the flu vaccine has had up to a 70% effectiveness. The vaccine is developed each year based on data about the currently circulating strains of the influenza virus. According to the CDC, the vaccine has been a good match to the circulating viruses in 16 of the past 20 years.

Source

Whenever someone asks why the flu is always worse in the winter, health experts usually reply with a few of the same theories. One is that we're all inside more in the wintertime, and therefore are more likely to spread germs around. Two is that dry winter air makes our respiratory passages more susceptible to infections. While those theories may still hold water, new research about the flu bug itself have some scientists wondering if they've happened upon a new way to beat the flu.

Researchers from the NIH recently discovered that the flu virus can coat itself with a fatty material that hardens in cooler temperatures. When the virus enters a human body, the warm temperature melts the fatty material and the virus is free to cause an infection. When the weather warms up outside, the fatty material melts away and the virus dies.

In time, this may lead to a soap or cleanser that destroys that fatty outer layer. Until then, health experts recommend hand washing, exercise, and a healthy diet to ward off the flu.

Source

How much time do you waste every winter being sick? Your to-do list is long enough without getting slowed down and delayed by an illness, and we all know what happens once you skip a workout or two -- it's a slippery slope that's hard to recover from.

So the trick to not falling behind and not falling off the wagon altogether is to keep from interrupting your good flow by not getting sick. And although there's no guaranteed way to never get sick, by eating the right foods and living a healthy lifestyle you can boost your immunity and eliminate most (if not all) illnesses.

Source

With the stress of the holiday season getting close to full swing it's as important as every to take care of yourself and stock up your arsenal of weapons against the cold and flu. And that arsenal, besides a healthy lifestyle and perhaps a flu shot, should probably include the following:

• Vitamin C
• Zinc
• Echinacea
• Elderberry
• Licorice Root

The first three were things I already had on the top of my mind, but the last two I may not have considered before now. You can get more info on each of these here, but as always be just as careful with home remedies as you are with prescription ones.

Source

That time of year is creeping around again...cold and flu season! The key to staying as healthy as possible is in what you do now to prepare and prevent illness. Making healthy choices is about living a healthy lifestyle everyday, and although I don't agree personally with absolutely everything on this list, here's one take on 10 things you can do to never get sick again:

• See a chiropractor
• Laugh hard
• Mix up your workout routine
• Get enough sleep
• See an acupuncturist
• Meditate
• Do cardio at least 4 days a week
• Stretch
• Eat organic
• Be cautious of medications

Anything you would add? I think drinking enough water and eating a balanced diet (deep-fried onion rings won't do a thing for you even if they are organic!) are important too.

Source

I've had influenza exactly one time as an adult. It knocked me completely on my you-know-what for two solid weeks, just in time for Christmas and for my (then) fiance (now husband) to propose. It was so bad that I haven't missed a flu shot since, nor do I plan to anytime in the near future!

Vaccinations can be a controversial issue, especially flu shots, which aren't mandated for school attendance. But recent estimates done by Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices say that flu shots reduce the number of times children are hospitalized or seen by a doctor for the flu. Not only do flu shots help to prevent flu infections, they also reduce the likelihood of secondary infections sometimes seen in children who have the flu. And, explain health experts, there's also the protection of "herd immunity." When kids are protected, fewer get sick, so there isn't as much flu bug going around.

Keep in mind that flu shots only protect against influenza, a primarily respiratory virus. The stomach "flu" is not the same as influenza and can not be prevented by getting a flu shot. If you choose to get flu shots for some or all of your family members, keep in mind that October and November are the best times to be vaccinated.

Source

So if you're reading this then you've obviously survived the flu season. But whether you spent the winter miserably sick, or squeaked through flu-free, the over-all picture is that this years flu numbers were quite a bit lower than expected -- which means there are a whole lot of flu vaccines set to expire and headed for the trash.

The sad part about this is that although the expiration date says they're no good, in reality experts say they're probably still effective for another year or longer -- which means we're headed for serious frustration if next year we have a worse-than-expected flu season and end up with vaccine shortages instead of excess.

Source

Do you vaccinate your kids against the flu? If so, this is news you may want to hear. CDC regulations have been changing; they used to recommend that children 6 months to 2 years be vaccinated against the flu every winter, but recently they expanded that age range to 5 years old. A recent study found, however, that the nasal spray FluMist is more effective than the traditional flu shot in preventing influenza in some children.

When the 8000+ preschoolers involved in the study were given the vaccine in either form, less of them came down with the flu. But the group that was given the nasal spray version of the vaccine came down with the illness over half as often. Not only that, they developed fewer of the dreaded secondary ear infections that usually accompany the flu, and fewer lower respiratory infections as well. The flu shot uses a killed flu virus, while FluMist uses live, weakened viruses. In addition, by applying the vaccine through the nose, the upper respiratory passages build a greater amount of anti-bodies to the flu, which is important since that's where the flu bug lives and multiplies. Of course, there are some conditions: babies under the age of 12 months and children who have a history of wheezing should not be given the vaccine, due to risk of developing wheezing problems, and the traditional injected flu vaccine is the safer version for them.

That sound you hear? It's the cheering of thousands of kids who will get one less poke of the needle this year.

Source

This year the flu season started a few weeks earlier than anticipated in Europe, but thankfully it hasn't been too severe so far. And as for in the U.S., the season actually started a little late by a few weeks (I'm impressed they can call it down to the week anyway) and so far the vaccine has been keeping up with demand. Also pleasantly surprising is the fact that we know the flu vaccine mutates regularly (which is partly why each year is so risky when it comes to whether or not the vaccine is going to be effective) but this year it looks like the majority of flu strains are ones that were expected, and that the vaccine is effective against.

In the U.S. the flu season starts in October and goes through March, so we're over halfway through. Somebody tell that to the guy in this photo...

Source

Planning on going to a nursing home or assisted living center this holiday season? Nursing home staff need to receive their flu shots just as much as anyone -- or even more. If they do, that segment alone receiving their flu shots may help prevent potentially deadly outbreaks among elderly residents.

A new study suggests this and it makes perfect sense for this to happen.The flu may not be but a nuisance to many of us, but to the elderly who may have compromised or weakened immune systems, the flu can be a very nasty and potentially deadly ordeal to many.

The survey of more than 300 U.S. nursing homes concluded that flu outbreaks were less likely in facilities where most residents and staff members were vaccinated against the virus. If you're a nursing home or hospice worker, you've most likely already had an annual flu shot -- if not, get one soon.

Source

When it comes to the obvious results and the true results, there are sometimes large differences. People act in different ways to the same set of circumstances based on the presentation of those circumstances, so it stands clearly that some Americans say that they would indeed stay at home to keep from spreading a super-strain of flu.

But on a flip side once more in-depth probing has been completed shows that 25% of U.S. adults says there is no one to care for them at home if they got sick -- which stands at the crossroads of whether the initial answers -- that they would stay at home if the flu was caught -- were really true.

An additional 25% said that they could not afford to miss work for even a week, which I find unbelievable. A person's healthy is the #1 priority always, something that many employers are not making abundantly clear apparently. Sick employees makes for more sick employees (most likely) plus lost productivity and many other things. Are employees really that scared of missing an unscheduled week of work? Wow -- talk about a sad state of employee-employer affairs.

Source