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12 Tips How To Avoid Getting Sick & Protect Your Family

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Easy tips on how to avoid getting sick and protect your family during cold/flu season.

Unfortunately, cold and flu viruses spread more easily in the winter months, so use these cold prevention tips to help strengthen your body’s natural defenses.

If you do end up getting sick, these home remedies for cold and cough will guide you on how to get rid of a cold in 24 hours

 

tips on how to avoid getting sick

 

The winter months bring more than fun holidays and snow, they also bring more sickness.

You know that dreaded common cold that spreads like wild-fire bringing with it the nasty head cold symptoms of a stuffy nose, sore throat, sneezing, and watery eyes.

You pick it up at work and your kids pick it up at school.

It’s everywhere!

Preventing Illness

You and your family can and SHOULD do your best to avoid getting sick.

My family is in hibernation mode during the winter, but we still have to leave our house.

Even though we try to keep our germ exposure very limited, sick people are still out there spreading their germs.

Sometimes we just can’t avoid the crowds. So we must use and teach our family the best cold preventive methods. 

Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional, these are just the methods that our family uses to keep us healthy.

 

preventing illness

 

How To Not Get Sick

The first line of defense is to keep your immune system strong.

Prepare your body to fight off any cold or flu virus by boosting your body’s army: The Immune System.

1. Eat healthily and take vitamins. The winter months are a crucial time to eat healthier.

Try to eat immune-boosting foods.

If you feel that your nutrition isn’t optimal, then make sure you supplement with vitamins.

Vitamin C and Zinc are both immune boosters. My family loves to take Elderberry gummies, they have antioxidants in them to ward off any sickness.

2. Get plenty of sleep. I’m a night owl, so this is a hard one for me. I feel my best when I go to bed early, but I have to make myself go to bed. Sometimes, as adults, we need to have a bedtime as well.

Don’t look at any screens at least one hour before going to bed, it will just disrupt your circadian rhythm. (This is one I have a hard time with and regret every time)

3. Stress less. The dark winter months can really bring on the blues. Look here for the 10 best ways to fight the winter blues.

4. WASH YOUR HANDS! I know this one is a no-brainer, but it is really one of the BEST ways to prevent getting sick. Don’t just rinse your hands, wash them with warm soapy water.

Teach your kids to sing the ABCs when they wash their hands, giving them a good amount of time to get their hands germ-free.

5. Stop touching stuff! Doorknobs, handrails, and even elevator buttons have more germs than most bathrooms.

I use my sleeve or my elbow to open doors and push buttons. I have taught my kids to do the same.

Also, keep your hands off your face. Touching your mouth, nose, eyes and even ears is a big NO during the cold and flu season.

How to Get Rid Of Sickness

Sometimes no matter how much we try to prevent a cold, we still get sick. 

These common cold treatment remedies can get rid of a cold in 24 hours or at least really relieve your symptoms.

6. Soak in a hot detox bath. An Epsom salt detox bath will draw out the toxins in your body.

7. Check out oregano oil supplements. Oregano oil is a hot oil, so you will want to buy the capsules.

Any time I feel the first symptom coming on, I start with my oregano pills. Always drink a full glass of water, or you will taste oregano all day. 

8. Take a tablespoon of ACV. Apple cider vinegar has many health benefits. You must use the one with the mother in it.

My oldest daughter battled strep-throat for years but after reading about gargling with organic ACV to kill strep, she has been strep-free for over 7 years. It may be a coincidence, but either way, we will take it.


Home Remedies for Cold and Cough

If you were unable to stop a cold in the early stages, then you need to use some good home remedies to alleviate your symptoms. The common cold symptoms usually last around a week.

9. Use a cold-mist humidifier. We use our humidifier most of the winter to keep the air from being dry. Having the air moist will soothe the irritation of a sore throat and your nasal passages.

A humidifier helps your breathing so much better when you are sick.

10. Take a shot. Sorry, I don’t mean liquor, although hot toddies are pretty good when you don’t feel well.

The shot I am referring to is 1 tbsp. of organic ACV, 1 tbsp. of fresh-squeezed lemon juice, and 1 tbsp of raw honey.

Do this twice a day. This little immune-boosting shot will have you on your feet in no time.

11. Drink fresh pineapple juice. The juice of fresh-cut pineapple has an anti-inflammatory enzyme that soothes your throat. Pineapple juice can suppress hacking coughs 5 times more effectively than cough syrup.


How To Not Get Sick When Someone In Your House Is

12. Diffuse essential oils. I didn’t really get into the hype of essential oils until I used them and found out they really worked.

So if one of us is sick, I diffuse DEFENDER oil, to help keep the sickness from spreading to the rest of us.

It really works for us!

It is a mixture of scents that were used together to ward off the black plague in Europe many years ago.

I was a non-believer, but it has worked in our house many times.

Use these tips on how to not get sick when someone in your house is to stay well and feel your best even if there are germs in your home. 

Remember those common cold treatments are best used during the first onset of symptoms.

Good luck during this cold and flu season, the BEST remedy is to rest and take really good care of yourself.

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J

Sunday 24th of January 2021

I tried these cold home remedies and it really did help me get rid of cold, thanks guys for the tips

Christa Price

Monday 6th of January 2020

Some great ideas I hadn't read before. I'll definitely try them!

Christabel

Friday 8th of January 2021

Thanks ? so much for sharing helpful tips on how to prevent cold and flu ? and if you can do much earlier the better because you don't really feel it

Chelsea Sauve - Wandure

Monday 6th of January 2020

Such helpful tips to avoiding a cold/flu this season! Thank you so much for the helpful reminders!

Stormy

Monday 6th of January 2020

Oh my, what a great post! I actually had never heard of using oregano oil, but I think now I will! I tend to not get sick very often, but my husband seems to almost die every time he gets a cold haha. Hydrogen peroxide is another thing I hadn't thought of. I use garlic oil in the ears when the little one has an earache, but I will definitely try this next time! Thank you!

Sam Montana

Monday 4th of November 2019

Great tips to keep from getting colds. I love the idea of a humidifier keeping away colds and the flu. And I never knew that apple cider vinegar could help with colds and strep throat.