Posts Tagged ‘Influenza’
Seniors Need Vitamin D in the Winter
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During the winter months the Sun is low in the sky in the Northern Hemisphere which means that we receive very little sunlight and almost none of the UV that we need to synthesize vitamin D in our skin. For folks who do not move to sunny southern locations during the winter there is a solution to raising their level of vitamin D, the ‘sunshine vitamin’. The sunshine vitamin is currently available in supplement form in doses of 1,000 IU to 5,000 IU. To give folks an idea of suitable level of the vitamin D supplement, just 20 minutes spent in the summer sun will typically generate about 10,000 IU of vitamin D. The technical name for the sunshine vitamin is cholecalciferol which is also designated vitamin D3. It is no surprise that folks typically do not come down with the flu in the summertime, but when winter arrives the flu comes right along and infects those whose immune systems are weak. By supplementing with vitamin D3 in during the winter seniors can take a preemptive aging step to strengthen their immune system against the winter flu.
Drinking Green Tea Builds Immunity to the Flu
We are are in the middle of October this autumn, but it is an excellent idea to begin to build up our senior immune systems against the coming flu season. Beside the well known natural substances that have been proven to boost immunity, such as the vitamins C and D, a new arrival has entered the immunity field. When coupled with the old standbys vitamin C and D, this new arrival can form a strong, synergistic immunity team to fight the winter flu viruses. The new arrival on our immunity team is Green Tea taken daily. Substances in the Green Tea appear to act in a way similar to the substance in the flu drugs Relenza and Tamiflu that fight the flu. A recent study conducted in Asia reported that folks who consumed green tea at least six days a week reduced their risk of contracting flu by more that 45%. Using all the members of the immunity team will provide an immune system boost for seniors.
Strenghten Immune system
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During the cold winter months seniors need to strengthen their immune systems, because a weakened immune system can render seniors susceptible to coming down with simple colds that can progress to more serious illnesses such as full-blown pneumonia. For example, pneumonia and influenza continue to be one of the leading causes of death among Americans 65 years of age and older, because as seniors age the strength of their immune systems begin to decline from a number of causes including chronic stress, poor nutrition, and previous illnesses.
The good news for seniors is that there are ways to achieve an immune system boost against colds, flu and cold facilitated pneumonia. Unlike the flu vaccines that target specific flu viruses, other means are available for building the immune system that can defend against any cold or flu virus. A polysaccharide called beta-glucan that is derived from yeast can provide a powerful immune system boost. Similarly vitamin C is one of the vitamins that boost the immune system, because it replaces the vitamin C typically lost during infections. Citrus fruits are very good sources of vitamin C.
Seniors Can Preempt Winter Colds & Flu.
- Image via Wikipedia
As seniors age the strength of their immune systems begin to decline from a number of causes including chronic stress, poor nutrition, and previous illnesses. A weakened immune system can render seniors susceptible to coming down with simple colds, but these colds can progress to more serious illnesses such as full-blown pneumonia. For example, pneumonia and influenza continue to be one of the leading causes of death among Americans 65 years of age and older. Along the same line a weakened immune system will make a senior over 60 years of age very susceptible to suffering from outbreaks of shingles. Suffering from shingles is not life threatening like pneumonia, but it is very painful while it is active so that it deprives seniors of the enjoyment of their senior years.
The good news for seniors is that there are ways to achieve an immune system boost against colds, flu and cold facilitated pneumonia. Unlike the flu vaccines that target specific flu viruses, other means are available for building immune system that can defend against any cold or flu virus. A polysaccharide called beta-glucan that is derived from yeast can provide a powerful immune system boost. Similarly vitamin C is one of the vitamins to boost immune system, because it replaces the vitamin C typically lost during infections. The mineral zinc is needed for building the immune system.
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