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If you’re leaving your house this cold and flu season, you need to know you can’t rely solely on others practicing the ‘sneeze sleeve’. There are easy, natural, and effective ways to boost and support your immune system to prevent cold and flu. The over the counter cold and flu product market exceeds annual sales of 400 mil ion dol ars in Canada alone. But, curiously many products don’t work while others have counteractive ingredients in them. Whether you are a corporate executive, a frequent flyer, or a soccer mom, you want to stay healthy this year. And you will be happy to learn that there are natural and effective ways to do so. I’m going to introduce you to what I cal a natural cold and flu kit. Take it with you everywhere. As mentioned, there are many cold and flu remedies that work and many that don’t and furthermore some are safe and others – even though they have been readily available over the counter for years – are not. But let’s start with Echinacea. Its back! And so am I (from Italy), where I discovered an amazing thing. They’re growing it there - the stuff that real y works. Echinacea, a traditional herbal medicine that has been long recognized for its immune-stimulating powers, is the most common nutraceutical used in Canada to prevent the flu and common cold. Consumers spend more than hundreds of mil ions on formulas containing the native North American wildflower in hopes of minimizing the impact of flu, which afflicts 10% to 25% of Canadians each year. Echinacea sales continue to grow at an annual rate of 7%, making it the fastest-growing herbal category in Canada. I've visited a number of Echinacea fields and manufacturing facilities and understand why, after 10 years of development, the leader in the industry is in Italy. They have designed something cal ed “LPx3”. It is one of the most effective flu-prevention natural medicines available. Not al Echinacea is equal – many products use aerial parts of the plants which contain no bioactivity. Three types are used medicinal y: Echinacea purpurea (Purple Coneflower), Echinacea pal ida (Pale Purple Coneflower) and Echinacea angustifolia (Narrow- Leafed Purple Coneflower). It is the angustifolia plant that works the best. But it must come in a specific format. Many contain ingredients that work against you. In fact, fifty percent of al commercial formulas are made up of immune- suppressing agents! Many products contain both active and in-active ingredients from the root, leaves and flowers – and some ironical y impede and reduce your immune system. The best clinical evidence available shows a selectively-bred LPX3 Echinacea Angustifolia plant is the ideal raw material for a flu prevention supplement. What you want to know is that the selectively-bred Echinacea Angustifolia harvested and manufactured in Italy that I investigated yields no immune suppressive activity. This Echinacea is manufactured by Indena, a privately owned Italian company, in a very unique manner. The unique composition (a high molecular weight of the polysaccharide at five percent) found in the Echinacea Angustifolia roots contain immune boosting properties. And what Indeena does through a strict purification process is remove the stuff (cal ed isobutylamides) that doesn’t inhibit the immune system. A product here in Canada called “FluShield” is a clinical y proven flu prevention natural product containing the LPX3 extract. It is the first flu prevention formula approved by Heath Canada deemed effective as an immunostimulant that is scientifical y proven to exhibit a direct immunological effect on T cel s (the ‘pac man’ cel that eats up viruses). FluShield is the result of over a decade of clinical research and its my first inclusion to your flu buster kit. Garlic does more than fend off Dracula. Garlic has demonstrated significant antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral properties. But not al garlic. In particular a product called “Allimax” is showing promise. The ingredients in Allimax have been shown an ability to reduce cholesterol and blood pressure but more surprisingly they are very effective increasing T cel count significantly (the pac man cel s). Allicin, one of the active principles of freshly crushed garlic, has a variety of antimicrobial activities. Al icin in its pure form was found to exhibit antibacterial activity against a wide range of Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria (which is why it is so great at treating sinusitis), including multidrug- resistant enterotoxicogenic strains of Escherichia coli, antifungal activity, particularly against Candida albicans, antiparasitic activity, including some major human intestinal protozoan parasites such as Enamoeba hisolytica and Giardia lamblia and antiviral activity. If that doesn’t impress you, just go away knowing that it’ll kick-butt against almost any virus that lasts long enough to al ow bacteria to start taking advantage of you at the same time (hence the classic superimposed-on-top-of-your-flu-bacterial-infection). Garlic is one of the edible plants, which has generated a lot of interest throughout human history as a medicinal panacea. And where there is no such thing as a cure-all, wide ranges of microorganisms including bacteria, fungi, protozoa and viruses have been shown to be sensitive to crushed garlic preparations. And in the interest of offending microbes but not your best friend… this garlic supplement is odourless! If you live north of 32 degrees, you’re likely deficient in it. And people with the lowest levels of this vitamin in their blood are the most likely to catch colds and flu. Many show that the vitamin from sunshine boosts the immune system and even helps prevent some cancers and heart disease. Vitamin D comes mostly from strong sunshine, pil s (Vit-D3 or cholecalciferol), or milk and some fish. Most Canadians have very low levels of the vitamin and coming up are the months where we become the lowest. Vitamin D levels vary widely in the population. Fair-skinned people in sunny regions tend to have the most; dark- skinned people who don't get much sun exposure have the least. Most people I test in personal practice have very low levels. You should ask your doctor to test you – the blood test is known as 25OHD. This wil help determine the dose that it right for you. On average, I’d recommend at least 2,000 IU/day of the vitamin D3. Mixing it into a fish oil is even better for optimal absorption. The Canadian Col ege of Family Physicians estimates most children wil suffer from five to eight colds each year and in light of recent changes by Health Canada regarding the availability and use of children’s over-the-counter cough and cold medicines, the question becomes what to do for the kiddywinkies? The Canadian Medical Association Journal’s (CMAJ) editorial recommendation regarding the use of codeine, a common cough medicine ingredient, has understandably caused parents to question the safety of cold and flu treatment options for their children. Many over the counter cold and cough medicines are cal ed into question over their safety due to DMX as wel as other ingredients like dextromethorphan or DMX. And be careful, you need to think twice about giving children supplements or natural medicines without the explicit advice of their healthcare practitioner. The classification of Homeopathic cough, cold and flu medicines however are very safe and effective alternative choices for parents who want to help prevent or treat a child’s cough, cold or flu. They are safe and effective at any age and are approved by Health Canada for children under the age of six. I recommend the fol owing Boiron homeopathic medicines especial y since they have no known side effects, and no risk of overdose and Coryzalia is proven effective in relieving cold symptoms for children under the age of six. The single-dose format is easy to administer and ensures no risk of overdose. Coryzalia has a neutral taste and is sugar-free, alcohol-free and does Oscillicoccinum is proven effective in relieving flu symptoms for children under the age of six. The single-dose format is hassle-free for children to take and ensures no risk of overdose. Oscil icoccinum has a neutral taste, does not contain dyes or preservatives, and has no known side effects or Stodal is proven effective in reducing the frequency and intensity of dry and productive coughs for children under the age of six. The pasteurized honey- based formula has a pleasant taste, and the provided measuring cup makes it easy to administer the right dose with no risk of overdose. Stodal has no known side effects, such as drowsiness, and contains no alcohol and no dyes. Ever wonder how a virus gets into you in the first place? The most notorious method of entry is through the mucous membranes: the nose, lungs, eyes, and mouth. And what if there was something that you could do to reduce your chances of contamination? There is! And you’ve al heard of it: improved hygiene! Wash your hands more often. But what about if you happen to be boarding a plane and sharing the same air as everyone else? Petroleum Jel y to the rescue. Al you need to do is apply a thin smear of it up your nose before boarding the plane. What it does is help buffer out the virus and bacterial contaminants in the recycled air from coughs and sneezes. It also helps to travel with a Neti-Pot designed for nasal irrigation. It is simple to use and my strong recommendation is to clean out your nose and sinuses before bedtime so as to reduce the chances of mucous trapped viruses and bacteria stuck in your nose from entering into your general system overnight. Also remember to keep it top of mind to sleep enough (7-8 hours); eat an anti- inflammatory diet, and exercise daily to maintain a healthy immune system. Don’t waste time in putting together your flu kit. Stock up. Because we al know where a flu virus laden sneeze ends up… right Achoo! 1) 3 remedies for Adults: Echinacea (FluShield by Jamieson) for prevention of cold/flu, Al imax (CLM Health) for colds that complicate into sinusitis and bacterial infections; and Vit-D (NutraSea +D) since it is imperative for the immune system and as North Americans we need more! 2) 3 remedies for kids: Coryzalia, Osscil o, Stodal (Boiron) 3) Neti-Pot with saline sachets and Petroleum Jelly with Q-tips

Source: http://www.teresakruze.ca/pdf/cold_flu_kit.pdf