You already know that the key to prevention and treatment of the common cold, the flu (and most other diseases) is a powerful immune system. And you know that when your immune system is abused or neglected, it can’t do what it was created to do: shelter you from illness and disease. Everyone knows washing your hands and taking vitamin C will help strengthen your immune system. But beyond that, most people just get their flu shot each winter and hope for the best.

At least that’s what I see so many people do each year, only to be plagued by the flu every several weeks, despite getting the flu shot, and sending their kids off to school with an almost constant stream of yellow-green infectious mucus hanging out of their nose.

Would you believe me if I told you it doesn’t have to be that way?

With a few simple changes, you can turn your immune system into such a powerful force against illness, that it’s possible to go the entire winter long without anyone in your family contracting a bug. Gee, what would it be like to spend your paid-time-off on the ski slopes instead of in bed cuddling with a box of Kleenex?

In this Part 1 of How to Avoid Getting Sick This Winter, I’m going to discuss the top 10 immune system killers. Read on, because you might be shocked to find a few things that most people do to keep the germs out are actually hurting them.

Top Immune System Killers

Antibacterial Soap, Hand Sanitizer, Bleach, and Antibiotics
These are, hands down, the number one killer of friendly bacteria and flora in your intestines. (For more information on why this is possibly the #1 factor in a healthy immune system, see What Are Probiotics, and Do You Have More Than One Brain?)  Here are some alternatives:

• Non-antibacterial soap kills just as many germs as as antibacterial soap, as long as you scrub for 60 seconds.
• We’ve become so bleach crazy the last several years! As an alternative, oregano essential oil kills everything in its path. You can cheaply and quickly make your own batch of cleaner by diluting this oregano in water. Lemon oil can whiten sinks and countertops. And don’t forget about the bleach you use on your teeth! Bleach can whiten your teeth temporarily, but it actually strips your teeth of their natural whiteness. Overtime, you’ll need to bleach more and more frequently to retain your sparkly smile.
• I agree there is a place for antibiotics. But over the last 20 years, they’ve been prescribed so irresponsibly. We call the doctor at the first sign of a sore throat, asking for a magic pill to make it all go away. It’s the over-use of antibiotics that has created scary methicillin-resistant bacteria strains like MRSA. Except in rare cases, your body can almost always fight off bacterial infection if you take care of your immune system.

White Bread and Refined Sugar
Nitrogen Trichloride (also called Agene) is used to bleach flour used int white breads, crackers and pastas. This bleach is incredibly hard on your immune system because it kills off good bacteria in your gut (which is where much of your immune system lives). Refined sugar (granulated sugar, brown sugar, high fructose corn syrup, and a whole slew of creative names for sugar) is one of the quickest ways to kill of healthy gut bacteria.

Alcohol
Excessive alcohol consumption can severely increase your susceptibility to infection by weakening the central nervous system. It also depletes many vitamins and minerals that are crucial to the immune system including B vitamin, folic acid, niacin, Vitamin E, magnesium and zinc.

Aspartame (Equal, NutraSweet)
Once inside your body, aspartame is broken down in your intestines as a toxic material called methanol. As your body metabolizes methanol, it turns into formaldehyde, a powerful poison that wreaks havoc on your immune system as well as other body systems.

MSG (Monosodium Glutamate)
This flavoring is so incredibly common in processed foods. I urge you to start reading ingredients before choosing to buy anything in a package. In addition to killing your immune system, MSG can trigger and worsen depression and anger that last as long as two weeks after eating MSG. If you suffer from depression, I double urge you to start reading labels and eliminating MSG from your diet completely. It will take a couple of weeks to notice a difference, but can make a drastic difference in the way you feel. MSG is listed on ingredient labels as any of the following: Monosodium Glutamate, Hyrdolyzed vegetable protein, Hydrolyzed protein, Hydrolyzed plant protein, Plant protein extract, Sodium Caseinate, Calcium Caseinate, Yeast Extract, Textured Protein (and TVP), Autolyzed Yeast, Hydrolyzed Oat Flour, Corn Oil.

Excess Animal Protein
Eating too much meat affects your immune system in two ways:
1) A diet high in animal fat causes your body to create more bile in the colon. Excess bile breaks down into cancer-causing elements called deoxycholic and lithocholic acids. I know you don’t want me to get all scientific on you so I won’t go into detail. Just know that consuming a lot of animal fat is linked to these types of cancer: colon, rectum, pancreatic, breast, gallbladder, ovarian, uterine, prostate and leukemia.

2) Meat contains a lot of protein, and over the last several decades, Americans have quadrupled their typical meat serving sizes. Your body only needs to derive 10% of its calories from protein, yet almost all of us are consuming at least double that, and a huge majority of Americans are consuming over 50% protein. Excess protein consumption can deplete your calcium stores, thus hindering your immune system. Not to mention the doses of hormones and antibiotics that surely make their way to your steak plate, which suppress the immune system, among other dis-services in the body.

Caffeine
Caffeine can gobble up your body’s iron and inositol before your cells have a chance to use them. These are important in building a healthy immune system.

Food Dyes and Artificial Flavoring
Besides the fact that these are major factors in ADHD, learning disabilities, and behavioral problems, these bad boys kill off the good bacteria in your gut.

Sodium Nitrite and Sodium Nitrate
These are found in lunch meats and cured meats like hot dogs, bologna, and even many sliced turkey, ham, roast beef and other deli meats. Nitrites and nitrates damage your central nervous system, and are even capable of producing epileptic changes in brain activity. A quick glance at the ingredient list can keep you safe from the effects of these nasty chemicals.

Lack of Sleep and Stress
I know this is the one item on the list that most people will skip right over. “Yeah, yeah… whatever.” But I can’t stress the importance of this enough. When you experience stress, your body releases stress hormones that start a chain of events including the RAPID leaching of nutrients from your cells. Stress is literally toxic because it causes free radicals to form. When you allow prolonged stress, those free radicals create “oxidative stress,” which is where cells throughout your body become damaged, and then those cells in turn steal what they are missing from the cell next to them. The newly robbed cell then robs from its neighbor and so on. The domino effect very quickly damages cells all throughout your body, which has a huge effect on your immune system. I don’t want to stress you out about this ;)… Just be aware, and start taking steps to eliminate unnecessary toxic stress from your life.

I’m really not a fan of using fear to inspire change.

I prefer to frame things in the positive whenever possible. But this is one of those cases where there was just no way around it. My intention while writing this article isn’t to scare you, but to open your eyes to a handful of things that are quite possibly the culprit behind your family’s constant illness throughout the colder months of the year.

In Part 2 of How to Avoid Getting Sick This Winter, I’ll cover the positive actions you can do to super-charge your immune system. Until then, simply open your awareness to the things in your environment that might be hindering your body’s ability to PROTECT YOU, and take some steps to avoid them.