VIRAL INFECTIONS

There are many things that you can do to prevent and reduce the duration of a viral infection beyond eating Grandma’s chicken soup…

While most of us suffer from a viral infection at least once a year, we often don’t know what to do to get better, or how to stop from getting sick in the first place. The good news is that there actually are lots of things that you can do to help you stay healthy.

Symptoms
While the exact symptoms of a viral infection are unique to the virus involved, most will share certain characteristics.
Interestingly, what we normally consider the symptoms of the virus are actually more commonly symptoms of our immune response to having the infection. Actual symptoms of a viral infection (without immune response) are feelings of fatigue, malaise, and that sense of being “under the weather”. Having a runny nose, sneezing, coughing, sore throat, fever, muscle aches, diarrhea, and vomiting are all actually symptoms of your body fighting back. The location of these symptoms can often give a hint as to what part of your body has been infected.

How is a virus different from bacteria?
It is important to know the difference between a virus and bacteria, because the treatment of each type of infection differs. Bacteria are small one-celled microorganisms that can live on or in our body’s tissues (but usually outside of our cells). When infected with bacteria, we produce purulent discharges like pus, and thick, often colourful mucous that can have a bad smell and/or taste. Bacteria are the “bugs” that can be killed with antibiotics.  Viruses are completely different from bacteria. They actually exist as little pieces of DNA (or RNA) in a protein shell, which makes them much smaller than bacteria (the molecular, rather than cellular level). They invade our body cells and take them over, forcing the cell to be used to produce more and more viral units until it eventually dies of exhaustion. Because they hide within our own cells, it is much harder for our immune system to fight them off. This type of infection may produce thick mucous (and it may be coloured), but it will not smell bad, nor will we see pus. Colds and Flus are both examples of viral infections. Unfortunately, viral infections cannot be treated with antibiotics, because there are no “bugs” to kill. In some cases, a viral infection can wear down the immune system and leave the body open to a bacterial co-infection. A sign of this is when your symptoms will switch suddenly partway through an illness.

Prevention
When speaking of the flu virus in particular, did you know that the most common entry point for the flu is actually the eyes? Touching an infected surface and rubbing your eye is the fastest way to get sick because there are fewer immune defences in your eye. Other common places for viral entry are the nose, mouth, respiratory tract, the gut and even the skin. The most important step in preventing a viral infection is washing your hands! Hand sanitizer is often not enough, and while it can cover you in times when you cannot wash properly, soap and hot water is your best defense. Wash your hands thoroughly by lathering up the soap, spreading it over your entire hands and between the fingers and then waiting for at least 30 seconds before rinsing with warm water. You can sing the alphabet song in your head to know how long to continue.

Boosting Immune Function
The immune system is a combination of a variety of specialized cells that work together to protect the body and clean out invaders. They are a lot like the military with different types of soldiers of different rank. Keeping the immune system in prime and ready condition ensures that the battles they fight will be efficient and short-lived. This means that your cold or flu won’t last as long and you will get back to feeling better faster! So, how do you keep your troops happy and ready to fight? It isn’t a whole lot different than how you stay healthy the rest of the time! First and foremost, is sleep! If you aren’t giving your body the eight hours that it needs to recharge and repair, it will not be ready for the next battle when you need it. If you try, but just can’t sleep, check out our Sleep article for things that can help. It is also essential to manage stress levels so the body isn’t distracted by constantly being on “high alert”. Supplements for boosting immune function include: Vitamin D, Echinacea, Probiotics, Zinc, Vitamin C, and Astragalus.

Duration – Let’s get this over with!
Most of us don’t mind being sick, as long as we can get it over with as soon as possible. So how can we make sure that we heal as quickly as we can? The trick is to take care of your body in the moment. When you feel that you are coming down with a virus, there are a few simple steps you can take to get better fast.

Simple tricks to fight off a virus
1. REST as much as possible
2. Take vitamin C, and vitamin D to boost immunity
3. Echinacea taken early in infection can help prevent a long illness.
4. Drink plenty of fluids to flush out your system.
5. Don’t go to work or school if at all possible! This only spreads the infection to others and runs you down further.
6. Elderberry is tasty and effective at fighting viral infections.

The good part of getting sick
Believe it or not, the symptoms that you experience are actually a reassurance that your immune system is in good working order. It also keeps us in practice so our body’s can learn to adapt to new pathogens. As we adapt, so do the viruses, so being exposed lets us keep up with their new “weapons”. If your immune system is busy with a toxic overload, allergies, or depleted because of stress or nutrient deficiencies, it cannot properly mount a response. This leaves us vulnerable to attack. Also, if our body does not spend adequate time fighting real battles, the troops get bored and begin to look for things to fight. This is theorized to be one of the causes of allergies and food sensitivities.

Diet
While your diet leading up to getting sick, is essential to keep you safe from infection, it is also a great way to get your body back on track once you’ve already gotten sick. Eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, is a great way to ensure that you get the nutrients that your body needs to keep your immune system up and running and your body’s other defences strong. When you are already sick with a viral infection, it is essential to keep a minimalist diet of simple to digest foods, like crackers, broth, juice, and water. Drink plenty of fluids to help stay hydrated, and avoid processed and sugar-filled foods. With diarrhea, it is important to have simple, binding foods like rice, and cooked carrots. Try to follow the traditional recommendation “feed a cold, starve a fever” to help support your body’s natural defences. Of course, always trust your body first: if you are hungry: eat!

Supplements for Treating Viral Infection
Which supplements will best benefit your viral infection most often depends on the location of the infection. Vomiting, Diarrhea, sore throat (Throat Infection), and Cough are all symptoms that can be treated directly.

The following list of supplements can be used for preventing and treating colds and flus. They are best taken at the first signs of an infection. Adult doses are given.

SUPPLEMENT / DOSAGE / THERAPEUTIC EFFECT
ELDERBERRY / As directed / Antiviral activity.
ASTRAGALUS / As directed / Can be taken daily to optimize immune function.
COLOSTRUM / 500-1000mg twice daily / Contains immune boosting nutrients.
OREGANO OIL/ As directed. / A potent antiviral supplement.
BUFFERED VITAMIN C WITH BIOFLAVONOIDS / 3000-10000mg daily / Supports mucous membranes. Enhances the immune system. If diarrhoea occurs decrease daily dosage.
ZINC LOZENGES PLUS COPPER / Up to 70mg a day, copper 3mg daily / Speeds tissue repair and soothes the throat. Do not use more than 100mg of zinc daily.
GARLIC / 2 capsules three times daily / Warms the body. It is antibacterial and antiviral.
ECHINACEA WITH GOLDENSEAL / As directed on labelling / Boosts the immune system. Goldenseal heals mucus membranes and is antibacterial. Echinacea can be used for prevention but goldenseal should only be taken when there is an infection.
PROBIOTICS / 2–10 Billion daily / Colonize the digestive tract and help to regulate and train the immune system.
VITAMIN D / 1,000-3,000IU Daily / Supports healthy immune function.
Also beneficial for Cold and Flu: Multivitamins, vitamin E, selenium, N-acetylcysteine, L-lysine, bee propolis, elderberry, ephedra, eucalyptus, mushroom extract, licorice root.