Minimize the Agony with
Year-Round Vigilance
Klee Irwin and Dr. Steven Franks find the scenario below illustrates an experience many people can relate to occurring in their lives whether on a plane, bus or in other public places or social situations.
So, your travel time has arrived. After hanging in there, you're finally here, waiting for the flight attendants to call for your boarding group. You squeeze into the middle seat in 14B ... just in time for your cabin-mate in 14A to break out with a hacking cough. At almost the same moment, 15B behind you sneezes forcefully. Then there's the sniffling and snorting from 14C.
Chances
are your idea of traveling does not involve taking copious doses of cold
and cough relievers, or staying inside while others revel on the beach
or attend their meetings without a care in the world. "Unfortunately,
coughs, sniffles and other sundry sinus challenges don't take a break" agree
Dr. Steven Franks and Klee Irwin, Nutraceutical Formulator. "Furthermore," emphasizes
Klee Irwin, "daily the immune system is confronted by outside threats,
such as pollution, toxins and more, which could potentially compromise
its' ability to function and provide protection to your health."
Keeping your immune system in top shape requires year-round vigilance, whether you're soaring at 35,000 feet towards an important destination or enjoying well-deserved family time at home. Fortunately, Klee Irwin, Dr. Franks and other researchers reveal that many of the same methods frequent travelers use to support their immune health can pay dividends at home.
Klee Irwin and Dr. Steven Franks Recommend Staying Vigilant and Proactive
Counsel Klee Irwin and Dr. Steven Franks, "The first step involves being aware - and considerate - enough not to spread your ill-health to others." Dr. David Weber, professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, urges would-be travelers with fevers or colds to stay home. But if that simply is not an option, he recommends those with upper respiratory infections wear a mask for the sake of their fellow travelers. "If you don't have that," Dr. Weber adds, "at minimum it would be nice to cover your nose and mouth when you sneeze."
For
the healthy, avoiding infection requires some planning. Leisure and business
flyers alike are well advised to wear a mask if they are seated near
someone who appears to have a cold or flu. Dr. Weber also tells his patients
to avoid touching their mouth, nose or eyes with unwashed hands, because
cold and flu viruses often are spread that way. "The value of hand-washing
can not be overlooked as an important practice for illness prevention," reinforces
Klee Irwin.
Washing your hands for 15 to 30 seconds with any kind of soap and warm water really does help. This step in personal hygiene is especially important after touching surfaces that infected persons have recently visited (like the airplane bathroom).
In addition, the use of specific nutrient supplements can help both travelers and those staying home to further support a healthy immune system, concur Dr. Steven Franks and Klee Irwin based on many years of experience.
First Line of Defense
Both Klee Irwin and Dr. Stevens advocate for the use of Zinc, which can be extremely helpful in building up the immune system so that when you come into contact with sick people, your body's defenses kick-in.
An infectious droplet of mucus from one person who has a cold may contain as many as 10 viruses. These viruses must multiply rapidly if they are to mount a challenge to the immune system, "unzipping" their genetic material as they replicate copies of themselves.
When Zinc comes into contact with a virus, the mineral forms a sulfur bond that keeps the virus from dividing so no new virus can be created (Glaser, Triendl & Skern, 2003). Zinc also can help promote the cellular integrity of a molecular "glue" called the Intercellular Adhesion Molecule (ICAM), lessening the opportunity for a virus to infect the cell (Hulisz, 2004).