How To Avoid The Flu Without A Flu Shot!

Do you ever hear those people who say, "We just don't get sick?"  Maybe you think to yourself, "Yeah right.  Everyone gets sick."  Maybe it makes you wonder if it's really possible.  Or maybe it's you!

Well, it IS possible to not get every flu and cold that comes your way!  You see, the common cold is only common because our toxic world has weakened our immune systems to the point where it can't even fight off the simplest virus.


People are dying from things like tooth infections, flu viruses, and even chickenpox.  Children today have strep throat and colds for the majority of their lives.  But these are all signs of a weakened immune system.  And an immune system that's this weak will eventually develop dangerous diseases like cancer.


We'll Just Get the Flu Shot
We all know (or should know) by now that the flu shot doesn't work.  I've heard so many people say, "I got the flu shot but still got the flu anyway."  That's because studies prove:

• 97% of those injected with the vaccine received no benefit (and no different outcome).
• Vaccination had...no effect on hospital admissions or complication rates.
• Vaccine use did not affect the number of people hospitalized or working days lost.

There was never an independent, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study proving either the safety or effectiveness of the H1N1 swine flu vaccines that were heavily pushed last year (and are in fact in this year's flu shot cocktail). No such study has ever been done. As a result, there is no rigorous scientific basis from which to sell such vaccines in the first place.http://www.naturalnews.com/029641_vaccines_junk_science.html

In children under the age of two, the efficacy of inactivated vaccine was similar to placebo. It was not possible to analyze the safety of vaccines from the studies due to the lack of standardization in the information given but very little information was found on the safety of inactivated vaccines, the most commonly used vaccine, in young children.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16437500

Influenza vaccination has been widely touted even though evidence of effectiveness is lacking. One large scientific review looked at 40 years' worth of influenza vaccine studies. It found that flu shots were ineffective for elderly persons living in the community, and flu shots were "non-significant against influenza" for elderly living in group homes. The authors of another major review "found no correlation between vaccine coverage and influenza-like-illness attack rate."http://www.doctoryourself.com/flushot.html

Additionally, an increase in febrile seizures has been linked to children receiving flu shots:
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/02/12/alert--seizures-now-reported-in-kids-receiving-flu-vaccine.aspx 


So why inject yourself and your little ones with dangerous chemicals when it hasn't even been proven to be successful?!  You CAN build up your family's body's defenses without risk!


The first thing to remember is that at least 70% of our immune system is in our gut.  

Gut flora is a hugely important part of our human physiology. Recently research in Scandinavia has demonstrated that 90 percent of all cells and all genetic material in a human body is our own gut flora. We are just a shell… a habitat for this mass of microbes inside us. We ignore them at our own peril. Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride

The healthier your digestive system is, the better you can fight off viruses and even bacterial infections.  There are many things that cause this--particularly the overuse of prescription drugs, chemicals in food, etc.  McBride further states:

Many of these modern factors created a whole plethora of young ladies in our modern world who have quite deeply abnormal gut flora by the time they are ready to have their first child. This is the abnormal gut flora that they are passing through their children.

What to Avoid
While we know that there are thousands of things causing this, here are a few of the most easily avoided ones:


1.  Prescription and OTC drugs, especially antibioticsThey weaken the immune system immensely by destroying beneficial gut bacteria and are not needed for colds, ear infections, or even strep throat in most cases!  Studies are now discovering that the beneficial bacteria destroyed by antibiotics may never be fully regained.





After healing her son of autism, Dr. McBride explains what she now knows about the importance of healthy gut and how prescription drugs destroy that:

… I always collect health history from the mother, the father, and preferably even grandparents of the child. I find that we have a growing and a deepening epidemic of abnormalities in the gut flora, which began since Second World War when antibiotics were discovered. Every course of broad spectrum antibiotics wipes out the beneficial species of microbes in the gut, which leaves the pathogens in there uncontrolled.

She states further:

Every course of antibiotics tends to wipe out the beneficial bacteria and that gives a window of opportunity for the pathogens to proliferate, to grow uncontrolled, and to occupy new niches in your gut.

She states how birth control pills are another factor in weakened immune systems.

And then, at the age of 15, 16, these ladies were put on a contraceptive pill… [which] have a devastating effect on the gut flora.

OTC medications do the same thing. Research has clearly demonstrated that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like Ibuprofen and Aleve damage gut function. 


Remember--the less you take, the less you'll need.  And vice versa.

2.  Processed foods--Like antibiotics, food that comes in a tray, can, box, or drive-thru


When a person consumes too much processed, heated foods and not enough raw food foods, they will become deficient.  This is important information because without these enzymes, food enters the gut without being properly broken down.  This will then breed bad bacteria in the gut, especially without adequate dietary fiber.  (Watch for an upcoming post on the importance of enzymes, where I'll make the science behind this crucial factor simple and understandable.)  


So the combination of processed foods and lack of food raw consumption (with digestive enzymes intact) directly weaken the immune system.


3.  Vaccinations

It's been known for some time now that vaccinations destroy gut health. 

The MMR vaccine increases the permeability of the bowel, causing "leaky gut syndrome." Toxin-laden fecal matter is then allowed to escape the digestive tract and enter the bloodstream. Once in the blood, the toxins travel to the brain where they damage sensitive brain tissues leading to the development of autism. Dr. Wakefield also found that autistic children develop inflamed bowel nodules causing indigestion and liver damage from toxic overload.  His findings have been corroborated by Irish molecular biologist John O'Leary , who found measles virus in the gut of 96% of vaccinated autistic children and in 75% of children with Crohn's Disease.  http://www.vaclib.org/basic/mmr.htm

4.  Sugar
Sugar weakens a person's immune system in a variety of different ways.  Like processed foods, it feeds bad gut bacteria and causes it to flourish.  Studies have shown that consuming the amount of sugar equivalent to what's found in one soda can suppress a person's immune function for up to six hours after consumption.  


That "winter bug" that everyone catches at holiday parties is more likely due to weakened immune systems after the high sugar consumption!

Remember--this also includes sugars found in things like fruit juice (yes, they are "natural" but without the fiber from the fruit, they act just like regular sugar in your body) and artificial sweeteners.


What to Get
In addition to avoiding these immune-destroyers, there are a few things you can take to build up your immune health like Fort Knox:


1.  Probiotics--A must for a healthy gut and strong immune system.  Kefir made from raw milk is our family's favorite probiotic.  It's very inexpensive to make it homemade (about $0.75/quart) and retains all of its nutrients since it isn't heated like yogurt.  It also contains at least six times the amount of beneficial bacteria as yogurt.  Water kefir is a dairy-free option for those who want/need to stay away from dairy.


(A few articles on kefir's health benefits:



What’s Kefir and Why Do I Need It?
This article from Natural News details the importance of healthy bacteria, what can disrupt the balance of bacteria in your gut, the health problems an imbalance creates, and why kefir is so important.
http://www.naturalnews.com/024477_kefir_bacteria_probiotics.html


Probiotics’ Healing Power Impresses Researchers
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/10/11/probiotics-healing-power-impresses-researchers.aspx)


That being said, yogurt, however, is a good choice as well.  Unless it contains sugar, that is.  Buy unsweetened yogurt or kefir and add raw honey, pure maple syrup, or stevia and fresh fruit.  Acidophilus tablets are another good choice.  Whatever way you get it, be sure to get it every day!





2.  Breastfeeding
I know it's too late for some of us, but for those who are pregnant or planning a family, this is very crucial information.  It's become too politically incorrect in our society to boast about breastfeeding's amazing health benefits, but I don't care.  Study after study proves that it's just too important to overlook.  Some people are unable to breastfeed, but I encourage everyone who can to do so.  It will give their baby a lifelong leap of good immune health.  In the words of McBride:

Adding injury to insult is the significant decrease in breastfeeding. We now know that breastfed babies develop entirely different gut flora compared to bottle-fed babies. Infant formula never was, and never will be a healthy replacement to breast milk, for a number of reasons; altered gut flora being one of them.

…As a result, their digestive system—instead of being a source of nourishment for these children—becomes a major source of toxicity. These pathogenic microbes inside their digestive tract damage the integrity of the gut wall. So all sort of toxins and microbes flood into the bloodstream of the child, and get into the brain of the child. That usually happens in the second year of life in children who were breast fed because breastfeeding provides a protection against this abnormal gut flora.
So breastfeeding is crucial to protect these children."  Dr. Joseph Mercola

3.  Vitamins C & D

32 years ago, twice Nobel-Prize winner Linus Pauling reviewed the nutritional literature and determined that high doses of vitamin C reduce the frequency and shorten the severity of influenza. Orthomolecular (nutritional) physicians have repeatedly confirmed this. Robert F. Cathcart, MD, successfully treated thousands of viral-illness patients with massive doses of vitamin C. Vitamin D also increases resistance to influenza, as do the minerals selenium and zinc.

The important thing to remember about taking multivitamins, especially vitamin C, is that it's very difficult to consume a toxic dose of it. In fact, many researchers like Pauling have taken mega doses of Vitamin C every day of their lives. Our family takes 1 gram a day (or more some days). 

The measly amounts recommended by the FDA is not the amount to achieve good health--it is the amount necessary to prevent nutritional deficiency and disease. In the case of Vitamin C, that means their recommendation is the minimum needed to prevent scurvy.

The American Association of Poison Control Centers, which maintains the USA’s national database from 61 poison control centers, indicates that even including intentional and accidental misuse, the number of vitamin fatalities is less than one death per year.

Drugs, however, are an entirely different matter:

"Harmful reactions to some of the most widely used medicines — from insulin to a common antibiotic — sent more than 700,000 Americans to emergency rooms each year, landmark government research shows.” (Associated Press, Oct 17, 2006)

There are many ways to take vitamin C, but I do not recommend buying the flavored chewables since they have added sugar and sometimes artificial flavors and preservatives. Look for a powdered jar of ascorbic acid at your local natural foods store or online. Follow the recommendations on the label or on the chart below:

Vitamin C dosage chart:  http://www.doctoryourself.com/klenner_table.html

As far as Vitamin D goes, this is a very difficult one to give dosage recommendations for.  Here are Dr. Mercola's general guidelines:


VITAMIN D DOSE RECOMMENDATIONS








AGE               DOSAGE
Below 5          35 units per pound per day
Age 5 - 10      2500 units
Adults            5000 units
Pregnant Women 5000 units

WARNING:
There is no way to know if the above recommendations are correct. The ONLY way to know is to test your blood. You might need 4-5 times the amount recommended above. Ideally your blood level of 25 OH D should be 60ng/ml.
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2002/02/23/vitamin-d-deficiency-part-one.aspx

With good nutrition bolstered with supplemental vitamin and mineral intake, the human body's natural defenses are strengthened and can rapidly adapt to resist new flu strains.

Clinical evidence indicates that nutrition is more significant that vaccination. Malnutrition is far more dangerous than not getting vaccinated.

Andrew Saul, PhD, author of Doctor Yourself

So resist the urge to eat whatever you want and get a flu shot, thinking that will protect you.  Strengthen your body the way it was intended to be!  


And when you need antibiotics, don't forget to check out my post on the Creator's Natural Antibiotics:   http://healthyfamiliesforgod.blogspot.com/2011/03/creators-natural-antibiotics.html

Since colloidal silver is only mentioned briefly in that post but deserves more attention, here is some additional information on this wonderful product:


Colloidal Silver--The most powerful natural antibiotic


"Unlike pharmaceutical antibiotics which destroy beneficial enzymes, Colloidal Silver leaves these tissue-cell enzymes intact as they are radically different from the enzymes of primitive single-celled life."


"Unlike with antibiotics, resistant strains have never been known to develop. In fact, antibiotics are only effective against perhaps a dozen forms of bacteria and fungi, but never viruses. Because no known disease causing organism can live in the presence of even minute traces of the chemical element of metallic silver, colloidal silver is effective against more than 650 different disease causing pathogens."
http://www.familyhealthnews.com/articles-colloidal-silver.html


Colloidal silver can be found at your local natural foods store, in the natural foods section of larger grocery stores, and online.


Replace all those man-made drugs in your medicine cabinet with God's wonderful medicine, fill your refrigerator with His whole, health-giving foods, and see what a difference it makes in your family's lives!


Finally, having a strong immune system is not just for fighting off colds.  We live in a toxic world where everything that goes onto our lawns, into our mouths, on our ears (cellphones), and a hundred other things can cause cancer.  A Fort Knox immune system can prevent your body from being easily sickened and diseased from infections, allergies, and even cancer.  


In the words of Hippocrates, "Let food be thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food."