Keep in Mind...9/13/2012
As classes start to kick into high gear it can be easy to get wrapped up in the work and begin unraveling yourself personally on multiple levels. Many times our last thought is ourselves because society has it engrained that self consideration correlates with selfishness. The most beneficial thing you can do when things seem hectic is take a step back and assess how things are going both in school and in life outside of school. We have tons of information about balancing life outside of school that will come, but I wanted to take this opportunity to have you start thinking about how much "selfishness" you incorporate into your healthy life.
-RV
Everyone knows that impending feeling, the
scratchy dry throat, minor sniffles, tired eyes, short breath, etc. There is nothing worse than
waking up in the morning and feeling the symptoms of the common cold making
itself comfortable. This cold is sure to throw off your sleep, induce
chronic napping, and make you a communal lifestyle pariah due to the newly
festered germs you are carrying. While the hygiene status of a college
student is hardly a predictable subject, there comes a time that we all must
accept that germs are all around us.
As classes start to kick into high gear it can be easy to get wrapped up in the work and begin unraveling yourself personally on multiple levels. Many times our last thought is ourselves because society has it engrained that self consideration correlates with selfishness. The most beneficial thing you can do when things seem hectic is take a step back and assess how things are going both in school and in life outside of school. We have tons of information about balancing life outside of school that will come, but I wanted to take this opportunity to have you start thinking about how much "selfishness" you incorporate into your healthy life.
Health is a state of
complete physical, mental and social well-being,
and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.
-World Health Organization
and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.
-World Health Organization
-RV
Everyone knows that impending feeling, the
scratchy dry throat, minor sniffles, tired eyes, short breath, etc. There is nothing worse than
waking up in the morning and feeling the symptoms of the common cold making
itself comfortable. This cold is sure to throw off your sleep, induce
chronic napping, and make you a communal lifestyle pariah due to the newly
festered germs you are carrying. While the hygiene status of a college
student is hardly a predictable subject, there comes a time that we all must
accept that germs are all around us. 
What many people don’t consider, are
tactics to avoid these seasonal colds.
Instead we often wait for it to get us, doomed for 2+ weeks of
inconvenient nose blowing, and obnoxious (usually during quiet exams) nose
dripping. The Rhinovirus is the cause of over 30% of common colds. Health specialists
estimate that over 70% of the time a cold virus is transmitted through hand to
hand contact. Even more shocking to
hear is that a mere 2% of cold carriers expel the virus through a cough or
sneeze; debunking the common misconception that you are more likely to catch a
cold through air born particles. This means that the compulsive sneezer next to
you in lecture may actually not need to be contained and decontaminated like
they are radioactive. In other words,
cut the sick person some slack! 
It seems like some of us are
catching a cold with the change of the wind, and others manage to go months
unscathed. While health choices play a
big role in dodging the pesky virus, your body’s natural composition may be
less prepared to defend itself. This is
why building immune health and making healthy decisions are the best ways to
ward off any unwelcome germs during cold season. There's an old saying that a cold takes three
days coming, three days staying and three days to go away. Those are 9-10 days
of your life (assuming you just get one cold per year) that you will have to
spend at the mercy of DayQuil and snorting herbal tea remedies. You can take steps to prevent this health
status and even shorten the length and intensity of your cold. None of us want to be the miserable nose
dripper this fall so read further on how to kick colds out of your life.
1. Be a Clean Person. Community living quarters are breeding grounds for germs. Viruses spread through human contact and eliminate sharing (ie sharing drinks etc)
2. Eat With a Purpose. You should be eating healthy not only to avoid colds and flus. This means that 2am Jimmy Johns after a night out isn’t going to leave you feeling very immune. Eat a Diverse diet.
3. Exercise regularly. Regular exercise will improve your general health. If you have yet to learn where the campus rec center is located, it is easy to get started. Exercise can be as simple as going for a walk!
4. Sanitize shared items. This means items that multiple sets of hands will touch, like pens and phones. A virus is constantly growing and will try to reject antibiotics.
Click to learn the difference between a cold and allergies!
5. Wear the right clothes. I know free laundry is hard to come by these days, but if is cold outside you need to wear some warm clothes. Wearing layers will help regulate your body temperature.
6. Humidify your room. If your room is dry your nose and throat will dry out leaving tiny holes for germs to enter.
7. Sleep. Getting sound sleep and rest is essential to keep the viruses away. There are many studies and research confirming that a couple of nights of poor sleep can already reduce your immune system capabilities by 50%! Researchers agree that people ages 18-25 should attempt to sleep for 8-9 hours a night.
8. Take vitamins. A multivitamin covers all the bases. It will ensure that your body has all the minerals and vitamins it needs to perform its daily activities.
9. Eat different food. There are many foods, herbs and spices that you can eat to protect yourself from bacteria and improve your immune system. Among them yogurt and herbal teas are loaded with immune system building nutrients.. All of these foods have good bacteria that combat the cold virus and are jam packed with vitamins to keep you out of the Kleenex isle at the grocery store.
10. Relax. Stress can severely degrade your immune system. Unfortunately colds are uncontrollable. The bright side is that an occasional cold or sickness can allow the immune system to build itself up stronger for the future.
-RV
No comments:
Post a Comment