Can Acupuncture Prevent Colds & Flus?

Flu season has come early this year due to a strain of virus not typically seen this time of year, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The CDC announced on Friday that there have already been an estimated 1.7 million illnesses, 16,000 hospitalizations and 910 flu deaths this year in the US so far.

Most commonly getting worse first in the southern states, Minnesota’s cold and flu season doesn’t typically start until around January. But this year, Minnesota has already seen its unseasonably early fair-share of flu cases. Already, there have been over 50 hospitalizations in Minnesota THIS WEEK ALONE for the flu.

What’s worse, government medical officials fear that the strains of flu included in this year’s flu vaccine do not match up well with the actual strains of virus in circulation.

Again.

Meaning that this year’s flu vaccine may not be as effective this year as they had hoped. This wouldn’t be the first time the flu vaccine struck out and was found to be statistically ineffective.

So even if you got your flu shot, you may still be at risk…

…But it doesn’t have to be that way.

We are often led to believe that once we get our flu shot, that’s all we can do… it’s a case of “wait and see” if it worked. Just roll the dice. Maybe that’s ok for some people, but I’m not much of a gambling man and rolling the dice with just a flu shot isn’t what I want to do. I’d much rather “stack the deck in my favor” by doing more. Thankfully, there are many things that you can do to help prevent colds & flus this year.

Here is a short list of things you can do this week (and the next) to boost your immune system.

 

1. Getting enough rest is one thing. Consider going to bed according to your own internal clock versus the clock on the wall. This time of the year it is actually appropriate to go to bed at 7:30 or 8:00 rather than 10:30 or 11:00. If you are waking up tired and groggy rather than refreshed, it means you aren’t in sync with your own body’s sleep cycle. Try switching it up.

 

2. Another is to go for walks or other form of exercise. Get some exercise and some fresh air and sunshine. Be active this winter. Few things are awakening as a breath of fresh winter air. Specifically, walking outdoors in nature has been shown to give an extra boost your immune system and protect you from illnesses. The sun’s rays helps the body produce its own vitamin D which is a vital nutrient for a healthy immune system. Sunshine can also help stave off cancer, depression, heart disease and low testosterone and/or estrogen.

 

3. A nutritious diet of whole foods is also a number one ingredient to a strong immune system. Is hard to eat healthy when we go out to eat or eat processed foods, so get into the habit of cooking for yourself and your family this winter season.

 

4. Consider meditating or get in a habit of quiet contemplation or prayer. Oodles of studies show that even 10 minutes of sitting quietly helps ameliorate stress (cool word, huh?) and boost your immune system. There are tons of videos online for guided meditations if you need some help getting started. Or just ask me.

 

5. Acupuncture and Chinese Herbs. For literally thousands of years, the Chinese have successfully treated symptoms of viral colds and flus along with bacterial infections. It boosts your overall health and specifically your immune system. If you have other health issues, a well trained acupuncturist (like me) can treat many of your health concerns all in one visit.

 

How does acupuncture help prevent colds and flus?

Acupuncturists have been treating colds and flus literally for thousands of years. But even more importantly, acupuncturists have been PREVENTING colds and flus by treating people before they catch the cold or flu. Because as they say, “an ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure”. Traditionally, people would visit their village acupuncturist 4 times each year at the change of the seasons to best support the body and prevent seasonal health issues. Even today, many people come for their seasonal acupuncture “tune up”.

According to the traditional way of looking at acupuncture, it helps by strengthening the body’s own natural immune system by unblocking energetic blockages in the body’s natural energy flows. The Chinese called this energy “qi”. Whenever it is compromised or stuck, illness will result. A metaphor might be having a kink in your water hose out in the garden. If the kink isn’t addressed, the flowers in your garden do not get what they needs and they quickly suffer, languish and eventually get sick. The same goes for our body; a kink in the energetic pathways of our body can lead to compromised flow of qi and blood and lymph and nerve signals, metabolism, immune system and hormones… leading to illness. Acupuncture can figuratively “unkink” these blockages in the body and restore proper energy flow to restore optimum health.

From a more modern understanding of acupuncture, good acupuncture helps trigger all sorts of neurochemicals, triggering the body to make its own medicine such as its natural pain relievers, anti-inflammatory, muscle relaxants, enkephalines, etc. In the case of the immune system, it helps restore blood flow to the various organs, triggers the production of more white blood cells, reduces cortisol levels, lowering the effects of overwork and stress, etc. In medical research jargon, it acts as an “immune modulator”.  But put simply, Acupuncture triggers the body to make its own medicine to restore good health and optimize your immune system so it can fend for itself this winter.

So if you are looking for an additional ways to protect yourself and your family this year, consider Acupuncture; The Greatest Value In Medicine