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Advice on not getting sick alot.
BrotherVoodoo
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
In the past 12 months I've gotten colds like 4-5 times. The last few have been fairly short term. But it's annoying. Seemingly since college I've gotten sick more than I ever did in High school or jr. high.
Things I do:
Wash my hands all the time I use the bathroom, and numerous times while cooking. I don't all the time after opening doors then eating, but I mean I think I do a pretty good job at washing hands.
Eat healthy, maybe too much junk food sometimes but I'm in shape and eat lots of oranges, apples, berries when theyre affordable as well as carrots, various meats, fish sometimes, rice, and sometimes I drink 2 cans of pop a day sometimes less.
I've had a hard time making sure I have a consistent sleep schedule. But I usually made it through most of high school on 4-6 hours of sleep a night and no naps. But I can't seem to keep up that pace now. I try to get 8 hours but it doesnt always happen, and I do a bad job of getting to sleep early enough.
I generally don't drink much, and in the past 12 months have been drunk 5-6 times. I've gone periods of 2-3 months without a drink.
I exercise more in the summer but in the winter not as much.
I live in Minnesota and it's cold here 7 months of the year, but like I said it was never a problem in high school, although I'm probably outside more now than I was in high school.
I also try to wear sweatshirts and layers and socks, especially the past few years. However I dressed pretty poorly about 5 years ago and only got sick once so...who knows.
Any Advice=Awesome.
Things I do:
Wash my hands all the time I use the bathroom, and numerous times while cooking. I don't all the time after opening doors then eating, but I mean I think I do a pretty good job at washing hands.
Eat healthy, maybe too much junk food sometimes but I'm in shape and eat lots of oranges, apples, berries when theyre affordable as well as carrots, various meats, fish sometimes, rice, and sometimes I drink 2 cans of pop a day sometimes less.
I've had a hard time making sure I have a consistent sleep schedule. But I usually made it through most of high school on 4-6 hours of sleep a night and no naps. But I can't seem to keep up that pace now. I try to get 8 hours but it doesnt always happen, and I do a bad job of getting to sleep early enough.
I generally don't drink much, and in the past 12 months have been drunk 5-6 times. I've gone periods of 2-3 months without a drink.
I exercise more in the summer but in the winter not as much.
I live in Minnesota and it's cold here 7 months of the year, but like I said it was never a problem in high school, although I'm probably outside more now than I was in high school.
I also try to wear sweatshirts and layers and socks, especially the past few years. However I dressed pretty poorly about 5 years ago and only got sick once so...who knows.
Any Advice=Awesome.
BrotherVoodoo on
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Also how often do you clean your room and wash your sheets?
Vitamin C supplements are great. You don't need much to receive benefit, and pretty much any amount of supplement will be good. Ideally, you want to shoot for 250-500mg of Vitamin C if possible....anything more than that really isn't going to do much more (You'll go from about 85% max benefit to 100% if you go from 500mg->2g/day and it really isn't worth the extra cost/calories it might take to get that high).
And, as you said, hand washing is pretty much the best prophylaxis. Aside from that, limiting contact with little kids (they carry an assload of pathogens) and not licking doorknobs will be beneficial. Everything else basically rests on your immune system and it's ability to not suck.
If you do feel a cold coming on, you can take Zicam immediately, though it is rather expensive. It really does work, even though it is homeopathic (not all homeopathic meds are bullshit)....but I've talked to several pharmacists that say prolonged use diminishes your ability to taste permanently....as in, you can't taste stuff....so use at your own risk.
Maybe your body only needs 4-6 hours of sleep; everybody's different, but if I were you I would make getting to bed earlier a top priority.
I wash my sheets maybe once a month sometimes more sometimes less. I wash my clothes all the time. I could probably stand to dust more.
Yeah Stress is probably the biggest reason come to think of it. It's been happening the last few years as I've felt especially terrible and had anxiety and stress problems.
Also, wear socks when just hanging around your place. It worked for me.
Vitamin C does help a bit, though you really don't need a lot of it to see the benefits. And really, you could be running around outside in your underwear, and you're not going to get a cold; pneumonia and hypothermia, maybe, but not a cold. Otherwise, sleep, diet, and exercise are the biggies.
Also, do you replace/clean your kitchen sponges often? You should really microwave the bugger (~30s on high) while wet to keep it clean. Otherwise, you might be re-infecting yourself with the same bug that lives in there.
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I also eat well, exercise, and get at least seven hours a night, though, so there's that.
Yeah, but he could be chronically dehydrated. Drinking non-massive amounts of water is good for you. Plus if he drinks water no HFCS from the soda/juice/whatever!
but they're listening to every word I say
A quick google search seems to indicate that pro-biotic things like DanActive may be of little or no benefit.
Based on the OP, lack of sleep is probably the main culprit here. The occasional two cans of pop a day may be a contributing factor, if those are two cans of anything with caffeine.
I think what's needed here is a regular exercise routine and a sleep schedule. Reduced caffeine consumption, more exercise will lead to better sleep. More exercise will help mitigate the stress problem too.
Also, one of the main ways people may get sick, despite handwashing, is touching your face. Its a great way to transfer things from other surfaces to your body. Touch the button for the elevator, rub your eye ten minutes later, etc. Its hard to strike a balance between this and becoming a hand washing germ nut though.
- i do some kind of sport
- eat 2 pieces of fruit a day ( + veggies with my dinner)
- have no stress
Purely a taste issue. Residential water supplies are always clean except when something fails, in which case you'll get a boil-your-water alert and little colds will be the least of your worry. Don't worry, chlorine is keeping you safe.
A consistent sleep schedule is really important. Try to get those 8 hours every night.
Which is usually a week after the fact when the warning is issued, if there is any notification at all. The matter of taste is an issue for me though, I hate, hate the taste of chlorine in my water.
Right, but your little PUR filter is going to do dick all if you've got a major contamination. It'll filter a potion of the bacteria out, for a while, but the ones that get caught in there will just multiply like mad until it's doing more harm than good.
Bringing this back 'round to the point: Your tap water isn't making you sick. Seek improved health elsewhere.
If so, being sick is unfortunately going to happen to some people. My first year, I got pneumonia almost as soon as I got on campus, sprinkled in with various colds and things for the rest of the year.
Ever since, though, I rarely get sick.
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This. You're mixing with a bunch of people from all over the country and they're bringing all their bacteria with them, a lot of which will be new to you.
The good thing is that it'll settle down at some point soon.
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@gamefacts - Totally and utterly true gaming facts on the regular!
If someone tells you that 5 hours sleep is about right, you should hit them very, very hard, with a brick, twice.
What kind of freak could get by on 5 hours a night? I feel completely awful all day if I get less than 6, fairly shitty if I get less than 8. If you're sleeping that little its hardly surprising you get ill.
Residential water supplies generally have less bacteria in them than bottled mineral water even.
If I only get 5 hours sleep, hitting people with bricks is usually top of my agenda.
Bottled water often is tap water. Just in a plastic container. :P
Wait, what? I wrote this post after the one below it.
TIME PARADOX
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Sleep cycles vary based on age and person-to-person. Teenagers and young adults need more (7-9) but 6-8 is all "normal" for a healthy adult.
Anyone who says that they can get by on 5 hours sleep should go turn the lights off and lie down for five minutes. Bet you fall asleep.
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Lies, damned lies.
There are three things that contribute to general healthiness: nutrition, exercise, and sleep. Most people can figure out the first two quite easily, but everyone seems to ignore sleep. Myself, I like to get between 10 and 12 hours per night. You could probably do with more sleep. But not just more - better quality, and regular sleeping schedules. I've been going to bed anywhere between 7:30 and 9:30, but that's because I usually get up at 6 am every morning. I could get 10 hours just as easily if I went to bed at 11 and got up at 9, but whenever I do that, I always feel like shit. Always.
Being on a regular schedule helps me tremendously, and I usually feel great for the better part of the day and am much more productive than if I skimp on my sleep. Maybe you should start going to bed at a regular hour? Try it for a couple weeks and see if it helps you out.
To me, that's way too high of a sleep:life ratio. I'd rather not spend half my day dead to the world. :P
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Stuff like washing your hands too much, at your age, shouldn't really affect anything -- you're too old. Same with a lot of the other things. You're arguably living similarly to how you did in high school, but now you're getting sick. The only thing that's changed is the environment.
But yeah, getting more sleep will help your body rest overall, and will help fight off any illness before it becomes a full-on cold. Being well-rested is the first step to being healthy.
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You may have gotten your numbers mixed up. I think the theory that more sleep is not always better is a recent one. Replace 8 with 10-12 and 5 with 8 in your numbers, and you'd have it right.
I am of the opinion that washing your hands all the damned time is a bad thing. The same goes for covering yourself in antibacterial alcohol hand cleaner. I guess I mostly mean this for kids (because they're building their immune system) but the same an apply for older folks as you can still build immunities.
I have a friend who's parents constantly had him washing his hands as a child. I mean, every hour or two. He went outside? Wash his hands as soon as he comes in. Patted a dog? Wash his hands. Sneezed? Wash his hands. He is the sickliest person I have ever met in my entire life.
Me on the other hand wasn't a dirty kid but I wasn't clean by any stretch. I'd play with frogs and toads and snakes and bugs and then go eat a bag of chips. I'd swim in rivers, drink the water and then go play in the mud.
I very rarely get sick. If I do, it's very minor and I fight off within a day or so. I don't get flu shots, I still rarely wash my hands and I don't avoid people or kids.
I guess the moral is more for those of you with kids than the OP. Please don't coat them in antibacterial alcohol, destroying their most important chances at building a working and viable immune system.