Prevent Colds and Flu! Why Suffer When You Don't Have To?

FACTS:

• Americans get one billion colds a year.
• Americans spend 1.5 billion dollars on doctor visits
• American spend 2 billion dollars on non-prescription cough and cold treatments. 
• The influenza virus hospitalizes more than 200,000 Americans a year 
• 36,000 die each year from the influenza virus
• The flu shot is only 44 percent effective in stopping the flu

Is there any way to decrease your chances of getting a cold or the flu?

According to a study by James R. Sabetta, MD, in the Department of medicine at Yale University, the answer is yes. The study revealed that of those studied, those who had low blood levels of vitamin D had twice as many upper respiratory tract infections. Those who consistently maintained appropriate levels were completely free of these infections.  Most of the study participants that remained healthy were taking a supplement.

Vitamin D is produced most abundantly in the body when the skin is exposed to strong, direct sunlight.  It doesn't take a genius to know that when there's less sun, there's more illness.  It's also easy to connect that when there's less sun, supplements will help fill that gap and keep colds and flus away.

There are many studies that link vitamin D levels to the flu. Yale researchers say that blood levels should be maintained at 38 ng/ml or higher to reduce infection risk. However, according tot he Vitamin D Council, half of all Americans have blood levels below 20 ng/ml.

The Vitamin D Council recommends that you test your blood for vitamin D every 6 months.  Maintain blood levels higher than 38ng/ml in order for vitamin D to be stored in muscles and fat and therefore be the most effective.
 
Keep in mind that studies over the past few years show vitamin D can prevent (and often treat) cancer, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, obesity, depression, asthma, multiple sclerosis, ulcerative colitis, and many other conditions. In fact, high levels of Vitamin D have been linked to a reduction of death from any cause.

The Vitamin D Council recommends a vitamin D supplement of 5,000 IU a day and says that anyone who takes this amount regularly shouldn't get a cold or flu or should recover much faster. They also recommend taking vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol), not vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol). Vitamin D3 is the compound your skin makes naturally. And don't worry about an overdose. 

A couple more notes:
Spend 10 minutes each day in the sun during the summer months. Expose as much of your body as possible when the sun is highest in the sky. 

HealthPro Nutrient's Youth D3 is an excellent Vitamin D supplement and in addition to providing protection against infection, is an incredibly efficient anti-aging formula that enhances the skin and combats the effects of aging from the inside out.

Click HERE to learn more. 

Article sources: 
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bill-gottlieb/the-easiest-way-to-preven_b_651576.html 
http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/