Immunity is defined as the ability of an organism to resist a particular infection or toxin by the action of specific antibodies or sensitized white blood cells. To be healthy and have energy and vitality we need a good immunity, or an immune system that functions well. Commonly through lifestyle, including diet and stress, and our environment, and sometimes medications, our immune system might suffer. This results in being ill more often than is ideal, and this can impact on our life, our work and relationships. Thankfully there are some simple things you can do to improve your immunity and health.

Jump to:

• Colds
• Flu
• Recurrent Infections

Colds, or upper respiratory tract infections, are the most common cause of illness in children and adults. Most colds are caused by a virus.

The symptoms of a cold are most commonly a combination of: a stuffy or runny nose, sneezing, sore throat and a cough. Less commonly they can also include headache, red eyes, swelling of lymph glands, fever (occasionally), there may be loss of appetite and, sometimes, nausea and some vomiting. Usually, the symptoms will last from a few days to a week or more and the person recovers fully without any ongoing problems. If you find that you are regularly getting colds, or feel like you don’t ever fully recover, you could benefit from improving your immunity. Acupuncture can be very helpful in achieving this. Acupuncture is a gentle technique that balances your body and allows it to function optimally. Seeing a Nutritionist would also be helpful. Enjoying good nutrition helps you be healthy, and a Nutritionist may uncover something you could be lacking, which could affecting your immunity.

Influenza or ‘the flu’ is a highly contagious disease caused by infection from influenza type A or B (or rarely C) virus. These viruses infect the upper airways and lungs. Flu is not the same as a common cold, and can be a serious illness. Flu is usually spread through infected people coughing and sneezing.

Symptoms usually appear 1–3 days after being infected. A person can spread flu to others 1–2 days before they become unwell and up to 5 days after symptoms develop.

The symptoms of influenza can include: fever, dry cough, muscle and joint pain, tiredness/extreme exhaustion, headache, sore throat, stuffy nose.

If you find that you are regularly getting the flu, or feel like you don’t ever fully recover, you could benefit from improving your immunity. Acupuncture can be very helpful in achieving this. Acupuncture is a gentle technique that balances your body and allows it to function optimally. Seeing a Nutritionist would also be helpful. Having good nutrition helps you be healthy, and a Nutritionist may uncover something you could be lacking, which could affecting your immunity.

Frequent infections may indicate an impaired immune response, and therefore, an increased susceptibility to further infections.

It can be normal for someone with an intact immune system, to have multiple respiratory infections each year – adults have a n average of 2-3 colds each year, while children can have up to 6 or 8. The frequency may be related to exposure, as is commonly seen in health care and daycare workers, teachers, and parents. Also people who are under high stress, have poor sleep hygiene, are exposed to tobacco smoke, or need to take chronic immune modulating medications (e.g., oral corticosteroids) may experience immune system issues and a predisposition for infection.

People with immunodeficiency experience the same kinds of infections that other people get, the difference is that their infections occur more frequently, eg They may develop pneumonia twice over any time; symptoms are often more severe, and may come with a greater risk of complications. Furthermore, the infections usually do not go away without the use of antibiotics, and often recur within one to two weeks after antibiotic treatment is completed.

This can have a significant impact on your life and work. So it is great to know that there are some things you can do to improve your immunity. Seeing an Acupuncturist can be extremely helpful. Acupuncture is a gentle technique that balances aspects of how your body functions, and hence allows it to function as well as possible.

Seeing a Nutritionist may also be required, particularly if you have had many courses of antibiotics in the past. Frequent antibiotic use can really upset your gut bacteria (flora) and thereby your overall health. A Nutritionist can help you improve your gut and determine if there are any improvements that can be made to your nutritional intake to improve your health and immunity.