Christmas is upon us and with the festivities comes the cold and flu season. Have you ever stopped to wonder why come January the whole country seems to come down with a cold, high fevers, aching limbs. Television adverts for cold remedies, sore throat lozenges promise you a quick fix, targeting pain, bringing down temperatures and getting you back to work.
Is it right that we should take these quick fix remedies, suppressing high temperatures, which if the body is left to its own healing process, the high temperature is part of the natural healing process. Three years ago (in fact my last cold and flu) I was extremely ill. I was on holiday in Spain with friends and we all came down with this seasonal bug! I was taken to the medical centre, given an injection to bring down the temperature and put on high strength pain killers and antibiotics to reduce the blisters on the back of my throat. I had high fevers and chills and the pain was unbearable. But why had I caught this virus? Was I unlucky or had I basically been poisoning myself over the festive period? Late nights, excessive alcohol and enormous amounts of restaurant food caused my immune system to fail as my body just couldn’t take in any more toxins!
Consider Louis Pasteur’s Germ Theory: The belief that germs from the outside world invade our bodies and cause disease. Is it true or just an urban myth? Pierre Bechamp, Professor at the School of Pharmacy the Faculty of Science at Strasbourg, discovered micro-organisms, and proved their existence six years before Pasteur’s “Germ Theory” Not only did Pasteur plagiarise Bechamp’s work but it resulted in us believing that “germs” are out there, ready to attack our bodies and that we are powerless to stop them. Bechamp’s work showed how important the environment inside the body was and not just the “germs” themselves. Pasteur was much better at marketing than Bechamp so it is Pasture’s “germ theory” that we are taught today, and what most people still believe.
Think about the build up to Christmas and New Year. You work hard rushing around getting everything done, buying presents, sending out cards, arranging family and friends and Christmas parties. The parties start, a few drinks, a few late nights, minced pies in the office, the eating season is underway. The stress of getting the family together, big Christmas breakfast, lunch of turkey, ham, potatoes, stuffing, gravy and a few token vegetables, alcohol with the meal, Christmas pudding, cream, custard, more drinks, cheese and biscuits, coffee and chocolates and then slumped in front of the TV until its time for left-overs and turkey sandwiches. Boxing day arrives another family get together, the poor body hasn’t recovered from yesterday- another big meal more alcohol, deserts and still no exercise or fresh air. The next few days you feel lethargic, it’s cold outside so you stay in and watch the TV and still we need to eat the left-overs, turkey, Christmas cake.
A few days later comes New Year, more parties more alcohol and still no exercise. You have been to a few parties with friends who have caught the dreaded bug and a few days later the flu virus hits you! Think about the symptoms of flu
- Fever/Chills/Sweats
- Fatigue
- Throat Irritation
- Headaches
- Weakness
- Cough
- Nasal Discharge
- Muscle Pain
- Eye Irritation
- Joint Pain
- Joint Pain
- Low energy
- Can’t sleep
- Heart rate
- changes
- Kidney/urinary
- problems
- Vomit
- Perspire
- Diarrhoea
- Phlegm
- Fever
- Cough
- Headaches
- Gas
- Skin interruptions
Now read the body’s response to poison
- Irregular breathing
- Faint
- Burping
- Cramps
- Rash
- Constipation
Could it be possible that your Christmas and New Year’s over indulgence is just a case of poisoning?
You ate food that was inundated with harmful microorganisms, you ate food that was already in the process of decay (animal flesh), you didn’t combine your foods, you didn’t breathe properly and you created an acid environment for your body, one that will literally cause you to rot from the inside out, and we wonder why come January we all end up ill in bed with the latest flu virus.
Most of the newspaper headlines in January will read something like ” Serious flu strain hits early, hard”, “Flu Misery is bugging the UK”, “The next big Killer”. They will talk about the latest virus, and will come up with a new name and each time you will read about the importance of getting flu jabs, the latest vaccine to protect yourself and an endless supply of medication designed to reduce the symptoms of this killer flu virus. The ‘flu and cold season’ is a multi billion pound industry to the pharmaceutical industry, the source of many of the news stories that you will hear on the TV and read in the papers.
On top of the lowered immune system, there is the power of the mind. How many of you are convinced the ‘bug will get you’, I’ve heard many people say “I get it every year I just know I will catch it again this year”. For those of you who have read our articles in the past you will know how important the mind is in recovery and good health. If you are convinced you will get the flu, the likelihood is that you will display the symptoms, the mind is a powerful tool.
So to avoid this ‘seasonal flu’ eat a well balanced diet, take a good multivitamin and antioxidant supplement to boost your immune system, exercise, cut down on alcohol, drink more water to help the body flush out the toxins, get fresh air, think positively and avoid stress. If you are unfortunate and end up over indulging and poisoning your body, before you go on a course of antibiotics and over the counter drugs, why don’t you try a few natural remedies to help your body back to recovery, boost your immune system and flush out the Christmas overload.
