Cold and flu season has a way of arriving all at once, and I would always rather help you stay well than treat you after the fact. The truth is that preventing a cold or the flu is almost always easier than waiting one out. Some of what follows you already know. A few of these ideas may be new to you, and those tend to be the ones I find myself recommending most.
Start with the foundation, because nothing in a bottle will ever replace it. Wash your hands often, and protect your sleep. Rest is when your immune system does its quiet, important work, and it is one of the first things I ask about when a patient keeps getting sick. Watch your sugar as well. Adults who consume a lot of it are nearly twice as likely to develop an upper respiratory infection, and that is a change most of us can actually make.
From there, I lean on a handful of herbs and supplements that have earned their place. Vitamin C, zinc, and elderberry are old staples for good reason, and they have been used to ward off the sniffles for a very long time. If you want more support, consider colostrum, which is rich in immunoglobulins, especially IgG, the same protective antibodies found in breast milk. It also contains lactoferrin, which helps protect the mucus membranes of both your nasal passages and your gut, and it is easy to find in capsule form. I am also fond of astragalus, a root I have long used to support a healthy immune system. Medicinal mushrooms belong on this list too, particularly for their beta-glucans. One of my favorite ways to use them is the simplest: make a pot of soup with shiitake or another non button mushroom, and let it simmer with onion, garlic, and ginger into something warming and genuinely nourishing. And do not forget your probiotics. Look for one that contains Saccharomyces cerevisiae, which I find offers especially good protection this time of year.
I want to add one of my own favorites, because it does not get the attention it deserves. Pelargonium, which you will find on the shelf sold as Umcka, comes from the geranium plant, and it has been shown to significantly reduce both the duration and the severity of colds and flu. It is one I reach for often.
All of these can help your body do its job, but I will leave you with the same thing I tell my patients: there is no pill that takes the place of healthy living in the first place. Start there, and let the rest support it.