Nathan Exposed » Side Effects of Not Being Sick?

Side Effects of Not Being Sick?

I used to believe I had a weak immune system. When I was a kid, I was always sick with some cold or flu. It continued into adult hood, and each time I was sick, it seemed to be extreme. When I’d get the flu, I’d get dehydrated, which in turn brought a trip to the ER.

I also had a guaranteed illness every Christmas. It seemed like after the holidays were over, I’d always catch a bug. The last straw was on New Year’s Eve, 2006. I was so sick, coughing and hacking all the way through Midnight. What a fun way to start 2007.

It was at that moment I made a New Year’s resolution to never be sick again. And I haven’t been. I’m coming up on 2 years without one single cold or flu.

What’s my secret? Well the first rule is that I always wash my hands before eating. That’s a rule I’ve always followed, and I’m continuously amazed at how many people sit down to eat without washing their hands. Spooky.

But as far as new rules, I take a zinc pill as soon as I feel any kind of sickness coming on, or if I’ve been around someone else who is sick. It’s a safe pill to take, available at any grocery store in the vitamin aisle. Just be sure to follow the recommended dosage, because you can overdose on zinc.

Zinc boosts the immune system and keeps it strong. You can take it every day, but I usually just take it as needed.

My other secret is echinacea. This controversial cure has people divided. I’ve heard of doctors saying it has absolutely no effects (my brother, a doctor, even dismisses it). But I have found it to be a very healing cure for illness, and there are many people who swear by it. Now echinacea is not safe to take daily. So I just take it when I feel I might be getting sick.

With just a few simple solutions, I’ve managed to avoid getting sick when other people around me were very sick. Even when Rodney was so sick that he missed work and had to see a doctor after a week with no improvements. We have the same doctor, and the doc couldn’t believe I’d bypassed getting sick as well.

But one thing that crosses my mind is this — Does not getting sick actually make things harder on my body? As we age, we build up immunity to viruses. But we have to be sick with them before we can be immune to them.

That’s left me wondering if preventing my body from working through a virus actually makes it weaker in the long run. What if I bypassed sickness for the next 40 years, and then my immune system couldn’t fight off anything because it hadn’t endured it when I was younger?

Just a thought. I’ll need to ask my doctor about it. But I thought that nearing 2 years without being sick was impressive, and worth pondering the long term effects on the body.

Fri, Sep 12, 2008 @ 2:52 am | Filed in Life | Permalink

2 Comments

I think you mentioned the zinc before, so this winter I took zinc every day and was never sick with a cold or flu, however, I went out of town, and forgot to take it with me and got a virus. Coincidence?

Posted by Scott C on Fri, Sep 12, 2008 @ 6:09 pm

When you are exposed to a virus and do not become sick I would say that your immune system “won” and you have developed some immunity to that virus.

The immune system remembers the “win” the next time it encounters that virus. This is why vaccines work. The problem with viral particles is that they may mutate into new forms that your immune system has not “seen” before, so even though you won the first round, the mutated virus can still get you the next time. The highly mutable flu virus can go round the world and come back each year with some new tricks to throw at you.

I have tried the zinc treatment and sometimes it works for me and sometimes it doesn’t (though I think I am “less sick” if I get the zinc).

I think I prefer your method of staying healthy, rather than the “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” school of thought.

Posted by Tim on Mon, Sep 15, 2008 @ 10:03 pm