The Flu Hysteria and Your Family


In this flu season, America is faced with a dilemma: we are some fifty million flu shots short. Public health officials say that the vaccine should be reserved specifically for babies six months to two years old as well as adults over 65. They should also be reserved for women who are pregnant in their second or third trimester, health care workers who care for high-risk groups, patients afflicted with debilitating health issues such as heart and lung disease, diabetes, HIV/AIDS and asthma.

It is the time to sit down with our families and face some hard facts. I live in a house with my wife who is in her 3rd trimester of pregnancy, my 8 year-old son and my 68 year old father who we have been taking care of for nearly two years. Unfortunately, my Dad has been suffering from lung cancer. When we heard about the potential shortage a number of months ago, my wife and I had a conversation about it and we decided that she and my father needed the vaccine the most. My son and I visited our family physician and she suggested some things we can do to prepare our bodies against the flu season.

In lieu of her advice, our whole family has become even more stringent about cleanliness and discouraging the spread of germs. We wash our hands often and keep hand sanitizers on around with the understanding that it is not a substitute for the real thing. Think of all the things we touch in the course of a day that we do not realize, everything from touching strange door knobs to using public computers. Instead of sneezing into our hands, we sneeze into a tissue or into the crooks of our arms.

We have all improved our diets by incorporating more fruits and vegetables and taking antioxidant supplements.

We have also added healthier foods to our usual diets like wheat germ and yogurt to support our immune systems'. We eat better balanced meals, which supply us with healthy amounts of protein and larger helpings of vegetables and fruits or whole grains. We have also cut down on sugar both in our drinks and our food. These types of foods help deliver some of those components essential for the body to build a strong immune system, hopefully improving our ability to fight the flu. We exercise more, try to keep the stress level in our house lower and are sure to get enough sleep. I feel quite confident about our ability to ward off the flu this season and if one of us happens to catch it, then hopefully it will not hang around for too long.

We again visited our doctor so as to be sure we were in good shape. My blood pressure has gone down and our overall family health is great. Our doctor thanked our family for making a decision for the good of society by choosing to take better care of ourselves, especially since my son and I are part of the high risk group for living with a pregnant woman and an elderly man.

Ryan Joseph is a writer/researcher.


More Resources

Alternative and Complementary Medicine: Old Medicine, New Synergies
The terms alternative medicine and complementary medicine are often wrongly used as synonyms. Actually, the termalternative medicine refers to medicine systems likeAyurveda or Acupuncture that are used in place ofconventional medicine, while complementary medicine refersto those therapies like massage that are used inconjunction with conventional medicine.
Is Green Tea Good for Me?
Scientific studies continue to show that green tea is good for you.Tea began its illustrious history as a Chinese medicinal drink, and only gradually did it become the popular beverage that it is today.
Aromatherapy - Essential Oils for Physical and Psychological Well-being
What is Aromatherapy?It is the practice of using volatile plant oils (and essential oils) for physical and psychological well-being.Before I get started take note that fragrance oils (fragrances) are not essential oils.
Types of Hair Loss Treatment Currently Available
The hair loss treatments outlined here cannot provide definitive cures for all hair loss conditions, but they do represent regimes that many sufferers have found useful. In other words, they are examples of potential solutions that many patients have chosen after honestly assessing the causes of their hair loss together with their expectations.
As The Primary Caregiver, Should I Journal My Feelings About Alzheimer's Disease?
Being a caregiver is stressful and difficult. It involves contradictory feelings, thoughts and frustrations.
Buyer Beware: Is That Ergonomic Chair Really Ergonomic?
Not everybody knows exactly what ergonomic means, but it's getting to the point where everybody knows an "ergonomic chair" is better than just some plain old chair. Thus even Joe Newbie is more likely to buy the ergonomic chair than the chair that is not advertised as ergonomic.
Back Pain, Joint Pain, Knee Pain, Arthritis and a Host of Other Pain Ailments You Never Have To Suff
"The smallest pain in our little finger gives us more concern than the destruction of millions of our fellow beings." William Hazlitt [1778-1830.
Illness - What Can We do About it?
Illness concerns everyone. How can we approach it? And what is the reason behind illness? Whether you need to stay well or get well, lifestyle changes are essential to help you win the fight against illness.
A Constipation Remedy Using Potassium and Prunes
Potassium and prunes are a natural constipation remedy that you can quickly use to help you get constipation relief.Potassium is needed in your colon walls to insure that peristaltic action occurs.
Using Carrot Juice for Relieving Constipation
Carrot JuiceCarrot juices contain certain oils that work on the mucus membranes of the stomach and colon. This helps with digestion and starts your bowels functioning properly.
Reflexology Therapy
Reflexology therapy, (an ancient art practiced by early Egyptians), is also a science founded on the basis that areas of the feet, hands and ears are comprised of zones and reflex areas that correspond to all glands, organs, and bodily systems.Reflexology therapy is a technique whereby pressure is applied to these areas resulting in stress reduction by using thumb, finger and hand methods.
ADD May Carry the Gifts of Intuition
ADD/ADHD is a neurological disorder. According to the National Institute of Health, between 3% and 5% of the population in this country are affected by ADD/ADHD.
Stuttering Child
Children can develop a stutter at an early age and for the parents it can be a very worrying time.It is difficult to know what to do.
Snoring: A Common Sleep Disorder
Sleep consumes as much as one-third or more of the average human's life. Even if people hope for restful sleep, many types of sleep disorder reduce the quality and quantity of sleep.
Homemade Bath Products...the Pros and Cons
When you surf the Internet to find proper bath products for your home spa bathing you can see many websites offering homemade bath product receipts:" Why to pay more for expensive bath products if you can make your own products?Forget (give up) these expensive bath products at bath (drug, department etc) stores?You can make your own inexpensive bath product at home etc?etc?etc?"Is it right? Yes and No?Let us describe three main levels of natural bath products depending on several factors. Each level differs from others by complexity of composition, structure, technology, therapeutic value and results, biological activity of ingredients etc.
Pendulum Dowsing: Easy To Learn Techniques
Pendulum Dowsing is a very fun and simple way to begin to measure energy fields. Since we all live in a world that is comprised of energy, and since we all have energy in and around our physical bodies, the ability to recognize and measure energy can be valuable and useful.
Contact Lenses Explained And Compared To Glasess
Many people over the past ten years have changed from glasses to contact lenses but are they really worth it? This is a question that you need to answer for yourself. Many people change to contacts as they find them less expensive to purchase and certainly less expensive to replace.
The Healing Power of Water Gardens
If you experienced a day filled with running from one place to the next, one errand to the next, one meeting to the next, imagine a place where all your troubles can melt away. A place where the stressors of the day are nonexistent.
The Sense of Smell
Disturbed vibrations occur in the body as a precursor of illness. Vibrational healing restores the body's healthy vibrations.
The Effects of Stress
Stress can affect you in four different ways:The Physical Effects of StressThese result in a physically perceived overload. These are present in many forms.

More Alternative Information:

Related Articles

The Benefits of Swedish Massage
Swedish massage is the most common form of relaxation massage offering many relaxing as well as healing properties to your body. Swedish massage combines the use of long strokes, kneading and friction techniques to manipulate the soft tissues of the body causing a variety of benefits to your body to help it to heal itself.
Sleep And Massage Therapy
Hands-On Therapy for Peaceful SleepOne alternative medicine approach is a perfect option for relaxing your tension and allowing you to sink into deep, restful sleep: massage therapy.If you are comfortable with someone touching your body, a therapeutic massage is a wonderful sleep aid.
Toddler Stuttering
Some parents have the shock of hearing their young child start to stutter as a toddler. I am somebody who runs a speech centre in Birmingham, England, I now help people to achieve fluency.
Norepinephrine - A Factor in Fibromyalgia Pain That Your Subconscious May Be Able to Curb
Normally an inhibitor of pain, norepinephrine can produce pain as well--especially in the case of fibromyalgia. Your subconscious may be able to help counteract the effects of this pain-related brain chemical.
3 Quick Herbal Remedies
In recent years the issue of Alternative Healing has skyrocketed to the forefront of the medical field. A 2004 government survey concluded that more than one third of adults use alternative medicine and healing.
Cleansing Your Elimination Organs to Achieve Good Health
Benefits of Cleansing Your Elimination OrgansColon cleansing, kidney cleansing, and liver cleansing routines are key elements to an overall body cleansing and detoxification plan. Proper cleansing of toxins from these important elimination organs frees up your body's resources to more effectively fight disease.
Addressing The Cause And Finding A Cure: Why Cause is Everything When It Comes To Low Back Pain
There is an epidemic, at least in the States when it comes to treating back pain. Most doctors do just that.
Aromatherapy Oils
Aromatherapy is a method of using the aromatic oils which have been distilled from plant sources to engender a feeling of well being both physically and psychologically. Safe and correct use has been shown to benefit the physical and mental well being.
Inflammatory Arthritis: Alternative Treatments
There are two main types of arthritis: inflammatory arthritis and osteoarthritis. Inflammatory arthritis can be treated naturally without drugs.
Shamanic Healing & Soul Retrieval
Shamanic healing is one of the vast numbers of healing modalities available for us to experience today. Like acupuncture its roots are in the mists of time and like acupuncture it works with unseen energy.
Hypnosis
HYPNOSIS is a state of induced but conscious sleep through the process of suggestion. Hypnosis must be readily accepted by the subject in order for the hypnosis to be achieved.
When Your Emotions Become Like Ticking Bombs & Cause Disease
So, where does disease come from? How does it get manifested in your body in the first place? Do environment and diet really play key roles in causing disease? Well, the information contained in this article will shock you to say the least. For years now health officials have told the public about how diet and environment specifically contribute to most illnesses.
Migraine and Feverfew
Many people today will tell you that they suffer from migraine. Many people however don't really understand what a migraine is and they really just have a headache.
Pediatric CI Therapy - An Interview with Dr. Stephanie C. DeLuca
As each day passes, medical research communities strive to find alternative means of evaluating and treating specific conditions. One of those communities is comprised of a professional and highly educated team of PhDs at Alabama University at Birmingham, located in Birmingham, AL.
Massage Therapy
Massage Therapy is a massage session that takes place in a warm, comfortable and quiet area as you lie on a specially-designed table. Sometimes, soft music is played for relaxation.
I Want To Be Able To Function and Not Be Stopped by My Pain
Why Your Subconscious May Be Able To Give You a Powerful Tool for Doing That--A Good Night's SleepBeing able to function starts with good sleep--without it you're a mess. Yet pain prevents you from using the reliable sleep advice that works for other people.
Reiki Energy Balance
Here's a simple exercise that anyone can do, even if they haven't been 'attuned' to Reiki. It requires a basic knowledge of channeling Reiki energy, the positions of the 7 primary chakras and a willingness to spend some time making someone else feel good.
Aloe Vera - The Medicine And Beauty Treatment Of Choice For Millenniums
I can remember as a young boy that my grandmother always had an Aloe Vera plant in our home. While playing with the neighbors' kids, I always seem to end the day with plenty of scrapes and minor cuts.
Homeopathy
Homeopathy is a form of alternative medicine used for over 200 years. Introduced to America in the early 1800s, homeopathy is based on the Law of Similars ("like cures like").
The Healing Power of Water Gardens
If you experienced a day filled with running from one place to the next, one errand to the next, one meeting to the next, imagine a place where all your troubles can melt away. A place where the stressors of the day are nonexistent.