With cold and flu season in full swing, it’s important to know how to best protect yourself to avoid getting sick. Doctors Elaine Chin + Elizabeth Goldspink share their top tips for staying healthy this winter.

The best ways to prevent being exposed to the a cold or the flu:

Day to day good common sense:

• Avoid travelling or going to work while sick
• Avoid close contact with people suffering from acute respiratory infections
• Practice good hygiene through frequent hand washing, especially after direct contact with sick people or their environment
• Carry Lysol wipes to wipe down the surfaces of your airplane space and avoid touching public items and then touching your face

What you can do in terms of diet to keep your immune system healthy:

• Eat a lot of fruits and vegetables to get the phytonutrients like vitamin C and carotenoids that help boost your immune system
• And avoid or reduce sugar – and alcohol – which can both suppress your immune system
• Add garlic to your cooking and don’t overcook it or supplement with a stabilized garlic extract.

Top supplement recommendations to prevent cold & flu viruses:

• Don’t underestimate what you may already have in your pantry – there are quite a few herbs that belong to the Mint Family that have documented antiviral activity and these are peppermint, lemon balm, and thyme – so go ahead and make a tea out of these and you can add some raw honey to sweeten it if needed.
• Elaine and I often recommend a medicinal mushroom based product called AHCC to people who get frequent colds and flus – and this is a very potent rescue remedy that can increase your defenses against viral infections.
• Lastly, teas and tinctures made from the elderberry plant have been used to fight colds and flus and boost immunity for hundreds of years. Elderberry has very promising anti-influenza data to back its use and its gentle enough to use with children.