Flu and Influenza

Historically, the flue virus will mysteriously subside in the spring. For whatever reason, in temperate areas such as North America, flu largely is a fall and winter phenomenon. A couple of theories have tried to explain that seasonality, but in recent years an intriguing new idea has emerged:

• Levels of flu-fighting vitamin D reach their lowest point in the winter when ultraviolet light disappears.
• Vitamin D, which is made in large amounts in the skin when it is exposed to solar radiation, is a hormone that regulates hundreds of genes. Some of those involve the body’s innate immunity and its defenses against viruses, especially those affecting the respiratory system.

The idea is that if people increased their levels of vitamin D, it might help ward off outbreaks of flu. For as far back as records exist, flu outbreaks have occurred around the planet when solar radiation was at its lowest. No one has been able to say why. “It virtually disappears in the summer in temperate climates,” said William Schaffner, chairman of the department of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. “In the tropics it kind of smolders all year long. Its seasonality is not nearly as pronounced.”

Even the influenza pandemic of 1918 followed such a pattern, first showing up in Kansas in the winter of 1918 before subsiding and then returning with a vengeance in the fall. Indeed, public health officials now will be watching the Southern Hemisphere as it heads into its winter, looking to see how flu and seasonal flu play out. And in the Northern Hemisphere, health officials were concerned about the flu virus coming back in the fall 2011 season. Even Mexico, particularly the northern regions, is far enough away from the equator to reflect the seasonal effect.

Part of the enthusiasm for vitamin D is based on research suggesting that it stimulates immune cells to produce anti-microbial substances that fight and help control the replication of viruses in the body. At the same time, vitamin D helps tone down the immune system’s response to invading viruses in the respiratory tract. It can prevent the overproduction of inflammatory substances that can lead to fluid buildup, more severe symptoms, even death. During the 1918 pandemic, flu produced severe inflammation in the lungs that caused many of its victims to drown in their own fluids.

Maybe instead of worrying, you should think about herbal and immune boosters instead, especially ones that contain Vitamin D, mushrooms or elderberry extracts.

In reality, antibiotics and vaccines are not always the answer. Viruses are constantly mutating, and because they are technically not living organisms, they cannot be killed (as opposed to bacteria, which can). Viruses replicate in host cells, and they can mutate in rapid speeds. Medicines and vaccines often cannot keep up with the mutations.  The simple fact is that viruses mutate far too rapidly for laboratories to keep up, so vaccines and antibiotics don’t necessarily offer solutions.

Often the best reaction to a serious influenza outbreak is a solid defense, one that starts with YOUR body and YOUR immune system. Which brings us back to mushroom complexes and elderberry extracts. Ancient Greeks and Romans used elderberries as immune system boosters as early as 5 BC, and it has proven to be a time-tested remedy for various ailments. These blackish berries from the elder shrub—and the extracts from the berries—contain powerful antioxidants and extraordinary cell protective properties; when added to your diet as a herbal supplement, they enhance and boost the powers of your immune system to protect your body from bacteria…and viruses.

Elderberry extracts are natural, and they work WITH your body to protect you (without the negative side effects of antibiotics). Laboratory studies have found that elderberry extracts and their bioactives, when taken as lozenges, become active in the bloodstream within minutes. Further findings have consistently shown that elderberry extracts can also not only protect you from viruses like the flu but also if you take them after you get sick, they can shorten the severity and length of your cold or flu.

So, instead of waiting for scientist and laboratories to catch up with the mutations of various influenza strains be proactive and use the gifts nature has given us to build an even stronger defense. Consider boosting your immune system with Vitamin D, mushroom formulas and elderberry extracts via lozenges or via herbal supplements.