Participants: David DeRose MD (Host)
Series Code: LIF
Program Code: LIF000011A
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00:28 Welcome to "Avoid Colds and Flus Naturally."
00:31 I'm Doctor David DeRose, a board-certified 00:34 specialist in internal and preventive medicine. 00:37 I'm here to help you master another 00:41 very important medical subject. I say "another," because 00:45 this is one in a series of presentations called 00:49 LifeStart Seminars. I'm glad to have you with us 00:54 for today's presentation. It was the fall of 00:58 2014, and a contagion was sweeping 01:02 America. The contagion wasn't infectious disease. 01:06 The contagion of fear, the Ebola virus, 01:10 was on American soil, seeming to spread 01:14 indiscriminately. At least, so it appeared. 01:17 The experience caused me 01:19 to write a book, Evading Ebola: 01:23 Decrease Your Risk of Infection, 01:27 Fare Far Better if Exposed. 01:30 At the heart of that book was something 01:33 fundamental about all infectious diseases. 01:37 We can be exposed 01:39 to serious viruses, but can remain unscathed. 01:45 That very theme 01:47 comes front and center as we speak now 01:50 about a more common illness: 01:53 the common cold. There's another common illness: 01:57 influenza (commonly knows it as the flu). 02:01 There was a great irony of the the 02:04 Ebola outbreak of the United States 02:06 and throughout the world 02:09 (at least in United States terms). 02:11 We are surrounded by 02:13 more lethal illnesses that seem to cause us 02:17 relatively little consternation. 02:19 We're speaking especially about colds. 02:23 The viruses that cause them typically 02:26 don't do too much in the way of devastation. 02:30 There are some 200 viruses 02:32 that attack the upper respiratory system. 02:35 If you look at the data, 02:38 we experience (in the United States alone) 02:40 some one billion infections a year. 02:45 You're saying, "One billion! There aren't that many 02:48 people in the United States." 02:49 If you look at children, who are most at risk, 02:52 some are experiencing 6 to 10 (or more) 02:55 episodes of colds per year. 02:58 The average adult may have 2 to 4 colds a year. 03:02 Yes, it hurts our productivity. 03:05 We may be feeling under the weather. Many of us 03:09 seem to just try to fight through it 03:12 and go about our daily lives. 03:14 the problem is, although 03:17 some of the viruses causing the common cold 03:19 are relatively innocuous. Others 03:22 are not so. 03:24 We all know what a cold looks like: 03:26 runny nose, sneezing, sore throat. 03:28 Maybe there's a dry cough, headache or mild fever. 03:32 Typically the symptoms last a 03:34 few days to a week, maybe two. 03:37 That's the common cold. 03:38 An example of one of the viruses causing colds 03:44 are the adenoviruses. This is a family 03:48 of viruses that commonly 03:51 cause the common cold. 03:53 They can do more than that. 03:54 They can cause croup, 03:56 or bronchitis in the lower respiratory tract. 03:59 Adenoviruses can also cause intestinal symptoms. 04:03 They can affect the eyes, the bladder, 04:06 and can even cause neurological disease. 04:10 A cold may seem innocuous. 04:15 If our immune system is unhealthy or compromised, 04:22 a virus that causes the common cold 04:26 can cause devastating effects. If we 04:30 turned to the next viral illness that we're 04:34 bringing under sharp focus in this 04:37 presentation, we come to influenza. 04:40 Influenza is a true killer disease. 04:42 Some 3,000 to 50,000 die in the United States each year. 04:48 It depends on the severity of the influenza strain 04:52 making the rounds. Flu actually also 04:55 gains entrance in 04:58 similar ways as the cold. We'll speak more about that. 05:01 The incubation period (the time from exposure to 05:06 becoming clinically ill) is generally two to three days. 05:09 You can actually transmit the influenza virus 05:12 before you're ill. 05:14 Classic symptoms are 05:16 respiratory (like the cold), only more severe. 05:18 You can have a very high fever, 05:20 severe muscle and joint pains. 05:23 It can last a number of weeks. 05:25 There is actually no such thing as the "stomach flu." 05:31 Usually that term (when someone uses it) 05:33 refers to food poisoning, 05:35 something that we call gastroenteritis. 05:37 We will talk about that some more. Gastroenteritis 05:42 sometimes is caused by viruses, 05:44 other times by bacterial infection. 05:49 The focus of this presentation 05:51 is to help you avoid 05:54 colds and flus naturally. 05:57 What does that look like? How do we avoid 06:00 colds and flus naturally? 06:02 Before we talk about that, let me highlight one thing. 06:05 Whether you develop a cold or the flu, 06:09 there are complications that can arise that 06:12 are not just related to the virus itself. 06:17 You can have severe pneumonia, 06:21 sinus infections, or secondary infections. 06:25 Once you get the cold or flu, 06:27 your immune system is knocked down further. 06:30 You can then pick up something else. 06:31 Just keep this in mind. These are not 06:33 innocuous diseases, even though 06:35 you may have had them many times, 06:38 never experiencing anything 06:42 too devastating. Whether it's Ebola, 06:45 colds, or flu, 06:47 there's a common denominator we need to talk about. 06:49 The common denominator is something called 06:52 inapparent infection. It's at the heart of my book, 06:55 Evading Ebola. It's at the heart of this subject 06:59 of how we can be exposed to colds 07:02 and flus and not get sick. 07:06 If you've not been a regular visitor 07:10 to our programs, the 07:13 LifeStart Seminars, 07:16 I want to let you know about 07:18 some important things that can 07:19 help you as you're following along 07:21 with this presentation. You can pick up some 07:25 additional free information. 07:27 If you go to our website, lifestartseminars.com, 07:30 you'll find excellent resources. First of all, 07:33 we have a study guide that goes along with this 07:35 presentation. Maybe you've already picked it up. 07:37 You may be viewing this with a 07:38 group, and it was handed to you in advance. 07:40 That's wonderful. 07:42 If you're watching this for the first time, 07:44 not familiar with how LifeStart Seminars work, 07:46 make sure you go to the website, 07:48 lifestartseminars.com, 07:50 and get that free resource. 07:52 The second free resource that we have 07:54 is an e book. 07:55 It's a short book that actually walks you through 07:59 the paradigm that we will be 08:01 embarking on in a few minutes. 08:03 It talks about 08:04 natural strategies to deal with illnesses. In this case, 08:08 it's how to decrease risk of viral infections 08:11 like the cold. and the flu. That paradigm 08:15 is summarized in a one-word phrase: LifeStart. 08:22 The "L" stands for Liquids, 08:25 the proper choice of beverages and other 08:27 applications of water. 08:29 We talk about Interpersonal Relationships ("I"). 08:33 We talk about the "F," which is Foods (nutrition). 08:36 "E" stands for Exercise. 08:38 We're going to see that 08:40 all these things have a role in helping us 08:42 prevent viral illnesses, or fend them off. 08:45 We may not be able to go into 08:46 deep detail about all them. 08:48 I'm trying to walk you through the construct, 08:50 just to help you see. 08:51 Even if you've heard it before, 08:52 all these things apply to viral illnesses as well. 08:55 That's "Life." "Start" is a mnemonic as well. 09:00 It's an acronym, a type of memory device. 09:03 Each of the letters in the word "Start" also 09:06 represents a 09:08 natural remedy that can help with viral illness. 09:11 The "S" stands for Sunlight. 09:12 "T" is for Temperance. 09:14 "A" is Air. 09:15 "R" is for Rest. 09:17 "T" is for Trust in Divine Power. 09:19 Let's bring us all together. 09:22 You can get the e book and other free 09:25 resources on the website. 09:27 We have advanced resources for extra study. 09:30 You can purchase my book, Evading Ebola. 09:34 You can purchase DVDs on this and related 09:37 programs, as well as resources from other 09:41 health professionals. Back to the topic 09:44 of inapparent infections, 09:46 just what is an inapparent infection? 09:51 This is when a person is infected 09:54 with a virus, but never gets clinically ill. 09:59 They look fine, maybe a little fatigued. 10:02 They don't look like they have the flu, 10:05 but they're infected with influenza. 10:07 I'll give an illustration that ramps up these stakes, 10:14 as we're talking about these 10:16 viral illnesses. I want to tell you about one called 10:19 Eastern equine encephalitis. 10:22 If you live in the western United States 10:23 and never travel out east, 10:24 you can rest assured. E.E.E. 10:28 (Eastern equine encephalitis) 10:30 is pretty much confined to the Atlantic 10:32 and Gulf Coast states. 10:34 You're not going to expect to find it in California. 10:36 Having said that, there is a Western 10:39 equine encephalitis. As you guessed by the name, 10:42 this is a virus that can affect horses, 10:44 but also humans. 10:45 If humans are infected, 10:46 they can get very sick 10:48 and develop encephalitis, a brain infection. 10:52 "Encephalitis" literally means 10:54 "inflammation of the brain." 10:55 You can get a terrible headache, 10:57 high fever, chills, vomiting. 10:59 In fact, if you know much about Ebola, it's 11:03 sounding a lot like that virus. 11:06 Eastern equine encephalitis 11:08 can cause disorientation, 11:10 seizures, coma. You can die. 11:13 Thirty three percent of people 11:16 who develop clinical 11:18 Eastern equine encephalitis infection die. 11:21 Those who survive 11:25 have serious or significant brain damage. 11:28 You may ask, "Why are we talking about this? 11:31 Why isn't there a huge 11:33 outpouring of fear about Eastern 11:35 equine encephalitis?" The reason is that 11:38 there are only a few 11:39 clinical cases each year. 11:41 Most of the people 11:42 infected with this mosquito-borne virus 11:46 never get sick. 11:49 They have an inapparent infection. 11:54 Did you know the same is true about 11:57 the Ebola virus? 11:58 With some serious viruses, 12:03 like the Ebola virus in West Africa, 12:06 70 percent of the people with it die. 12:09 Research indicates that many people in Africa 12:15 have inapparent infections, 12:16 have the Ebola virus, but never get sick. 12:19 This was a classic study from Gabon Africa in 1996. 12:23 Twenty-four had contact with Ebola patients, 12:26 each directly exposed 12:28 to highly infectious materials 12:29 (feces, vomit, saliva, sweat, and blood). 12:32 Not one of those 24 people became sick. 12:36 Researchers checked these individuals for infection. 12:42 They found that 11 of the 24 12:45 had been infected with the Ebola virus, 12:47 yet never got sick. 12:49 Why am I talking about Ebola 12:52 in the context of colds and flus? 12:54 I'm trying to help you see something. 12:56 We may think certain viruses are innocuous, 13:00 and others are dread illnesses. 13:02 What I'm trying to help you see 13:03 is, when it comes to viral illness, 13:06 many viruses 13:08 can cause severe, life-threatening complications. 13:11 This mean some cold viruses, for sure the flu. 13:15 While we are afraid of Ebola, 13:20 viruses like Eastern equine encephalitis and the flu, 13:24 claiming lives and causing serious infection. 13:31 I'm trying to give you some good news, 13:33 though it may seem like I'm being morbid. 13:37 You can come into close proximity 13:40 with serious, even lethal viruses. 13:42 Whether it's Ebola, Eastern equine encephalitis, 13:45 or influenza, you don't have to be infected. 13:49 Remember that study in Gabon. 13:52 Twenty-four individuals, intimately associated, 13:55 and 13 of them did not get infected. 13:57 Even if you do get infected, 13:59 or a virus gets a foothold in your body, 14:02 you have the potential to fight it 14:03 without ever getting sick. 14:05 That is good news. It applies 14:08 not only to serious illnesses, but also 14:12 to colds and flus. 14:14 Hopefully you're hearing how potentially 14:16 very serious these are. 14:19 What researchers found with Ebola is the same 14:22 that we're finding with colds and flus. 14:26 The key is the person's immune system. 14:29 What I'm suggesting is that we need to live 14:33 a lifestyle that is aware 14:36 of the presence of viruses in our midst. 14:38 when I wrote Evading Ebola, I said we should live 14:41 an Ebola-aware lifestyle. 14:43 When speaking about colds and flus, 14:47 you should live a cold and flu-aware lifestyle. 14:52 This is a part of the LifeStart Seminars. 15:00 What do you think we'll focus on in LifeStart? 15:03 We're going focus on liquids, interpersonal relations, and 15:09 foods. Let's start with the liquids. 15:14 The most important concept, when it comes to liquids, 15:18 is hygiene. 15:20 It's the external application of water 15:23 to articles like your hands. 15:26 We're speaking of hand washing. 15:29 When it comes to any infectious agents 15:33 (viral as well as bacterial agents), 15:36 one key issue is called the infective dose. 15:41 You can be exposed to a virus or bacteria but never get sick, 15:45 if you don't get exposed to enough of them. 15:48 It's just like a battle or a war. 15:51 Let's say you're at war with another country. 15:53 Someone says, " We're sending two soldiers 15:55 onto American soil to wipe you out." 15:57 You're saying, "Come on--two soldiers? 15:59 I don't care where they land. 16:01 How much damage can two soldiers do?" 16:03 It may be a lot, 16:04 but they're not going to overrun the country. 16:06 It's the same with infectious agents. 16:08 Let's talk about food poisoning. 16:10 We mentioned that misnomer of 16:13 stomach flu (there's no such thing). 16:16 Gastroenteritis means inflammation 16:19 of the intestines in the stomach. 16:21 You've got gastroenteritis 16:24 (or the potential for it) if you're exposed to 16:27 Campylobacter Jejuni. Campylobacter causes 16:31 two million infections in the United States every year. 16:34 Most people have never heard about it. 16:37 You'll have diarrhea, maybe some vomiting, 16:40 but it doesn't leave its calling card. 16:43 If you've said, "I've got 16:45 food poisoning," or, "I've got the stomach flu," you 16:48 shouldn't be using that terminology. 16:50 Why am I repeating it? Campylobacter Jejuni 16:55 could be contaminating your food. 16:59 You need somewhere between 500 and 10,000 bacteria 17:03 to get infected. 17:05 You're saying, "That's a big range, 500 to 10,000. 17:08 Why is there such a range?" 17:09 Our immune systems have varying 17:13 fortitude. Let me mention something else. 17:17 If you're taking medications 17:20 to suppress stomach acid, 17:22 you are suppressing one of the lines of defense, 17:25 when it comes to infectious agents 17:27 entering through the oral tract. 17:29 Campylobacter comes through the oral tract. 17:32 Your food could be contaminated. 17:34 Someone working in the restaurant 17:37 might not have followed signs like "All 17:41 Employees Must Wash Their Hands Before Returning to Work." 17:44 They didn't do that. They were sick, 17:46 Campylobacter in their excrement. 17:49 They pass it along when handling your 17:52 food. I know that's not a pleasant thought, 17:55 but it can happen. 17:57 If you are being more hygienic, 18:00 even if you're exposed to Campylobacter, 18:02 you may not develop the infection. 18:05 Other infectious agents are more virulent 18:08 (in other words, a smaller 18:09 number of viruses or bacteria cause infection). 18:13 Salmonella Typhi, 18:14 the agent that causes typhoid fever, 18:18 takes maybe 15 to 1,000 bacteria. 18:21 That's tenfold or less than 18:25 Campylobacter needs to infect someone. 18:28 You can have a few Salmonella bacteria 18:31 (Salmonella Typhi) and not get sick. 18:33 Ebola seems to take fewer viruses then those 18:39 other agents. 18:44 Let's say you're exposed to those things. 18:46 Let's make this scenario a little different. 18:48 Let's say the restaurant worker uses the restroom, 18:55 then washes his or her hands. 18:59 Let's deepen the plot a little bit. 19:03 The restaurant worker uses the restroom, 19:06 does not wash their hands, 19:09 and opens the bathroom door, contaminating it. 19:14 As they're going to prepare the food, 19:17 they say, "I'd better wash my hands. 19:19 I can't contaminate the food," then wash their hands. 19:21 The food won't be contaminated with Campylobacter. 19:24 It's on the door handle of the bathroom. 19:27 You go into that bathroom. 19:29 We're applying this concept of using 19:32 liquids and washing your hands. 19:33 You use the bathroom, 19:35 washing and drying your hands. 19:38 You throw the paper towel out, open the bathroom door. 19:43 You can contaminate your washed hand 19:46 with that dirty door handle in the bathroom. 19:50 After washing your hands, 19:53 you could use a paper towel to open the door. 19:55 Do you see the difference? 19:57 Things in that bathroom may be contaminated. 20:00 This includes the faucet and the door. 20:03 It could even include the paper towel dispenser. 20:06 Think about that. 20:08 Keep your hands clean, 20:09 and you can decrease the risk 20:11 of infectious diseases, 20:12 not just Campylobacter and Salmonella. 20:15 This is how 20:16 the flu and common colds are effectively transmitted. 20:19 Someone blows their nose, 20:22 they have a cold or the flu. 20:24 They then open the door 20:26 to the establishment. We're 20:27 not talking about a bathroom door. 20:29 We're talking about walking into a grocery store. 20:32 You say, "They have electric 20:33 doors, Doctor DeRose." 20:34 Whatever door you have to handle, you handle. 20:37 They're touching boxes in the grocery store. 20:39 They're touching the fruit. 20:40 You touch the fruit 20:42 that has been exposed to 20:46 an adenovirus. 20:47 You then rub your eye 20:49 or nose. 20:51 You have just inoculated yourself 20:54 with a virus. 20:56 It all starts with liquids. 20:58 Use liquids, clean your hands thoroughly. 21:01 Wash thoroughly, 21:02 especially before touching your face, 21:04 your eyes, or eating food. 21:08 You will decrease your risk of 21:11 developing colds, flus, and other more 21:14 serious infections. 21:17 Let's talk about the use of hydrotherapy. 21:20 Water therapy can help decrease your risk 21:22 of colds and flus. 21:23 Many people don't realize this. 21:25 If your respiratory tract is very dry, 21:28 the mucosa (the lining) is not moist. 21:34 That increases your risk 21:36 of developing colds or flus. 21:38 Bacteria or viruses 21:40 (colds and flus are viral illnesses) 21:43 can get a foothold 21:45 into your mucosa easily. 21:48 What do you do? 21:50 How do you prevent 21:52 your mucosa from drying out? 21:55 You can use a humidifier in your room. 21:58 Have you ever thought about that at night? 21:59 Some say, "I don't want to buy a humidifier." 22:02 One of my friends, who is a 22:05 family practice doctor, 22:08 actually has people put a Crock Pot 22:10 in their bedroom with a layer of water in it. 22:14 You use the Crock Pot during the day for cooking. 22:19 You use it at night during the cold and 22:20 flu season when the humidity is low. 22:23 The colder the air is, 22:24 the less humid it will be 22:25 (especially in drier parts of the US). 22:27 You can have that vaporizer going 22:30 throughout the night. It will keep your 22:32 mucous membrane moist, 22:34 decreasing your risk of colds and flus. 22:37 We've talked about liquids to some extent. 22:39 That's just the first of nine strategies 22:43 in the LifeStart paradigm, that acronym. 22:46 What about the rest? 22:47 Let's jump to exercise at this point. 22:50 Exercise is so important for the immune system. 22:52 Back in 2011, 22:55 Doctor David Nieman 22:56 and his colleagues at Appalachian State University 22:59 looked at the incidence of colds and flus 23:02 in that North Carolina community. 23:05 Individuals aged 18 to 85 were included in the study, 23:09 men and women. 23:11 They followed these individuals 23:13 for 12 weeks during the cold and flu season. 23:17 What they found was quite remarkable. 23:19 Those who were exercising on a regular basis 23:22 (five or more days per week) 23:25 were compared to those who were 23:27 exercising less than two days per week. 23:30 Frequent exercisers had about half the likelihood 23:34 of having colds and flus and the symptoms 23:37 related to those illnesses. 23:39 They may have had an inapparent infection. 23:41 Exercise is an immune enhancer 23:44 with moderate exercise. 23:46 I stress "moderate exercise," 23:48 as illustrated in the 23:51 Exercise Immunology Review, in 2010. 23:54 Excessive exercise 23:57 (as often occurs with athletes) 24:00 suppresses the immune system. 24:02 This particular study looked at a dozen 24:05 athletes, engaged in two hours of exhaustive exercise 24:10 on an exercise bicycle. 24:12 Researchers found that, after exercise 24:15 white blood cells (that help fight off viruses like Ebola) 24:21 dropped. It dropped two, four hours after exercise. 24:25 It stayed at a low level, did not return to normal, 24:29 even after 24 hours. 24:31 Do not over-exercise. Another natural 24:36 element that can help prevent colds and flus is in that 24:39 LifeStart acronym is Air (fresh air). 24:42 The single worst thing you can do 24:44 is expose yourself to cigarette smoke. 24:46 Research goes back to the 1919 influenza 24:50 epidemic. This is an anecdotal story, 24:53 something told in medical circles. 24:56 Some of these things are hard to document. 24:59 Apparently, in California (where I call my home) 25:03 many suffered from the influenza epidemic, as 25:07 was the case throughout the world. 25:09 Doctors ran out of space in the hospital. 25:12 They moved some patients out into tents, 25:17 tried to keep them warm by putting 25:20 how water bottles at their feet. 25:22 The story is, these individuals fared better 25:27 (the ones outdoors getting fresh air). 25:29 This is just an interesting insight. 25:31 Don't lock yourself up 25:33 in your room. Keep some fresh air circulating, 25:36 even if you're fighting 25:37 an infection, but don't get chilled. 25:38 Let's talk about a few more things, like 25:42 foods and immunity. 25:44 Steve Provacha, a physician at 25:46 Kaiser Permanente, 25:47 the California-based 25:50 healthcare provider, the HMO. 25:53 He actually 25:54 wrote an interesting article that 25:56 appeared in medical hypotheses years ago. 25:59 Looking at the research, he 26:01 found that when you eat animal products, 26:04 the stress system of the body is activated. 26:07 You may know about stress hormones. 26:09 Stress hormones decrease inflammation. 26:11 That's why we give cortisone shots. 26:13 When you decrease inflammation, 26:15 you suppress the immune system. 26:17 Provacha's work made a strong case. 26:21 For our immune systems to function optimally, 26:25 we want to keep animal product intakes low. 26:29 We want to increase our intake of fruits, 26:32 grains, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. 26:36 Let me come back to Liquids, since we're 26:38 speaking about the stress system. 26:40 Many of us take a beverage 26:42 that ramps up our stress hormones. 26:44 That beverage is anything containing caffeine. 26:47 Caffeinated beverages ramp up the stress 26:50 system of the body. That's why it wakes you up. 26:53 Think about how the stress system 26:56 suppresses the immune system. 26:58 Stay away from caffeine 26:59 during cold and flu season. 27:01 You may be surprised. 27:03 Another beverage with immune-suppressing effects 27:05 is alcohol. 27:07 Alcohol has immune-suppressing effects. 27:10 It's something else I recommend you avoid. 27:12 On the flip side, let's get 27:14 back to our LifeStart acronym. 27:15 You want to get more sunshine in the winter. 27:19 If you're much 27:20 further north of Bakersfield, California, or 27:23 Chattanooga, Tennessee, 27:24 you wont make vitamin D by getting out in the sun. 27:27 Take a vitamin D supplement. It's vital. 27:30 Sleep, rest, and stress management 27:33 are vital to optimal immune functioning. 27:35 That pretty much rounds up LifeStart. 27:38 I'm Doctor David DeRose. Hopefully, 27:40 I've given you a glimpse 27:41 of some things that can help your immune system 27:45 fight off colds, flus, 27:46 and other viral illnesses. 27:48 You can get more information 27:50 at lifestartseminars.com. 27:53 Get the free e book and program resource. 27:56 you might be surprised. There 27:57 are secrets and extra social support 28:00 with coaching opportunities. Check out 28:02 LifeStart Seminars. 28:03 I'm doctor David DeRose, 28:05 wishing you the very best success 28:07 in treating colds and flus naturally. 28:10 Hopefully, it won't knock at your door again. |
Revised 2017-01-06