The rapid spread of swine flu has understandably caused a lot of worry around the globe. Now more than ever we need to do everything we can to stay healthy. Keeping our immune system strong is critical. I came across some great information on how to do that at one of my favorite health sites JF McCaffrey MD

The first tip I learned is to handle stress. I don’t think anyone would argue that the average person has more stress now than at any other time in history. If we don’t handle our stress well, we’ll not only detract from the quality of our lives, we will in fact weaken our immune system.

A clear example of this is a report of an experiment where researchers exposed volunteers to a cold virus. Before the exposure the researchers measured the amount of stress the volunteers had in their life. Not everyone who is exposed to the virus became ill. Those who had the most stress were not only more likely to become sick, they also had more severe symptoms and stayed sick longer.

We can keep our immune system strong by using any number of stress management tools. These include the relaxation response, meditation, hypnosis, visualization and so forth. The important thing is to pick a technique that makes sense to you and use it regularly.

The amount of sleep we get also has a very significant impact on our immune system. Too many people try to get by on too little sleep and become sick because of it.

A study in the archives of internal medicine show this clearly. In that study, the people who got less that seven hours sleep every night were more than three times as likely to get sick when compared to those who got eight hours.

Even more surprising, relatively brief interruptions in sleep during the night increase a person’s susceptibility to getting sick.

The bottom line is that your mother’s admonition to “Get a good night sleep” is one the best things you can do to support your immune system.

There’s a lot more you can do to support your immune system. You owe it to yourself to visit Keep Your Immune System Strong.

While you are there be sure to sign up to get your free report on “The Surprising Power of the Heart”.

It reveals that the heart is much more than a pump and that its rhythm contain secrets that influence our entire body and all its systems including the immune system. It’s information that everyone should have access to.

Again, you can find this report at JF McCaffrey MD

I hope this helps you stay well.