How I stay healthy working in assisted living.

I work in assisted living with a lot of people and a lot of germs. I do care, I assist them with basically everything. Sometimes, I am not allowed to call in sick because the residents are dependant on me and I hate working sick and we are short staffed all the time. I also have an elementary age and middle school aged children that bring home sickness. Since the elderly population immune system is weaker, they are more at risk for sickness and disease. There is a lot of viruses, influenza, and pneumonia going around every year. So how do I stay healthy? I don't always stay healthy but I do most of the time. I've read up online on how to stay healthy so I have done my research. You can use these tips for the whole family. Flu season is approaching us. Trust me you don't want influenza. Influenza is more in the lungs and body aches more so than it is having a stomach bug. Stomach flu is gastrointestinitis I. Influenza is awful. First of all you all know this. Wash your hands. Really wash your hands for at least 20 seconds or as long as the happy birthday song. In health care, and in meetings they are always telling us to wash your hands. The first thing you learn in nurses aide training, wash your hands. It is the first skill I preformed for the state board test for CNA. I also carry hand sanitizer for my kids for when they come home from school. They say in microbiology that kills the good bacteria but I'm to OCD and germaphobe to care. Next vitamins. I had a doctor tell me that you just flush out the vitamin's and that vitamins are just a marketing scheme. I don't believe here's why. One day I wasn't feeling good. I had a nasty virus. My manager told me that I had to come in. I didn't get any sleep because I was sick and upset. I had to come in at 6 in the morning. I worked but it was miserable. I could barely do my job. I went home and took 3 tabs of airborne and felt better. I took one airborne everyday and stayed healthy for almost a year. Which was shocking because I got sick a lot beforehand, since I work in healthcare. Airborne has 1,000 mgs of vitamin c. Vitamin c helps the cells that regulate the immune system and it also has e which helps the immune system as well. I also take herbs like garlic, Andrographis and elderberry. If you have influenza, take elderberry syrup and oscillococcinum together. Also, oregano oil. Oregano oil can kill strep bacteria. Also, the same doctor that told me not to take vitamins, told me to take vitamin D3. You can also get out in the sun for some D. Fresh herbs with cooking also helps. Probiotics and prebiotics. Most of our immune system lives inside of our gut. Green tea is full of antioxidants and flushes toxins. Also, drink plenty of water. Also fish oil is awesome for brain health. You can also use a neti pot, because you inhale germs and you can flush these germs out to prevent illness. If you run out of the solution that goes with it you can use salt. Also gargle with salt water. Kills bacteria in the throat. Ok, we all know this healthy diet and exercise. When I was sick in bed researching, I kept coming across this. Try to eat at least 5-10 fruits and veggies a day. Try to cut down on sugar because it represses the immune system. Aim for a goal of exercise 3-5 days a week for 30 minutes. You can walk, swim, run, whatever you like. I like one day of strength training, one cardio day, and one stretching yoga day. So there you have it. This is what I have found from my research and have tried. It's worked for me. Germs are everywhere, especially for me because if I'm not around the elderly, I'm around little kids. I have asthma so I gotta stay healthy. You can use these tips for your children as well. I try to get my kids out in the fresh air for exercise and vitamin D at least 5 times a week. Stay healthy this flu season!