Help me feel good!

July 6, 2006 3:25 AM

I moved to London two years ago, and feel as though I've had a low-level infection since, with a few bad bouts of illness. What can I do to boost my immunity?

I eat well and am reasonably fit, and although my job is quite stressful I do get enough time to myself. I've now had a cold for three weeks and it's just not going away. Ever since I moved to London I have caught everything going around, including bad bouts of flu, chicken pox, acute bronchitis (lost 8kg I couldn't afford with that one) and laryngitis. Apart from that, snuffly has become my normal state. I'm sick of being sick!

My only long-term medical issue is low blood pressure, treated by diet. I had a flu shot in November, and I've recently started taking a daily multi-vitamin. I try to refrain from touching too many things in public areas. What else can I do to boost my immunity? Are there specific supplements I should try? Or is this just a side-effect of living in a huge city?

posted by goo to health & fitness (22 comments total)

Lots of people I know swear by Echinacea herbal supplements to boost the immune system, although I have not needed it myself. Talk to someone in Holland & Barrett.
Get well soon.
I don't find London as polluted as many other European cities but I'm only there twice a week.
posted by Wilder at 3:36 AM on July 6, 2006

What kind of conditions are you living in? England is notorious for bad housing stock and if you have a basement flat then mold and damp could be your problem, one that is only slightly better in the summer. On the pollution side, I found London exceptionally bad when I first moved here but either I am used to it now or its improved, or both.
posted by anglophiliated at 3:37 AM on July 6, 2006

Vitamin C. Best fresh, but otherwise take a pill.
posted by popcassady at 3:38 AM on July 6, 2006

Are you from outside the UK? Everybody I know here who has moved from foreign climes to this city gets sick. It's like a melting pot for international bugs. All the germs in the world are in this petri dish, snugly fitted inside the M25.

I was born here and since moving back from university I haven't had a cold for four years. I can't attribute this to anything in particular, apart from surviving severe bacterial meningitis (which appears to have upgraded me to ImmuneSystem 2.0).

Apart from getting meningitis, which is not practical, and also dangerous, I've found that cycling and eating lots of fresh fruit and veg (find your nearest farmers' market) has helped people I know.

Finally, you mention that you try to avoid public areas. I'm not a clinician, but it seems to me you need to touch as many things in public areas as you can to build up your immunity. Think of it like the measles parties your neighbours' kids had.
posted by randomination at 3:56 AM on July 6, 2006

Wow I seriously doubt London has much - if anything - to do with your illness unless, as anglophiliated pointed out, there are direct environmental reasons for you it. I'm a New Yorker who's been living here for about a decade, almost never get sick (same as when I was in Manhattan), and I second the Echinacea.

But I also take Vitamin C (500 mg / day) and Ginseng (both liquid and capsules), in addition to Brewers Yeast to pick up the B complex and Acidiphilous to insure proper gut flora. A bunch of other vitamins / minerals and herbs as well for other reasons, but those four supplements should help you. These are not curatives by any stretch, so you have to take them regularly to help strentghen your immune system and body overall.

You didn't mention diet but I avoid animal flesh except for oily fish (think Salmon or Mackerel) two or three servings a week, and aside from that I eat mostly salads and fruit. Cheese and chocolate (only Swiss or Belgian with cocoa > 70% to keep processed sugar to a minimum) for a treat, and red wine every night. Oh! I forgot Melatonin; although I take it really to help sleep, some folks believe that it has overall benefits including to the immune system.

I hope this helps you - it works for me!
posted by Mutant at 4:08 AM on July 6, 2006

I teach preschool and have recently moved back to the germ-licious United States from a year spent in relatively virus-free Iceland. I found myself getting sick all the time this winter and until I broke the cycle of infection and immediate re-infection, I was absolutely miserable.

Vitamin C is what did it for me. I take 1000mg a day plus an immune system boosting multivitamin (it has echinacea and some other good stuff) PLUS as much fruit and orange juice as I can get.

I thought that when people were telling me to take more Vitamin C that perhaps it would help slightly, but I did not expect the HUGE amount of difference it's had. When I do get the occasional cold, it does not last as long nor is it as severe.

Also, I've become hyper-vigilant about hand washing whenever I come into contact with someone who I know is sick. I don't worry at all about public areas, but that's mostly because I know that I'm the most germy one there! ;) Since I work with kids, the people I work with (being children) are literally wiping their snot on me, so I wash my hands several times a day and use hand sanitizer whenever I happen to KNOW that I've come in contact with boogers. I would not worry so much about touching things in public areas much so long as you wash your hands before eating and also as soon as you get back home. Germs are going to get on your hands at some point, you just need to wash them off. All soap is by nature anti-bacterial and even a good scrub with warm water will remove most germs by forcibly breaking the cell membrane.

That's a long digression, but I'm just trying to say don't worry about coming in contact with the germs, the best way to minimize your likelihood of getting sick is to wash whatever germs ARE on your hands OFF of them before sticking your hands near your mouth.

If only four year olds would take this advice, I might be closer to being illness free myself! :) Good luck to you!
posted by grapefruitmoon at 4:25 AM on July 6, 2006

There's a product on the market called Airborne. In the states it can be found at CVS and other drugstores, not sure if it's carried in the UK. When you're sick, mix one up and drink it every three hours. When you're not, but are around sick people (or in your case, until you break this cycle), drink one morning and night. It's basically every vitamin ever. I haven't been sick in a year.
posted by awesomebrad at 4:38 AM on July 6, 2006

How odd, this thread is rather timely. I moved here a little over two weeks ago and have had cold-like symptoms [stuffed up, runny nose, slight headache, sometimes blood comes out when I blow my nose] for more than half the time I've been here. I just think this place is dirty or some shit like that. Oh well, I shall try echinacea.

Perhaps I'm more fucked up than just a cold though, but it hasn't stopped me from functioning and engaging in strenuous activity.
posted by cloeburner at 4:40 AM on July 6, 2006

Sounds like it's probably the Tube. When I commuted by Tube I got a succession of colds and coughs: being crammed in with lots of germ-bearing people in a crowded, hot, humid environment like the rush hour Tube will do that.

If it's feasible to cycle or walk to work, try that for a while.
posted by TheophileEscargot at 4:46 AM on July 6, 2006

Answering the questions:

- We live on the third floor, and the building was new when we moved in 18 months ago. We are starting to get some mold in the bathroom (only one door, no windows, an extraction fan) but regular, thorough cleaning seems to be taking care of it. The flat is quite dusty, though.

- I'm Australian. The one thing I've changed since I moved here is my use of herbs - I had a great vege and herb garden in Brisbane, now I only have a titchy balcony.

- I've been vegetarian for many years, and eat mainly fresh fruit and veg (love the Stoke Newington farmer's market, btw!). My diet is, overall, very good, and the blood tests I've had have all been okay (for iron levels, etc)

- I spend a few hours each day on public transport (commuting and for work) so was specifically referring to that when I mentioned public places. The amount of people I see coughing and sneezing into their hands then touching the poles on the tube (for eg) ... ugh.

- I am exposed to lots of people at work, many of whom are more vulnerable to illness (people with learning disabilities). We have epidemics fairly regularly, most of which I've been part of (measles has been the glaring exception so far).

I'm going to try all of the things mentioned here - I've never taken echinacea except as tea (from my own garden, sigh), so I'll see how the supplements go.

Thanks a lot everyone!
posted by goo at 4:49 AM on July 6, 2006

Wall to wall carpeting?

That can be a big part of your dust/dirt problem. Needs hoovering a lot more often than hardwood floors.
posted by slimepuppy at 4:55 AM on July 6, 2006

Airborne bugs are just like the water born ones. There are different ones in different places and it'll take some time for you to adapt. When I was much younger I read there were about 212 variants to the common cold. I don't know if that is still true or not, but I set out to catch most of 'em (jump in puddles, never wear a jacket, etc.) since I was always sick and rarely get sick now... once or twice every few years.

Follow good hygiene practices and you should feel better. Stay very well hydrated, wash your hands before letting them touch your face (alcohol washes are a big help here, like Purell Hand Sanitizer), and be conscious of the bugs in the air. I wish I could find this online but I once saw a video of a person sneezing in front of a strong backlight. The water particles went everyplace, and only less so when sneezing into the elbow. Hands, etc., didn't do much at all. So when a person sneezes you are breathing that in. You might as well be kissing them. This doesn't mean you need to stay away from people, just be conscious of a sneeze and if you hear one, turn away for a moment and hold your breath for 10 seconds.

Smoke, alcohol, and caffeine (soda, coffee) will really diminish the immune system since they dry out the mucous membranes. Staying hydrated works by hydrating the mucous membranes, so they can intercept germs before they hit the rest of you. So if you can stick to bottled water.

Lastly, be careful with the over the counter drugs for colds, especially the nasal inhalants. A side effect of those is increased mucous production, so people tend to think it is wearing off and use it more often, which produces more mucous, so "the cold never ends"... It's a nasty cycle.
posted by jwells at 5:11 AM on July 6, 2006

I would get a thyroid test if I were you.

Test for hypothyroidism.

Low blood pressure, constantly ill....

I think there could be a medical reason, have a doctor test you for this and other things.

Id probably be wheezing and coughing my head from the damp climate.
posted by Budge at 5:16 AM on July 6, 2006

Being sick and feeling crap is, IMHO, a great symptom of living in London. I speak as someone who was raised there and now lives somewhere a lot cleaner!
posted by wackybrit at 5:38 AM on July 6, 2006

I live in London, I travel on the Tube every day, I live in an old victorian house which is not particularly well kept. I also own cats for extra added germs. My diet involes no supplements at all and I generally eat what ever I feel like but am not overweight. I never, ever, get ill. Correlation is not causation people. Although I do drink a whole crap load of fruit juice, I imagine all us not sick people get tons of vitamin C.

But yeah, ask a doctor, it's not like we don't have free health care here :D
posted by public at 5:48 AM on July 6, 2006

I'd like to second awesomebrad and recommend Airbourne. I work at a high school in a very impoverished and germ-filled area, and I get ill all winter, every winter. Airbourne did wonders for me.
posted by christinetheslp at 6:10 AM on July 6, 2006

Airborne is a placebo.

Echinacea is a placebo.
posted by rxrfrx at 6:11 AM on July 6, 2006

Some would question whether Vitamin C works against colds. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't try it.
posted by randomination at 6:28 AM on July 6, 2006

Exercise?
posted by Happy Dave at 7:21 AM on July 6, 2006

Exercise works wonders. I havent gotten sick since i started exercising regularly (a couple years). It is the only explanation for why i made it through the whole winter without getting a couple of colds which used to be the standard occcurence. Whenever i eat something from a restaurant or something that is giving me that 'infected' feeling I chug some orange juice and it goes away. If i cant get OJ i take a throat losenge.
posted by GleepGlop at 8:50 AM on July 6, 2006

Suprised no one has mentioned this, but you may have developed allergies. Allergies can develop at any time in your life. Moving will also cause allergies to develop (across the street or around the world). Many people will get what they believe to be long lasting colds that are in fact congestion caused by allergies. The long lasting congestion will probably turn into a sinus infection. I recommend a visit to an Allergist to determine if you have them and what exactly you are allergic to. They will then prescribe the correct drugs, shots, or other action (such as a mind blowing sinus rinse I do almost daily).
posted by internal at 10:07 AM on July 6, 2006

Funny; I'm from Malaysia and I fall ill there often, but I feel tons healthier whenever I'm in London - or Europe for that matter.

Could it be a matter of the weather? It seems that for me I'm kinda sensitive to humidity; I fare better in dry weather. How about you?

Could it also be a psychological thing? Stress in a new city, atmsphere change? I found that when I felt really high (naturally - not drugs) and happy I didn't fall sick quite as often.

Good luck; I'm going through the same thing!
posted by divabat at 5:49 PM on July 7, 2006