Basically, if you have kids, you're fucked, immunologically. It's near impossible to get enough sleep and still get everything done, and if they're in day care or school, they're going to bring home every bug known to man (and some that aren't)
Plus, in my case anyway, I find it near impossible to get regular exercise and eat healthy at the same time due to the time and budget constraints, (and I live in a tourist town), so I'm just resigned to being sick about once per month.
Basically, like you said, avoid kids and definitely don't have kids if you want to dodge colds and flu. Or if you do have kids, be independently wealthy so you can afford to take time to sleep, exercise, and eat healthy.
I started wearing a mask in crowded public places in about 2020 (for some inexplicable reason). I never stopped. I wear one in the metro. On buses. In crowded shopping malls (or even crowded small shops).
I used to get several colds per years and maybe one thing that caused me a fever each year (usually a flu).
I haven't had a cold or flu or any kind of fever-inducing infection since ... oh ... call it 2020.
Until last year i rarely got sick, "rarely" meaning maybe once a year and then only lightly.
Since october/november last year i suddenly started getting sick almost once every month without any significant changes to any of the following:
Social contact
Diet
Workout
Sun/Outside time
Happiness
Im the wrong person to ask for this obviously, because im still trying to figure out why im getting sick all of a sudden.
The things i mentioned are probably still all valid factors tho.
Did you have Covid? Since I had Covid, I get sick way more often and it takes me longer to get better from being sick. Just had a head cold for like 15 days, and it didn’t respond to any meds.
I had covid in early 2022, so it doesnt quite match up with that, but i was wondering the same. This "wave" of sorts did start with a very bad case of a "cold" or whatever it was and since then it has been going on and on.
Thank about like this. A lot of bacteria is good for you. Some of it might only providing the benefit of taking up spaces so that worse bacteria won't come in and make us sick.
That's why overuse is bad. It kills off usually less weak "good bacteria" and leaves the door open for some of those super bugs you get in the hospitals.
Antibacterial soap only kills SOME germs. The ones it leaves behind are resistant. You're literally building up stronger bacteria when you overuse antibacterials.
Straight-up cleaning is almost as effective without the riskcertainty of making superbugs.
Immunities.
I go outside and be exposed to the world, and I wash my hands.
When I do feel a sickness coming on I drop everything, crawl into bed, and give my body anything it needs to fight.. whether that's blankets or hot soup or cold cloths... and I sleep as much as humanly possible so my immunities don't have to worry about my conscious body while they're fighting.
In my case, it's probably like that George Carlin bit about swimming in the Hudson. I am not a neat freak. I eat things I drop on the ground. Etc. It's like constantly vaccinating yourself against everything.
I don't get sick more than once every few years. I do nothing special. I wash my hands, but probably should do it more. I am highly social, go to bars, have friends over, go to shows. I don't mask up anymore.
I'm 47 and I feel pretty much like I did at 20. I weigh the same, have more lines on my forehead and not as full hair, but I'm not bald.
Secrets? Lucky genetics, I'm sure. Of course, by putting this out into the universe, I'll probably get Hyper-mega Cow butt B7RQ Novel Toe Cancer.
I used to get sick a lot, sore throats and colds at least a few times every winter and occasionally in the warmer months too. Since I started taking a daily multivitamin about 12 months ago I haven't really gotten sick since. I swear even hangovers aren't as bad these days. It's really remarkable, id recommend anyone give it a go.
I was my hands pretty often. I don't go crazy, just soap up and rinse.
I was a thumb sucker when I was a kid. I like to think that helped. There's no way anybody can get exposed to every germ that causes the common cold - there are just too many out there... but being exposed to as many as possible at a young age must help to some extent.
One year I got like 5 or 6 sinus infections. I went to an ENT doctor and they said "you have allergies". I take over the counter allergy meds every day, year round. No more sinus infections.
I used to get sick all the time when I was in school. And then when I moved out on my own and had a full time job (providing over the phone tech support) I was sick quite often. I've also had periods in my life when I would go years without getting sick, but then about a year ago I've started using sick days again.
All of the periods of time when I was getting sick coincide with me not wanting to go to the places I' required to go (school, crappy workplaces, etc), and the periods of time when I wasn't sick I was enjoying my job and the people I worked with.
I've always controlled my breathing in icky situations. Even before covid if I'm walking across the street from someone who is cough I'll even just do a full exhale and hold my breath until I can pass by extra distance.
That goes for in clubs, bars, the circus, the grocery store... the dog waste that didn't get picked up... really the list is endless
Otherwise I'm a pretty straightforward sharer and hugger, though I'm sure to wash my hands cause I don't like when they feel grimey.
I rarely get sick, but I'm not going to speculate why, and I wouldn't recommend taking advice from a thread like this. You can't really know all the mechanisms behind why you get sick or not. There are people who smoke two packs a day and are rarely sick, and I'm sure some of them attribute that to smoking.
I can't remember when I last was "traditionally" sick (ie flu/cold etc) - however I also have a chronic autoimmune condition so I guess life is just taking a bit of pity on me.
Acquire one of those, and perhaps you too can have pity! I'm willing to trade but I doubt it'd be a fair trade...
If I'm traveling on trains/planes solo I wear a mask - every time I don't I then get ill 🤧 so it obviously works...
I wear a fitness tracker and keep an eye on my heart rate, you can often tell if you are actually coming down with something VS just being tired by looking at how your HR changes with exertion. If your coming down with something, relax, keep warm and eat well etc.