Five Ways to Prevent Colds

If you are prone to catching colds, here are some tips to help you avoid catching a cold. These work well with children, too. Colds can be extremely irritating, and avoiding them, or being able to eliminate it at the onset, are wonderful ways to stay happy and healthy.

1. Dress appropriately

During the cold months it is important to always wear some type of undershirt underneath your shirt. I usually wear a camisole or a cute little t-shirt under my shirts, and have done so since I was a kid. Doing so has kept me warm, and helped me to stave off colds. My kids always wear onesies or t-shirts under their clothes, and it really helps them.

2. Wash hands religiously.

I wash my hands very often. In fact, I get annoyed by washing my hands so much, but I do it, because I know that I'm helping to keep myself healthy. When I'm around someone who has a cold I make sure to wash my hands if I have come into contact with something that they have touched. Even if I haven't I like to keep my hands washed after being around someone with a cold, to help get rid of the germs.

This can be hard to do with little kids. My son recently caught a cold, because my nephew came to visit and he had a cold. My son just loved getting right up in his face, and offering to share his sippy cup with his cousin. I knew he was bound to come down with a cold from such close contact with him, and sure enough, he did. So, what did I do?

3. Use a humidifier every night.

These are wonderful. Humidifiers help clean the air and add moisture to it as well. This stopped my son's coughing through the night, and helped to clear up his congestion.

4. Make a honey, lemon and red onion concoction

This is a home remedy for a cold, and it does really good. It's not all that tasty, but at the first sign of a cold, be sure to try it. Just put these ingredients in a pot and boil them together.

5. Eat fruits everyday to strengthen your immune system.

Eating your fruits and veggies daily will help build a healthy immune system, which will fight off infections quickly. Eating strawberries, oranges, apples, bananas, etc., daily, at least three times a day, will dramatically decrease your chances of catching a cold.

These 5 tips will help prevent you from getting a cold. And, if you do get one, you can fight it off quickly by following the last three tips.