I can’t remember the last time I had a cold, but I know it was before I started eating a whole-foods plant-based diet…Until this week.
I caught a cold.
I shared food with my daughter who didn’t share with me the fact that she had a sore throat.
But you know what? This cold never even came close to stopping me. I still completed my usual workouts, ran a bit, and didn’t even stop to take a nap. To top it off, the bothersome symptoms, aka sniffles and sneezes, only lasted a total of 3 DAYS. I can live with that.
When I would catch a cold prior to eating this way I would usually have symptoms that interrupted my sleep and daily life for weeks. Colds seemed to linger for me back then and were always accompanied by horrible “keep you awake” kind of coughing at night. I don’t miss that at all.
When I felt the cold coming on I did use my far-infared sauna twice and made sure I ate a lot of produce and no processed food, which I am sure helped.
The main lesson I am taking away from this is that eating a whole-foods plant-based diet supercharges your immune system. Secondary lesson – do not eat your kiddos leftovers…even if that smoothie they didn’t finish was super delish!
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P.S. My daughter took the picture above on day 2 of the cold…I clearly wasn’t feeling too bad.
matt is fighting a cold right now… it’s been over 3 days and the guy is still having sinus and coughing issues 🙁 Glad to hear you’re back to normal!! 🙂
Poor guy…tell him to go get a fresh veggie juice at Whole Foods 🙂
I am just getting over a cold too! I’m glad you are better.
I hope you feel better soon. I hope your friend is doing OK…I have been thinking about her and her family all day.
OMG this is so true for me and my family! We usually bounce back after a few days.
Isn’t it so great!?!? I used to walk around so fearful of germs and I fee like being vegan has freed me of that worry.
Then again, you could have caught it at the doctor’s office!! I noticed the same thing when I changed my eating habits, for the longest time I never seemed to catch what any of the others had. But keep in mind, a virus now and then is actually GOOD for the immune system. Think of it as an army waiting to fight. If it is just sitting around all the time with nothing to do……it will get lazy and soft! I also believe that it is best to get things when you are young and strong so your immune system will have already fought that battle and will be ready when you are older and possibly compromised. That’s one reason why I never get a flu shot!!
Great points Lorrie…Love the image of the army. I am not a fan of the flu shot either!
I skipped the flu shot this year and it was my first winter as an almost-vegan…no sicknesses! I’m a substitute teacher and exposed to all kinds of germs. If I start to feel even the tiniest hint of something, I try to sleep as much as I can. It really works!
That’s so great! I need to be better about getting more sleep 🙂