If you manage to avoid most colds/bugs what’s your secret?!

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If you hardly ever catch a cold or bug what’s your secret to having a good immune system and staying healthy?!

I take vitamin D everyday, wash my hands a lot and in the winter I wear gloves which I think gives me some protection when touching things. I could just be lucky though!

It must be largely luck/genetics

Think about it - if there was a foolproof way to avoid getting colds someone would have dscovered it by now and colds/sickness bugs wouldn't exist.

Working with under 11s. But change setting/school and there’ll be a whole new set of bugs going round.
Laid back attitude to germs but wash hands regularly.
Avoid alcohol when period due and colds are about - this may be specific to me, but I’ve noticed when I do get a cold it’s always just before my period and I’ve lowered my immune system with alcohol.

I’ve no idea but I’m never Ill nor are my husband or the kids. I was dreading them starting school and catching everything but it never happened. My youngest is year 10 and has never had a day off school for illness, the middle one has but only 2 days for period pain, the eldest is 23 and epileptic so days off for seizures but not illness. They all had Chicken pox at various times and in the school holidays. I’m overweight, eat ok but eat a lot of junk too. I wonder if genetics play a part. My mum is mid 70’s and never gets I’ll either.

No idea.

I just put it down to having an strong constitution.

My dad didn’t have a single sick day off work from the age of 15 to retiring at 65. I assume I get it from him.

Don't work with children. Don't send your children to nursery. Don't move to a new area. I've done all of these things and have constant sickness bugs after not having any since primary school.

Yeah, I also don't do loads of cleaning and am not fussed about eg eating food dropped on the floor. Grew up playing in the dirt, sleeping in the dog bed sometimes, lying on the floor to watch telly and all that stuff. I think I built up a good immune system.

This is me.
Work with children too and didn't catch covid, can't honestly remember the last time l was ill.

Working from home! I used to get at least 2-3 colds per year working in an office until that stopped due to covid, some really horrible ones, now I wfh permanently I've had maybe 1 in the last 3 years, and it was pretty mild. I've also used that first defence nose spray thing whenever I'm around anyone who has a cold or I feel the early symptoms - not sure if it actually works but, again, no cold since using it so maybe!

What are all of your stress levels like?

I had a period of catching loads of colds / viruses when my son was young and I was really stressed and exhausted trying to juggle work / home / childcare, and he kept bringing viruses home from childcare and I'd catch them all. I totally crashed after one particularly bad virus - couldn't recover, could barely get out of bed for months - and was eventually diagnosed with CFS/ME, which I've been trying to get better from for several years now.

But I almost never get sick with a cold/virus anymore. Not sure if it's because my immune system is always 'on' due to the CFS, or because I now have to live a very relaxed and low stress lifestyle to avoid CFS crashes, or if it's something else. My son is still bringing home constant colds and viruses from school and I never catch them.

I would say our household remains largely healthy cold/flu wise. Personally I think you can be too clean. It's about balance.

Teach primary school children. Once you've got your first few years under your belt, you'll never pick up another bug again 😬

I have had one cold in 3 years and no covid. First I would say it is becuse my children are student age and I work at home so I am simply not in touch with schools and small children and office air conditioning and tube trains any more.

Secondly I eat a lot of things like veg, salmon, eggs fruit.

Third from about April to Oct I try to go out in the sun with very little on for abohut 20 mins a day without sun cream - to get vit D the natural way.

Fourth - I go to bed and am not these days woken in the night by babies, just student sons - they live at home and tend to get 7 or 8 hours or more of sleep a night and wake up naturally (no alarm).

Fifth - might just be good luck.

I think I am just lucky. I eat a lot of vegetables because I enjoy them.
I rarely use public transport and don't work with children.

I don't use hand sanitiser, preferring to wash with soap and water. I also mostly WFH.

I've always been a hand washer even before Covid ,first thing I do when I get in is wash my hands thoroughly.

I'm not overly concerned with cleaning for starters. No antibac or any of that crap. I eat well, lots of fruit, veg, fish. I walk most places. I'm not sure what else.

I find using first defence when others around me have a cold, really reduced the chances of me being ill. I still often get a cold but it's just a couple of days of feeling tired and having a scratchy throat rather than streaming nose etc that I get when I don't use it

I've worked in a hospital as either a student or qualified midwife for nearly 10 years 😂 I don't go as far as licking the door handles but I'm pretty sure the exposure to all sorts has helped!!

We don't eat meat or dairy, we cook from scratch. We eat lots of raw fruits and vegetables, so I'll have a bowl of melon or pineapple as a snack. We take high dose Vitamin C (6 yo doesn't) None of us have taken antibiotics in a decade (6 yo never) and if we get a cold it lasts a day and it's all out and fine the next day. 6 yo has had a couple of really mild colds and aside from that not been ill. She was breastfed to almost full-term. We avoid medications and focus on diet and choice supplements like C, which we can't get enough of through diet. We take zinc, and B6.

Just luck. My DS is the same. We don't eat meat but otherwise that's the only similarity in our lifestyles 😁 we just don't get ill often. Come to think of it my parents and siblings are the same.

I eat meat and dairy, don't take any vitamin supplements, haven't taken any antibiotics for 8 years (when I did I really needed them), and I am not susceptible to colds either, so it can't just be down to diet, although it helps of course.

However, I do eat a lot of salads and other vegetables and walk a lot.

A daily multivitamin and not having any friends to go out with.

In the last ten years I've had only covid (almost certainly the delta strain) and two colds, that's it.
I don't drink or smoke so that probably helps, but I'm overweight and while I eat a ton of fruit and veg and cook mainly healthy meals I am terrible for snacking. I also have two grubby sticky children and a house that is only sporadically clean. I do spend quite a bit of time outside. But I think its 99% luck.

Brought up in a grubby house, continued with my own DC and work with children.

We eat loads of fresh fruit and veg and have a balanced diet. We also exercise and keep fit and don’t smoke. Drink (usually!) in moderation.

Oh, and I have been able to avoid covid so far.