How To Never Get Sick Again

It seems like everybody currently has a cold — not that surprising, as it's winter. But you don't just have to sit it out. There are things you can do to stop a cold in its track or at least minimize its severity.

Disclaimer: I am not a doctor (but I am a world-class expert at being sick, as you will see). So, take my anecdotal musings with a grain of salt. Before you make any changes to your lifestyle, consult with a professional first, of course.

I.

I used to get sick — a lot. From kindergarten age to about 33, I would be sick for at least half of the year.

It was always the same rhythm. As soon as the weather got nasty, I would first catch a common cold, which would then inevitably turn into a sinus infection; I have narrow sinuses and the mucus doesn't get drained. And yes, I had surgery for that twice, and it didn't help.

Each of these episodes would take about 4–6 weeks. Sore throat, stuffed nose, sinus pressure, headaches — the whole shebang. Then it would get better for about 1–2 weeks before the cycle started over again.

As I was living in Germany, antibiotics were hard to come by; German doctors are stingy about prescribing them, even when you clearly have a bacterial infection. But what I could get over the counter were decongestant nasal sprays, which of course I got addicted to in no time; an addiction that stayed with me for a solid 15 years.

My obsession with BJJ and MMA didn't help either. When you constantly train hard, your immune system takes a hit. Plus, you are cheek by jowl with your training partners and catch whatever is going around. The result — now I wasn't just sick during the winter but all year.

I don't want to sound overdramatic, but it was hell on earth. For most of the time, I felt useless. To this day, I wonder how I got anything done all these years. The loss in productivity was staggering.

This is what I meant — I am world-class at being sick.

II.

When I was 33, I blew out my knee in a BJJ competition and had to get surgery afterward. During rehab, my physiotherapist remarked on how I was always sick. Offhandedly, she said, "You know, you could easily fix this by eating a paleo-style diet. Cut out all grains. Just veggies, fruits, fish, and high-quality meat."

I remember thinking to myself, "Yeah, right. Spout your alternative-medicine nonsense somewhere else." But I was so desperate at the time, that, when I got home later that day, I decided to give it a try anyway.

Since that day I have not had a sinus infection ever again (and it's been 10 years now).

That was the first piece of the puzzle.

III.

The second piece of the puzzle was moving somewhere sunny for the winter.

Getting plenty of sunlight every day will significantly increase vitamin D production, which will in turn boost your immune system. And this, for once, is not just anecdotal evidence, but hard science. There is a mounting body of research showing that sunlight exposure (or the lack of it) directly correlates with how often you catch a respiratory tract infection. To quote from a 2020 Harvard study on the subject by Slusky and Zeckhauser: "We find that sunlight strongly protects against getting influenza."

That's my personal experience as well. While I was still getting hints of a cold back in Germany, even after going paleo, as soon as I started traveling to warm places for the winter, even those hints disappeared.

Now, you might object that moving countries is not an option for you, due to work or family. But trust me — if you are feeling bad enough, you will make it happen.

To be fair, there is an increased risk of catching a virus or bacterial infection via other means in places like Thailand; catching a cold on the airplane is a classic and so is using the AC in your apartment (these monsters rarely get cleaned).

But then again — getting some sunlight straight away will typically stop the symptoms dead in their track.

IV.

The third and final puzzle piece to my conundrum was garlic.

These days, if against all odds, I do get some mild symptoms of an approaching cold, I will straight away buy a whole head of garlic and eat the whole darn thing.

It is not a pleasant experience. The only way you can get this much garlic down is by eating copious amounts of vegetables and/or salad with it.

You also want to be careful if you have a sensitive stomach; eating a ton of garlic can mess with that. The solution for me is to space out the garlic intake over the day / several meals. So, I will eat a third of the head for breakfast, another third for lunch, and the final third for dinner.

Usually, one head does the trick. The next day, most symptoms will be gone or receding. But rarely, if I am still on the verge of getting sick, I eat a second head on day 2. That will do it for sure.

The study situation on garlic is a bit iffy. There are not that many studies to start with; also, some of them focus on garlic supplements, not raw garlic. There is some evidence that garlic has both antiviral and antibacterial properties, but it's not conclusive yet.

I am not too worried about it. I have experienced again and again what a powerful cold remedy garlic is (given that the quantity is there). The science will catch up eventually.

Not my typical newsletter, but I thought it might help some of you to get through the winter. As always, I am looking forward to your comments and questions.

Until next week,

Niels