Can you imagine a world where everyone fed their immune system with good quality food, regular exercise, less stress and a few herbs and hardly ever had to go to the doctor to get a prescription?

This article is one that Wendyl wrote a few years back regarding antibiotic resistance and the importance of having a strong immune system. This is even more important in the world we live in today.

“This week I read that our resistance to antibiotics is as big a threat to the world as terrorism and climate change. What a great sell for a story which you can read here. But I do support the message that we need to stop using so many antibiotics which have been overprescribed for years, probably our own fault for expecting our doctor to give us something to make us feel better.  And if you’re worried about what you should do regarding antibiotics have a look at this very informative article in The Times.


I don’t take antibiotics if I can help it because as I wrote in A Home Companion I regard the body’s immune system as a big bucket. As your body fills up with chemicals and toxins from the food you eat, cleaners you spray and beauty products you put on your skin, the bucket fills up. And then your body must go to work to clean it out bit by bit to get it back down to empty again.


If your bucket is nearly full to the top because you just love that processed food, those cleaning chemicals, those parabens in your face cream and those dairy products to which you have a sensitivity, then when a bug does comes along, requiring the attention of your immune system it’s a bit busy and your bug might have to wait in line – a bit like turning up at Accident and Emergency at the hospital while the urgent cases get seen first.


Since I started ensuring my bucket was as empty as I could get it by rejecting chemicals in my life, I’ve had years of good health free of antibiotics.  Instead of regarding winter with the dread pharmaceutical companies promote through television advertising, I regard it as a perfectly normal season we experience every year. I prefer to just get my body in order and know that my immune system will take care of things and if I do get sick then it is simply “upgrading it’s software” and working out how to resist the new bug.

I know there are no ‘clinical studies’ proving the efficacy of some of the natural immunity boosters I use like echinacea, olive leaf and Vitamin C, but I also know that as soon as someone in my house shows any signs of sniffles, they get put on a course for two weeks and the cold will soon be over. I also drink lots of good quality orange juice if I am feeling poorly and limit anything that I know I have slight allergies to, such as dairy products, and drink lots of chicken soup, a folk cure used since the twelfth century, which actually does have a study supporting its healing properties.

Researcher Dr Stephen Rennard at the University of Nebraska found that the ingredients can prompt a flu-fighting reaction in the body.
If you do any research into both echinacea and olive leaf extract you will find many differing opinions. 

I believe it is unlikely you will ever find an endorsement by any official agency because of the power of drug companies who stand to lose millions if everyone stops getting flu vaccinations, or needing antibiotics and cough and cold medications.”