We see a number of cancellations due to illness this time every year at Homberg Chiropractic. Staying inside with dry heat is one way to pick of viruses, but here are some other ways you can make sure you WILL get sick this year.Increase Your Stress: An increase in stress can suppress our immune systems, leading to illness. First we have the holiday stress and then general winter stress – kids are sick and especially this year kids are out of school more due to bad (cough, cough) weather.Deprive Your Body of Sleep: Again, lack of sleep can suppress the immune system and lead to other issues within our bodies. Our bodies need seven to eight hours of sleep a night. It’s best to try to stay on a regular sleep schedule, go to bed and wake up at the same time every day. Make sure your mattresses and pillows are comfortable and supportive.Stay Dehydrated: We need to keep our bodies hydrated from the inside out and that starts with staying hydrated. If we don’t stay hydrated our nasal passages can dry out leading to a number of respiratory issues.Have that Extra Piece of Cake: Eating a lot of sugar-filled foods can lead to sickness. Once again, eating a diet high in sugar content can suppress the immune system.Drink Soda, Even Diet Soda: Am I starting to sound like a broke record? Regular AND diet sodas are filled with sugar and well, other not-so-good for you ingredients. Pure cane sugar is not evil in moderation, but soft drink manufacturers no longer use pure cane sugar.Don’t Exercise: Keeping our bodies moving is vitally important in fighting sickness. A stationary body is a sick body.Don’t Wash your Hands: When germs are rampant in the winter, we need to be extra diligent about washing our hands. You can pick up germs just by touching the door handle as you go in and out of stores or public restrooms. Make sure you wash your hands thoroughly with warm water and soap.Don’t Get Adjusted: Read above under Don’t Exercise. Just as we need to move our bodies, it’s important to move our bones and joints. Keeping our spine loose helps to keep your immune system functioning properly.Drink more than One Alcoholic Beverage Per Day: I bet you can guess what I am going to say about this…yes, alcohol can suppress our immune systems. Alcohol is a depressant and can wear down our bodies.Eat more Gluten: You’ve probably read some of my other blog posts about gluten and how it can lead to inflammation in our bodies. Inflammation in our bodies can lead to sickness and disease. Unfortunately, gluten is in more foods than you realize, but paying closer attention to labels when you are at the grocery store can help you avoid it.Stay well!!