I’m sure you are familiar with “flu season” and the uptick in illnesses during the winter. This yearly cycle usually starts to ramp up at the end of September. Most people blame this on the “back to school” time of the year, with kids spreading bugs between each other and then bringing them home to their parents. They also assume the cold weather weakens their immune systems, making them more susceptible to catching bugs from the kids in school.
This theory assumes everyone is at the mercy of the viruses and cold and flu “season” is just something we all have to “get through” and put up with the illnesses as the hit.
Well, I have a different theory. Here are my top three reasons I think people get sick more than other seasons
1. Vitamin D3 deficiency
Almost 75% of the world’s population live above or below the 37th-degree latitudes. At these angles, from October to April, the sun cannot provide enough UVB rays to stimulate the skin to produce the minimum levels of vitamin D needed for optimal immune function. Even within the 37th° latitudes, most people don’t spend enough time outside to take advantage of the Sun’s benefits to their vitamin D levels. This makes the supermajority of the world deficient in vitamin D, especially during the winter months.
In the context of wellness, this is very important because vitamin D is arguably the number one nutrient for proper immune function. It’s quite easy to solve this problem, though, with a good quality, vitamin D supplement, or proper consumption of wild fish, and/or regular doses of liver from wild animals. This is how the ancient Eskimos thrived at a latitude which made it impossible to get any vitamin D at all from the sun 9-10 months out of the year.
2. Changing nutrition habits
Halloween candy hits the stores at the end of August, kicking off the sugar addiction season. Holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Eve are full of sugar, carbs, and alcohol, with plenty of those in between, as they are in and around the house through this period. These foods have a devastating effect on our intestinal microbiome and since this microbial flora represents over 70% of your immune strength, it’s easy to see the dire consequence of these foods.
Then January 2nd rolls around, and some people begin to kick their sugar habit. Detoxing the body from the previous 4-months takes at least one month (February) if nutrition habits are changed perfectly (which few people can do).
The majority of people outside the 37th parallel also get Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) from the darker shorter days and cloudier weather, which tends to cause emotional eating of sugar, comfort eating, and overeating (also because colder weather creates a bigger appetite). Comfort foods also tend to be less nutritious, so deficiencies affect mood and further exacerbate this cycle.
3. Less movement and exercise
People are outside less in the winter months and tend to be less active as they “cozy up” and choose to sit by a fire or huddle on the couch in front of the TV more than in the spring, summer, and fall. Exercise has been shown in numerous studies to positively affect the gut microbiome, independent of diet, which is vital to immune function. so strategies like exercise and food choices make all the difference.
Final point:
If you aren’t convinced yet, just look at the (few) hunter-gatherer societies left in the world. They mostly live within the 37th parallels, eat organic (because they are growing their own food and hunting wild animals), and are very active every day. There is no “flu season” for them. They rarely (if ever) get sick. Their teeth are straight, white, and without cavities. There is no diabetes, heart disease, cancer, or the like. There is no sugar, cakes, pastries, couches, thermostats, cars, microwaves, radios, cell towers, or other modern “luxuries.” These things should at least make you go, “Hmmm…”
