Tonify your immune system in order to stay healthy!
In these days where panic is being generated by the media regarding this so-called pandemic flu, it is particularly important not to .... panic. With an excess of negative emotion, in this case panic or fear, we are assured to unbalance our energetic system (kidneys) and, consequently, our immune system. If this happens, we become more vulnerable to bacterial or viral infections. I am sure you have already experienced times when, in moments of great stress, great anger, great anxiety, great agitation and great discouragement, you have caught a cold, a flu or another kind of infectious disease.
Before going any further, I would like to precise that a cold is not a flu. In Canada, people often say they have the flu when they only have a cold. A flu is of viral origin and causes ache in the joints, the muscles, the head, etc. These symptoms are more serious than those of a cold.
When I lived in India some ten years ago, I caught what you could call a SUPER FLU (even if this disease doesn't fall in the flu category, it is still from viral origin), the dingue fever which is similar to chikungunya. Ten days in bed, not able to move at all, sore everywhere, sinuses so sensitive that I could'nt move my head and that it gave me the feeling my head was going to explode, half an hour to go the toilet (on all fours!! just a few steps away), unable to eat, an aggressive fever that brought me into delirium and made me see things in pink (I had visions of pink clouds around me). I will not go in details on other less interesting aspects!!
I drank lots of water, I slept a lot and I waited for it to pass. Ten days later, I was feeling a bit better, I dragged myself to the doctor and he gave me plant medicines. A few days later, I was myself again and ready to go about my things. I went dancing first thing
This has been a good point for my immune system, who memorized that my body could deal on its own with such a serious infection. And it was the same thing when I caught the whooping caugh some years later in Canada. The erythromcyn (some medicine given to horses!) only helped to prevent me from being contagious, not to heal. Healing took time: 6 months! Whooping cough is desastrous when it comes to adults. For children its effects are minor.
Since I am writing this right now, you can conclude that I am in good shape and good health. During those two illnesses, I trained my immune system to reinforce itself by not giving it any medicine able to do its job at its place. All this being said, what I would like to offer you in this novembre 2009 Newsletter, are some simple tools you could put in your personal first aid kit. What matters, is that your immune system stays strong. And for this, we have an array of low cost tools at our disposal: our mind, herbs and food.
Our mind
Experts in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), for instance martial arts instructors as taï chi, kung fu, judo, karate, chi kung, etc., all say that it is the mind that leads things. As far as I am concerned, I call it INTENTION. When I teach chi kung, I always say to my students that intention gives a direction for the energy to follow. So, what matters, is thought and the direction your give it. For instance, when I do the Inner Smile, I use my intention to direct the light photons of the environment light or of the sun more directly through my third eye toward the Crystal Palace (center of the brain where several endocrin glands are located. I allow the entry of these photons in my system. Through this intention, I make the flow of light information possible to a place I have chosen. The TCM experts say that energy follows intention. And when energy moves, blood moves too. And when blood moves, our body is healthy. So practiciing chi kung in a way or another, really helps to stay healthy.
You can now see the link between intention and health. Chi Kung, and all its TCM principles, is a fantastic tool to stay healthy and maintain a strong immune system. Be it to tonify our five Yin organs (Kidneys, Liver, Heart, Splee and Lungs) with a chi kung exercise (see my new Medical 
and Energizing Chi Kung DVD), to dissipate negative emotions from our organs (Fear, Anger, Agitation, Worry and Discouragement) and transform these emotions in vital energy (See my CD, TAO), or to tonify and support our organs with foods that precisely correspond to their own vibration (see weeds, lemon, chicory, carrot and cabbage) (see my recipes on my blog), Chi Kung offers us simple and low cost tools for us to maintain a high level of energy. And who says high level of energy, also says strong immune system. (I outlines these details in colors so that you can draw parallels between organs, emotions and foods. And I also have added here a table of correspondance for your info.)
According to Taoïsts and Chi Kung masters, we can all learn how to use chi to maintain good health and well-being. But these masters think that the breathing process not only allows the body to get the oxygen it needs and to transform it in chemical energy through the internal combustion process, but also that it is an entry door and a sustain system for varied other types of energies in our being. According to the Taoïst vision, for instance, the discovery by modern science that the Earth atmosphere is full of electric charges called ions is extremely important. Certain Taoïsts went even further saying that negatif ions are chi itself. Ions are atoms or parts of molecules charged either positively or negatively. Negative ions, which are tiny regroupings of almost pure electrical energy, are created naturally through the interactions between solar energy and earth atmosphere, as well as by cosmic particles, lightenings, storms, winds, evaporation, water movements and low levels of radioactivity coming from the earth. Thousands of scientific studies have proved that ions, in particular negative ions, (they have one electron more), are crucial for our health. It is thus important to walk in nature. So when you walk, chi moves. And at the same time, negative ions from nature (trees, water, wind, etc.) make carbon dyoxide elimination easier. So our first tool, is our mind and our attitude.
First of all, St. John's Wort. Besides being the queen of anti-depressants and to stabilize mood level, this plant has anti-viral properties and is used to treat herpes and STD. In 2008, WHO experts noticed that its use with H5N1 virus infected birds dramatically curbed the infection. 
Then, we have olive leaf extract. Some spanish researchers have discovered in their studies that oleuropein slowed down HIV propagation by 30 % and that it was a strong factor of prevention against cold and flu for humans. Next, we have turmeric. This root gives its yellow color to curry and has been used for a long time for its digestive properties. In TCM, this root belongs to the Earth (Spleen) element, i.e. the digestive system. Time willing, people realized that this root had strong antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties. It is thus recommended for cramps, infected wounds, bursitis, bronchitis, head aches, chronic cough, flatulence and any viral infection. This is why people in India have been using it for hundreds of years: they realized long ago that this root slows down flu propagation. Then, we also have the well-known echinacea, which is the queen of plants to sustain and boost the immune system. But it is recommended to use it punctually, otherwise it looses its potency. And finally, there is lavander oil. I have a big bottle of it I bought in Provence. I use a few drops of it in my bath. Besides having anti-infectious properties, it is also an antiseptic and a tranquillizer.
Foods that heal
Everybody knows that oranges are full of vitamin C. This vitamin helps us to boost our immune system and to prevent colds. So, in the morning, why not prepare yourself a fresh orange juice to which you will add carrot juice freshly made. Carrots are in fact a real coktail of vitamins: A, B, C, D, E, G (Riboflavin) and K. Let me just note by the way that these two foods are orange in color and that they belong to the Earth element and the Spleen. They are available in autumn, a season when they are ready for consumption, just when we need them. Even if a lot of people hesitate to eat it because of the bad breath it gives, garlic has been know for thousands of years for its anti-bacterial action, its anti-cold and anti-flu properties, as well as its positive effect on the respiratory system. In TCM, it belongs to the Lungs as weel as to the Spleen. It is the same for cabbage and broccoli because they are pungent and tonify the Lungs and the Spleen). Cabbage improves difestive functions, slows down Alzheimer disease (particularly red cabbage) and prevents flu (particularly kimchi). As far as broccoli is concerned, it is a poweful antioxydant that lowers free radical damages.
Finally, but the list doesn't end here (I have to stop somewhere!), there are berries: blueberries, 
huckleberries, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, cranberries, etc. Berries are fruits that contain the greatest anthocyanin concentration. This is a chemical element that not only gives their colors to the berries, but also help control cholesterol, cancer and of course increase the immune system response.
I would like to finish this article by saying that, to fight viral or bacterial infections, nature fully provides us with what we need, on a personal level and in the outside world. I encourage you to practice chi kung, eat well (see my articles in my blog) and develop a clear intention.