Todays world gives us ample reason for concern over the health of our immune system. Consider:

· Multi-drug resistant strains of TB abound. TB was a world wide killer until the drug streptomycin was developed, at which time it was virtually wiped out in Western nations. Now, new strains are surfacing. These appear to be imported, coming into the US, Canada and Europe from Asia, Africa, and even South America. According to one article, the onset of TB occurs in those who have weak immune systems, i.e., elderly, very young, and ill.

· The current flu epidemic is an indication of the potential for strong viruses to ravage large parts of the population. Every year we are exposed to flu. Flu vaccines have been developed, but these appear to do little in the face of attacks from the Type A virus such as the current flu.

· Ken Albrick (sp?), a defector from the Soviet bio-warfare effort has criticized western approaches to develop biological defenses. This approach consists (naturally) of developing vaccines that will prevent biological agents from incapacitating those exposed. Albrick maintains that -- since modest changes in the agents can negate vaccines -- the only reasonable defense is to enhance human immune systems so that they are capable of overcoming the biological attacks on their own.

· Biologists warn that we may well be attacked by other diseases that have no medical treatment -- viruses that have developed total immunity to our modern locker full of antibiotics and drugs.

All of this means that we are dependent on our own healthy -- or unhealthy -- immune system.

Unfortunately, the last few decades have been hard on the immune systems of those who live in the western world. The immune system can be battered by stress, by poor diet, by consumption of alcohol, by smoking, by pollution, and by lack of exercise, all prevalent in todays society. Its no wonder that each winter we are hit with virulent attacks that lay us up and make us miserable.

We can always point to the year 1918 -- when a great flu epidemic took hundreds of thousands of lives -- and remind ourselves that we never have been free of such attacks. True, and as we look at the steps we can take to enhance our immune system activity we can see where past populations were at risk. We can see the steps we must take to avoid past tragic errors.

If we are to continue to develop self sufficiency, it is almost mandatory that we take responsibility to stay healthy -- in an unhealthy environment.

For those of us who are struggling to make sense of all of this, I would recommend learning all we can concerning the human immune system, what degrades it, and what enhances it. A highly recommended starter book is:
Herbal Defense, by Robyn Landis, with Karta Purkh Singh Khalsa. The book is available at:

http://www.amazon.com/
http://shop.barnesandnoble.com/

among other outlets. (Search on Herbal Defense)

I am not affiliated with either of the authors or with any book seller. I simply recommend the book because I -- and many in my family -- have gotten a good first start from it.

Ms. Landis touches the bases of factors that lead to weakened immune systems:

· Improper Diet
· Lack of Rest
· Stress

She concludes a section on combating a cold or flu with these words:

Whether you use K.P.'s (Karta Purkhs) routine or my "raid," please  remember too that it helps immensely to do other common-sense things like rest and lay off immune-suppressive habits. These tactics are not designed to sustain you despite a sixteen-hour workday, four-hour commute, a pack of cigarettes, an evening on the Stairmaster, dinner at Burger Bob's and a fight with your roommate. The results will be much better in a total healing environment.

Landis does provide great material on both the day-to-day enhancement of our immune systems and the use of herbal remedies to rapidly counteract cold-flu attacks. I used the book to great effect when I was hit with the virus in December, 1999.  Although the book was in my library and I had some basic herbs on hand, I had gotten away from actively pursuing an enhanced immune system. As soon as I recognized symptoms I began to re-read and to use some of the techniques discussed by Landis. As the flu developed into a respiratory ailment, (just about Christmas time) I consulted the sections dealing with pulmonary and bronchial infections.

I quickly found that my herbal medicine cabinet was rather bare........that I had only the most rudimentary of herbs on hand. Some of those I needed were quickly found in a local shop, others came from Walmart -- and some were ordered over the internet. My technique for finding herbs on the internet simplified to the following:

· Select the herb of interest and search on it.
· The results were of two types:

 Herb specific information
 Sources, e.g., herbal pharmacies, vitamin shops, etc.

· Download, read, understand, and file the written information
· Order the herb desired after I became convinced that I wanted it in my medicine cabinet.

I have now recovered from my bronchial virus -- and yes, it was a virus (causing clear phlegm) as opposed to a bacteria (yellow-brown phlegm). I learned of anti-viral herbs and I learned of good information sources on the internet. I am now able to select several herbs for potential problems, to develop sources for these, and to keep on hand those that may be required on short order.

    Most importantly, I have learned to begin to take responsibility for my own immune system, to prevent future onsets. This is a vital step in any drive toward self sufficiency. It is a step I urge all to consider.

I notice on internet forums a tendency to simply post "well, this worked for me," information. "I used this." "Well, I didn't.....I used that." Sometimes I chuckle -- it may well be that both approaches are equally valid. But, this is something a reader doesn't know unless they understand the basics of what they're doing. Learn the basics.

-- de (delewis@XOUTinetone.net), January 11, 2000