How can exercise prevent colds?

Adding a little sweat to your day may help keep colds away. A new study shows that a 45-minute workout each day, five days a week, lowers the risk of catching a cold. And the longer you stick with a regular exercise program, the better the benefits. So dust off your walking shoes and start building up your immunity.

Past research has hinted that moderately intense activity is an immunity booster, but those studies were too short to be convincing. More recently, and for the first time, researchers took the long view and studied two groups of women, one basically sedentary and one not, for a year. And the results are truly motivating: Overweight couch potatoes who started exercising and stuck fairly close to their five-times-a-week workout program had a definite cold-fighting edge over a similar group of women whose regular exercise consisted of just a weekly stretching routine.

You may already be enjoying the benefits of a revved-up immune system if you are a regular exerciser. If not, get crackin'. You'll enjoy knowing that your sweat is helping ensure that you won't be sidelined by sniffles and sneezes during next year's holiday fun.

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Scientific evidence exists and shows that those who exercise have a higher immune function and are less likely to contract chronic diseases and common colds or flu symptoms. When we exercise the immune system’s ability to find and destroy foreign invaders improves. The white blood cells responsible for fighting disease are more active and quicker to respond. In addition exercise keeps cells younger and more efficient. This is why older adults who participate in regular exercise are at a decreased risk to acquiring a chronic disease.

 

Exercise does a couple of things. First, exercising increases the circulation in your nasal passages and sinuses. This allows entrapped viruses to be removed. Also, exercising daily stimulates your immune system, so it is more vigilant in getting rid of the infecting agent. In addition, the more you stick with exercise, the healthier you are and more in shape to guard against illnesses.