As the season begins to turn, I’ve already noticed many students and professors begin to feel ‘under the weather’. Although I’m no expert on health, in the past eight years I’ve remained consistently healthy and have avoided the seasonal colds and other common health issues. In those eight years, I’ve also never missed school for a health related reason. Here is what I do, which may not be a guarantee to work for you, but will surely stack the deck in your favor…

1) I wash my hands ridiculously often. Some people will argue that having some germs is good, but this is what has personally worked for me.

2) I never touch my face or allow any one to touch my face (including my girlfriend). Most germs get in through the eyes, nose, and mouth. Accordingly, I keep my pillows very clean (that is where your face spends 1/3 of it’s time!).

3) I drink copious amounts of water. From my observations, very few people actually drink the recommended 8 cups daily. And not surprisingly, very few people are always healthy Coincidence? At home, I keep a gallon of water in my room at all times. One gallon per 2 days is 8 cups a day.

4) I never, ever say the word “s-i-c-k”. I believe our thoughts have a huge impact on our body’s response. Therefore, I never use this word or similar words. Instead, I refer to people who are coughing and sneezing as “less-than-healthy”. That way, my thoughts are focused on ‘healthy’ and not the s-word.

5) I stay optimistic! This advice should breach all aspects of our lives (in my opinion), but it should certainly apply to health as well. So many people rush to say “I think I’m getting s-i-c-k”. Don’t say this! Once you do, you are conceding the option of remaining healthy. If you expect to fall ill, your brain will do what it can to achieve the result you expect! This is called an expectancy effect. Expectancy effects are the same reason why people can get ‘high’ off placebos and ‘drunk’ off non-alcoholic beer. If you expect an effect, your brain will do everything it can to comply!