People have tried hundreds of ways to cure the common cold, mostly without success. Fortunately, today we have more effective ways to relieve symptoms, remedies that have actually been proven effective by scientists in labs. But why wait until you need the remedies?Here are tried-and-true tips to keep you healthy.

    1 Don't Pick Your Nose.

    Keep your paws out of your nose. Don't rub your eyes, either. Cold virus germs, which can live for several hours on your hands, enter your body through your nose and eyes. "Washing your hands often during cold season and keeping your fingers away from your eyes and nose are the best ways to avoid catching a cold," says Dr.James Hubbard. And when someone sneezes, think of it as a cloud of poisonous smoke. Get away from it and hold your breath so those droplets of clod virus don't get inside you.

    If that doesn't work and you still catch a cold, here are some simple ways to relieve symptoms and get well faster.

    2 Get Enough Sleep.

    "Sleep certainly affects the immune system," says Richard Shane, Ph.D., a sleep specialist. In experiments, scientists have compared blood samples taken from healthy people after a good night's sleep. The tests showed people who didn't sleep at all had lower immunity, says Dr.Shane. When you sleep, your body produces human growth hormone (HgH), which not only builds muscle, but also stimulates your bone marrow, where immune cells are created.

    3 Eat a Big Breakfast.

    A study in the Netherlands found that people who ate a big breakfast had higher antiviral cells by 450 percent compared with people who ate very little or not at all. So eat something that is high in fiber and full of vitamins with 1-percent milk, eat an orange (toss those peels) and grape jelly and maybe a yogurt sommthie if you're still hungry. Wash it all down with one or two cups of green tea. Laboratory studies have identified a compound in green tea that might keep viruses from multiplying.

    4 Drinking Orange Juice at the First Sign of a Cold.

    Research at Arizona State University suggests that getting lots of vitamin C may lessen the time you have a cold by one to two days. You can get vitamin C naturally through these excellent food sources: oranges, berries, green and red peppers, tomatoes, broccoli, spinach and kiwo-fruit, which actually has more vitamin C in it than an orange.

    5 Go for a Bike Ride.

    According to the American College of Sports Medicine, exercising when you have a cold does not make the cold worse. Exercise has been shown to boost the immune system.

    6 Play a Game.

    Playing video games can be healthy. That is, exposing yourself to short periods of video games can stimulate your immune system, says Jos. A. Bosch, Ph.D. Long-term stress, like being bullied at school or worrying about the upcoming exams, can actually lower your immunity, according to Dr.Bosch.liuxuepaper.com