Dr. Dan's Plan On How To Not Get Ebola

I’m not worried about some exotic disease striking death in my family. I’m worried about the number 13,144.

Sure, Ebola is no joke and it’s obviously a sexy topic to talk about these days with both local and national news striking fear in the heart of America. Why? Well… there is no known cure and it apparently is not being contained.

While the Chuck Norris of viruses has the potential to become a threat for you and your family – it’s important to get some perspective on this topic.

I am certainly frustrated with the blame game everywhere between the doctors helping out in Africa to the CDC and even our own President over Ebola; but why are we not upset as a nation over the number 13,144?

This number is the estimated number of deaths, according to the CDC, from heart disease in the US in an average week!  The number of deaths (statewide) from ebola is 1.

13,144 vs 1!!!!

Ebola is an exotic virus spread through contact with an infected person’s bodily fluids (mainly feces, blood and vomit).  The former is the number 1 killer in the United States and soon to be the world.  It’s exacerbated by smoking, diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol.  Everyone alive knows someone affected by heart disease who continues to eat processed, refined foods and yet they’re horrified by Ebola.

As a matter of fact, a recent study out of Northwestern University by Cardiologist John Wilkins published in JAMA looked at 5 long term studies of heart health and calculated all heart-related disease risk factors at different ages.

They found that if you are 45 years of age with any of these 2 risk factors: smoking, diabetes, high blood pressure or overweight, the odds of succumbing to the #1 cause of death in the US is 60.3%. Compare that to the current .000000000317% rate of dying from the Ebola virus.

That means you have a higher chance of winning the Powerball lottery than getting Ebola. Still…here’s what you have to do to protect yourself.

#1 Avoid Bad News. Especially if they don’t have anything good to say. All they are doing is striking fear in your mind, planting a seed of anxiety that will only further suppress your immune system.

Emotional trauma’s and toxic thoughts are well known for causing spikes in stress hormones that can suppress your immune system and lower your defenses. Instead of the news, take a walk around the block, or do some deep breathing exercises. Call your mother – find someone to love ;)

#2 Get Your Chiropractic Adjustments. During the Spanish Flu outbreak in 1917 and 1918 approximately 500,000 Americans died. Something practically no one knows is that flu patients treated with chiropractic had a substantially higher rate of survival than those treated with medical care.

Statistics from New York in 1918:

Influenza Cases Deaths
Under Medical Care 10,000 people 950
Under Chiropractic care 10,000 people 25

Chiropractic boosts immunity and allows your body to heal itself better and faster. Very important for day to day health, even more important when fighting super bugs.

Want a stronger, healthier immune system? Get Adjusted.

#3 Avoid contact with sick people (especially if they just got off a plane from Africa)

Blood, feces and vomit carry the highest concentrations of the virus, so don’t touch anyone’s blood, feces or vomit. LOL… Do I seriously have to tell you that? But saliva, semen and even breast milk can carry it.  Here’s what’s important to know: Even if you DO come into contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person, it doesn’t mean you’re automatically infected.  The ONLY way you can become infected is if those body fluids enter your body through an open wound on your skin, or through your mucus membranes (your eyes, nose, mouth or genitalia).

A few things about contact….

Can I get it from sweat? Don’t sweat it. Until a person is symptomatic, they are not infectious. The World Health Organization (WHO) says whole live virus has never been isolated from sweat.

Can I get it from saliva? Again, WHO says saliva at the most severe stage of the disease, and also tears, may carry some risk, but the studies are inconclusive. The virus has been detected in breast milk and semen. So it’s probably a good idea to not drink milk or have sex with someone who has ebola!

What if someone sneezes in my face? Punch them as no one should sneeze in your face, ever. Theoretically, a person heavily infected with Ebola could cough violently and send wet, heavy droplets into the face of somebody nearby. The person most at risk of catching Ebola this way would be whoever is nursing the patient, and they would hopefully be wearing protective clothing including a mask.

Can Ebola become airborne? Theoretically yes, but we can also theoretically get smacked by a large killer asteroid today. Chances are, ebola will not become airborne and we will not get Arnold Schwarzeneggered by an asteroid.

#4 Wash your hands. I know, this goes without saying, but really… wash your hands peeps! The most likely way you’ll come into contact with the ebola virus (or any virus for that matter) is by touching something that is wet or bloody, and then transferring it to your eyes, mouth or an area of broken skin on your body.  Soap and water come a long way for public sanitation.

So lather up some soap and rub your hands vigorously for at least 20 seconds. Remember to scrub all surfaces, including the backs of your hands, wrists, between your fingers and under your fingernails.

#5 Load up on Immune Boosting Supplements. Vitamin D3, Probiotics and Omega 3 Fatty acids have all been shown to enhance immune function. You should be taking these anyway, but if you’re not – then get them before Ebola gets you! (Just kidding).

#6 UV Light kills Ebola. When UV-C light meets viruses or bacteria, it destroys their DNA, thus robbing it of its ability to reproduce. The virus is quite fragile and is easily destroyed by UV light. Pretty cool huh?

My point – is that if you are doing your job to stay healthy and putting in the effort of building a strong immune system by eating healthy, moving properly (getting your spine adjusted) and not succumbing to stress – then don’t worry ‘bout it.

The current Ebola panic is very reminiscent of the 2005 bird flu hoax, and the 2009 H1N1 (swine flu) scare—another Level 1 “emergency” that turned out to be grossly hyped to promote the sales of unnecessary vaccines that turned out to be riddled with horrible side effects, including the devastating sleeping disorder, narcolepsy.

In 2005, President Bush made the public prediction that two million Americans might die from the bird flu. Similar predictions were issued in 2006, 2007, and again in 2008.

Then, in 2009, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned its 194 member nations to expect up to 1/3 of the world's population to be infected with the swine flu (H1N1). Massive amounts of casualties were again predicted; dangerous vaccines were fast-tracked, and antiviral drugs later shown to be useless were stockpiled. The antiviral flu drugs Tamiflu and Relenza were found to shorten duration of symptoms by less than a day, and had no effect on the number of hospitalizations. One British study concluded that Tamiflu drugs given for the swine flu was “a waste of 500 million” as it did nothing to halt the spread of influenza.

So… worry more about 13,000 people dying each and every week to heart disease versus the 1 person that’s died from Ebola.