What should I do to keep from getting sick?

The first line of defense is to limit/prevent exposure. That basically means avoiding contact with people who are sick. Or, at the very least, not getting close to them. It means practicing strict hygiene. Don't touch your face. Don't use anything (cups, silverware etc.) that they used unless it is washed THOROUGHLY first. Wash your hands often, throughout the day. Definitely, don't let them cough, sneeze, kiss, hug, touch etc. on you. Don't spend time with them in an enclosed area. Try to keep 5 feet distant from them etc.

This will prevent most viruses from getting in you. Viruses aren't alive and they have poor ability to stay viable outside of a living host. Bacteria, are another matter. They stay alive outside the body and can be quite aggressive (especially strep) in forcing their way into your body and making you sick.

It helps to know which they are sick with. Sniffles that develop over several days time. The common cold. Flu, with its body aches and pains. These are all viruses. The person getting sick rapidly, then being sick as a dog. High fever. Alot of phlegm. Sore throat. Earache. Headache. Highly contagious. These are signs of bacterial infections. Antibiotics kill bacteria but do nothing for viruses. Tell your brother to stay the hell home, and make an appointment to see his doctor if he has this.

For colds and other virus infections, the issue is mostly one of host resistance. It isn't normal for most people to get most viral infections. They get them because their immune system is compromised. Smoking is the most common/serious cause. But, many people are like this because of poor nutrition. Ironically, vitamin C is mostly worthless for this in human beings (different in other animals). The big thing for us is zinc.

Several years ago, the New England Journal of Medicine published research that proved that taking zinc, cuts the duration of the common cold in half. That is a powerful treatment effect similar to what antibiotics do for bacterial infections. What's going on here is that zinc plays a key role in our immune system. Most people don't have enough and a good chunk of their immune system is turned off. They take zinc and it turns back on. You don't have to wait until you get sick to do this. As, in fact, supplementing with zinc is very helpful in preventing colds (unlike vitamin C, which has been proven over and over again to do nothing).

The best way to get zinc is as a throat lozenge. The correct lozenges are dirty, grey and rather gritty. They taste alright though, usually lemon. The texture leaves alot to be desired though. But, for what they do, it is worth it. You have to be careful though because most zinc lozenges are phony homeopathic remedies with no actual zinc in them. If they aren't dirty, gray and gritty looking, they are fake and worthless. Homeopathic remedies across the board have no ingredients in them. They have the "energy" of ingredients in them. This is accomplished by putting the ingredient in a sealed bottle and then putting the bottle in a metal pan filled with water, then beating on the side of pan for awhile. No ingredient is actually put in the water. Needless to say, homeopathic meds do nothing. They are a form of waving a crystal over yourself. So, look for the lozenges without the little "homeopathic" in small lettering on the package. Get the real stuff.

Everyone that tagged your immune system as weakened Is Right on the Money. Plenty of rest, LOTS of h2o, a healthy diet and one of the Biggest favors you can do for your health are Pro-Biotics from a Natural Health Food Store, buy yourself a juicer and have 1 or 2 glasses of freshly juiced juice a day! You'll feel completely healthy within a month! But before you do any of this see your Doctor and have a Full Physical with a full blood work up to Rule Out Disease.

Eat apples, drink lots of water, wash your hands OFTEN, avoid close contact with others, wash your hands again, don't touch your face unless you have just washed your hands. Most colds are transmitted by the ill person depositing germs on a hard surface. The well person then touches the hard surface and transports the germ to their own mucus membrane. So wash often and try to disinfect hard surfaces often.

I have taken Airborne before when I knew people around me have been sick. Check out the cold and flu isle of your drugstore, it should be there. It is an effervescent tablet that you drop in water and contains several vitamins.

It has worked for me

well, first ask if the sickness they have is contagious, though I'm assuming it's the cold. You should still try to hang around them, try helping them feel better, find good medicine for them. GOOD LUCK!

drink orange juice and wash yur hand frequently

drink alot of O.J., and take your vitimans.