Most of us have grown up with the idea of the germ theory dominating our thoughts about health – from colds, viruses, infections, and many other maladies, we’ve been trained to think that germs cause disease.

But if this were true, then anyone who was exposed to those germs would get sick, cause and effect. This is not the case, as some people are more susceptible to “whatever is going around” and others rarely if ever get sick.

Is this just the luck of the draw, or are there some observations we can make about those who seem to be stronger, hardier and less likely to succumb to illness?

DD Palmer, the founder of the profession of chiropractic, said that there were three contributing factors to people’s health issues – physical stress, chemical stress, and psychological stress.

Even back in 1895, Dr. Palmer was aware of basic principles that are just as true today – that to facilitate health and prevent disease, we must:

• Make better lifestyle choices about eating and toxicity
• Avoid injuries and repetitive micro-trauma that can wear and tear the body
• Handle significant emotional events to reduce stress and develop an optimistic worldview.

In this way, we can begin to see that health is actually an “inside-out” game, where the condition of the person counts more than the presence of outside invaders like germs.

Take better care of yourself, and you improve your chances of having the “flu bug” skip you next time. If you understand that health really works inside-out, then you’ll take good care of yourself on the inside so you can express your health better on the outside!