Hello everyone. It is my opinion that there is lots of things we can all do to prevent colds and flu from spreading, such as washing our hands after visiting the toilet. Covering our mouths, when sneezing, and keeping kitchen work places clean.
Dont get me wrong, i am to blame as much as anyone else, i am not perfect, i have sneezed without covering my mouth, not washed my hands when i should have. However if we all,( me as well), gave a little more time to these basic things, perhaps it would stop the spread of colds and flu.

Vitamin c is also quite effective to boost the immune system, take 1000mg three times a day, for three days only.

You are actually correct that hand washing is the most effective way to prevent the spread of germs. It doesn't even have to be antibacterial soap, either.

Human beings have survived for the 20,000 + years that we have existed WITHOUT the antibacterial soap.

In fact, we NEED that bacteria to build our immune systems.. AND killing these bacteria usually allows one or two to survive causing that bacteria to pass on those resistive qualities making it harder to kill the next time when it REALLY NEEDS to be killed (i.e. in surgical arenas).

Vitamins and minerals are medications at the very least they should be treated as medicine and one should consult there doctor or pharmacist if they are taking other medications, OTC and prescription medications.

To prevent the spread of the cold and flu you call in sick and STAY AT HOME. However most people take OTC medications treating the symptoms and go about their lives blithely spreading disease along their way.

For those of us who have yet to catch a cold, washing your hands frequently during the cold/flu season with regular soap and water will suffice to greatly reduce your chances of catching those ills.

But lest we forget the cold and flu do serve a greater purpose and do strengthen our immune systems each time we do contract those ills. A person who never had the cold will, in later years, suffer greatly when they do contract the cold compared to the person who gets it like clockwork every year. The flu is even worse, those who are blessed to never caught the flu will find that when do catch the common variety will either suffer more from the flu or develop other issues like pneumonia.

Kitchens today are far, far cleaner than they were 100 years ago. The Victorians lived with hanging meats in kitchen, semi-rotted foods and a plethora of food preparation habits that would sicken the majority of us. They survived, not through cleaning and through prevention but because the human immune system is stronger for contact with viruses and bacterias.

The reason why we are suffering from "major" breakouts of food borne ills is not because we are dirtier than our forefathers, but simply because we are actually too clean and have lived in fear of food borne ills until we have no resistance to those ills. In fact we will most likely discover that the super-clean kitchen is the worst thing that we could do to our selfs. A few viruses and germs inoculate us against most of the common household bugs laying about- removing those from our homes will ultimately lead to a generation growing up with no natural protections against these bugs.

Yes I take your point, however there are a number of people who get complications from the flu, such as people with asthma, like myself, and catching flu can course breathing problems, ect.