How to Stay Healthy During Chicago’s Cold and Flu Season

If there’s one thing that you can count on in Chicago, it’s cold temps that send many of us indoors over the winter. When this happens, we end up sharing the same breathing space as others, which leads to the easy spread of respiratory viruses, including the flu, colds, COVID-19, and RSV (respiratory syncytial virus).

And these viruses are constantly making their rounds, year after year, leading to the hospitalization of hundreds of thousands of Americans each year.

Short of isolating yourself, there are many steps that you can take to stay healthy during flu and cold season, which the team of healthcare providers here at Michigan Avenue Primary Care wants to share with you here.

Protect yourself against infection through vaccination

A great step to take in protecting yourself against respiratory viruses is to avail yourself of the many vaccines we offer. The FDA has made its recommendations for the flu vaccine for 2025/26, and we have those available to you. These vaccines can not only protect against getting the flu, but they can also greatly minimize your risks for serious illness if you are infected.

We also have vaccines for COVID-19 and RSV, which are updated regularly. Please note that there are no vaccines for the common cold. 

Most of these vaccines are safe for people of all ages 6 months and up, and we recommend them for everyone, but especially for those people who are at risk — people who fall into younger or older age groups or who are immunocompromised.

Prevent the spread

During the global pandemic, we all got a crash course in protecting ourselves against infection, and these practices are still worth following. To remind you, during cold and flu season, it’s a good idea to:

• Wash your hands regularly
• Avoid touching your face with your hands
• Cover your mouth and sneeze into your elbow
• Maintain your distance, especially if you notice someone who might be sick
• Wear a mask to protect others 
• Stay home if you’re sick

As you can see, we’re covering best practices to help you avoid getting a respiratory virus and to protect against spreading a virus to others.

Boost your immune health

Another great preventive step is to boost your immune health, which will not only protect against infection in the first place, but a strong immune system can also protect against serious illness if you are infected.

The key steps to take to boost your immune health include:

• Eating a healthy diet that includes fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and whole grains
• Getting some exercise
• Shedding excess pounds
• Getting plenty of good sleep — about 7-9 hours per night
• Ditching the bad habits, such as smoking, vaping, and excessive alcohol consumption

These great strategies not only boost your immune health, but also your overall wellness.

If you have more questions about staying healthy during cold and flu season here in Chicago, or you’d like to schedule your vaccinations, please contact us at our clinic, which is located in The Loop. You can also visit our urgent care center during operating hours, Monday through Friday, 8 am to 4 pm.