Always struck down with a cold, cough or sore throat? There’s probably a simple fix, says DR ELLIE, and it can be found in your local pharmacy

It’s one of the most common questions I get asked: ‘Why am I always sick?’

And it’s always the same complaint – one cold rolls into another, a sore throat lingers, then a cough sets in just as the last one clears.

We all know someone like this. For some, the answer is simple: they just come into contact with viruses more often. This is typically the case for teachers, parents of young children and healthcare workers (call a meeting of doctors, and the odds are one of them will have a cold).

In rare cases, patients may have a serious condition that affects their health, such as diabetes or cancer. There are also medicines that weaken the body’s defences – for example, those that treat immune conditions such as arthritis and psoriasis.

But for the vast majority of my patients who feel they are permanently fighting off something, I find the explanation isn’t a faulty immune system at all, it is one of three very common – and fixable – problems.

The first is vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D does far more than build strong bones – it plays a crucial role in how our immune system defends against viruses and bacteria. The trouble is, many of us in the UK simply don’t get enough. Most vitamin D is gained through direct sunlight, but between October and April there is not enough sun in the UK for us to get the required amount.

As a result, a sixth of Britons are vitamin D deficient, putting them at a greater risk of catching unpleasant colds. If you suspect this might be you, your GP can check with a simple blood test.

The fix, fortunately, is straightforward: a daily vitamin D supplement. In fact, you do not need to get a diagnosis of low vitamin D to take a supplement. The vitamin is offered over the counter in high street pharmacies and the NHS recommends that all adults consider taking one during the winter months.

The second issue is poor sleep. Fewer than a third of British adults get the seven hours a night we need, with the average adult now managing closer to six and a half. This matters enormously for immunity levels.

In one famous study, healthy volunteers who slept less than seven hours a night were nearly three times more likely to catch a cold after being exposed to a virus than those who slept longer.

Simply put, sleep deprivation weakens the immune system.

Britain’s poor sleep record comes down to a mix of things: late working hours, screens in the bedroom, money worries keeping people awake, and simply not prioritising it. The fix is what’s known as sleep hygiene.

This involves sticking to a consistent bedtime and wake time, sleeping in a dark, cool and quiet room, cutting back on caffeine and alcohol in the evening, avoiding heavy meals late at night and putting the phone away before lights out. It sounds like basic common sense, but I have seen it transform patients’ health.

The third issue, and admittedly the hardest to treat, is stress.

When we are under chronic stress, our body produces more a hormone called cortisol, which suppresses immune function. I see this constantly in students and young people during exam season. Once the pressure lifts, their health usually bounces back with it.

However, for others, the cause of stress isn’t so easily removed – a demanding job, caring responsibilities, financial pressure – and it can be much harder to fix.

Options include talking therapy, regular exercise and, in some cases, antidepressants.

Walk into any pharmacy and you will find shelves groaning with supplements promising to ‘boost’ your immune system. Very few of them have decent evidence behind them.

But get your vitamin D right, sleep properly and get a handle on stress, and in my experience, that is what will actually keep you well through the winter.

Your questions answered

I was diagnosed with breast cancer at 70. I have no family history of the disease and I’ve always been healthy. Could the contraceptive pill I took for 30 years be to blame?

It’s impossible to say what caused someone’s cancer.

Breast cancer is the most common form of the disease in women, and there is evidence the contraceptive pill can increase the risk – but only slightly.

However, we do know there are lifestyle habits that undoubtedly increase the chances of breast cancer occurring, including smoking, drinking alcohol and obesity. And these are escalating risks – meaning the more you smoke or drink, or the more overweight you are, the greater your chances of developing cancer.

The disease also becomes increasingly more likely in later life.

Then there are other, less clear, risk factors – and the pill is one of them.

The daily contraceptive contains female sex hormones that have been shown to increase the chances of breast cancer – and it’s the same reason why hormone replacement therapy, or HRT, also slightly raises the risk of the disease.

However, the level of risk we are talking about here is minute. After all, if they consistently triggered breast cancer, these drugs would not be safe to prescribe.

In my two decades as a GP, I’ve met countless breast cancer patients. Many of them have been young, healthy, active women who do not smoke, drink, take the contraceptive pill or HRT.

While doctors spend a lot of time talking about risk factors and lifestyle habits, the fact is this is a cruel disease that strikes seemingly at random.

So my advice to anyone who has been diagnosed would be this: don’t waste your time obsessing over the cause because you will never know.

Why an antidepressant tablet is so much better than silence

Last week I appeared on the BBC Radio 4 debate show Moral Maze to make a particularly unpopular argument.

I was asked to go on to speak about figures that had revealed the steep rise in Britons taking antidepressant tablets.

Over the past two decades the number has more than tripled, with the NHS now handing out more than 70million prescriptions for the drugs every year.

Many people are, understandably, concerned.

I agree that the number sounds alarming. However, I would argue that, primarily, it reflects the fact that more people are seeking treatment for mental health issues than in the past.

Moreover, while patients are encouraged to also try talking therapy, the current NHS waiting list for this treatment is more than six months, whereas it takes seconds for a GP to write an antidepressant prescription.

So do I think it’s an ideal situation? No. But I certainly don’t think the answer is to reject people’s requests for help.

What do you think? Please write in using the email address on the right and let me know.