Stress and illness create havoc at home and work.

And those days can become weeks if a cold morphs into something more serious, like a sinus infection or bronchitis; the flu can lead to pneumonia. And while antibiotics fight many of these secondary infections, there’s no cure for the viruses that make you sick in the first place. That’s why you need good immune boosters like these that really work.

Take up tai chi and qigong. These Eastern systems of meditative movement could boost your body’s response to a flu shot. Older adults who got the vaccine and then practiced tai chi and qigong an hour a day, three times a week, for three weeks and significantly higher flu antibodies than seniors who just got the shot.

Stay rested. When volunteers in a study were exposed to a cold bug,

those who regularly slept seven or fewer hours a night were three times more likely to come down with stress and illness than those who got eight-plus hours of rest.

Music seems to raise levels of immunoglobilin A (IgA), one of the body’s primary defenses against germs. When researches subjected students to the tension-filled task of preparing an oral presentation, participants who worked to the soothing strains of music not only enjoyed a drop in stress symptoms, but also had a surge in IgA.

Singing in a choir has a similar immune-boosting effect, all of which just might translate to fewer stress and illness.

It may seem counter-intuitive, but an active social life can help you stay away from stress and illness. Researchers exposed a group of 276 people to cold viruses, then waited to see who succumbed. The least likely to get sick: those who were connected to six or more social networks – book or bridge clubs, faith communities, even a work life including socializing. Participants with three or fewer such relationships were four times more likely to catch stress and illness.

Have a laugh. Those friends reruns could rev up your immune response. In a study, healthy women who laughed vigorously at funny clips showed significantly greater activity of their body’s natural killer cells than women who didn’t laugh or had to sit through a tourism video. If your natural killer cells are working well, they can help fight off stress and illness, including strains you’ve never been exposed to before.