Is That Right? Onions and garlic fight swine flu?

Soldiers serving the small former Soviet country Moldova are being fed extra garlic and onions in hopes that those foods will help fend off swine flu. Is that really likely to help keep them healthy? The Associated Press reports that 24 out of 6,500 Moldovan soldiers have come down with H1N1 influenza in the past two weeks. To stem the tide of sickness, the army is adding the equivalent of a small onion and a few cloves of garlic to their daily diets. The country apparently received a supply of H1N1 influenza vaccine earlier this month. It's not clear whether any of that was allocated to the armed forces. As I wrote a few months ago, vaccination is the best defense against influenza. Experts I interviewed noted that, while maintaining a healthful diet, level of physical activity and sleep schedule can help keep your immune system in shape so it's