Picture this: you’re sitting in your regular seat during lecture, and the student next to you begins coughing forcefully. As if by a chain reaction, the student two rows in front of you to the left starts to cough too, and soon after he is followed by the girl three rows in front of him to the right.

Eventually, all you can hear is a chorus of coughs, and your professor’s lecture is soon drowned out. You hope that you’re not the next person to catch whatever cold is going around campus this time.

Lucky for you, reading this right now, this scenario won’t happen to you, because you’re about to find out how to stay illness-free this semester.

1. Eat smart

You walk into the dining hall, starving after a day of classes. Your eyes immediately focus on the comfort food you spot lined up on one side of the room.

Even though that pizza you’re craving looks and tastes so good, it won’t help keep you from getting sick, and once you acquire an illness because of the effects of your poor diet it won’t help you get any better. Instead, opt for healthier options, or at the very least include fruits and vegetables in your diet even if you don’t stop eating comfort food.

Many people know about the immune-boosting power of Vitamin C in fruit, but the importance of other vitamins and minerals found in vegetables and even sunflower seeds and shellfish is underappreciated.

2. Sleep

College students will be the first to tell you how much sleep they’re deprived of, but the last to actually attempt to fall asleep before 2 a.m.

For some students, coursework is the reason they’re keeping themselves up, desperately trying to finish assignments due tomorrow or cram for an exam at 8 a.m. that they haven’t begun studying for until just now.

Not procrastinating is easier said than done, but efforts such as attending office hours and going to the library right after class can help decrease procrastination and increase time allotted for sleep. Other students are up socializing with friends late at night or are distracted by memes on their phones for hours.

Close the social media apps and invite your friends to the library with you, because sleep is necessary for the production of flu-fighting antibodies, and you’re trying to stay healthy now.

3. Exercise

Sometimes it feels like there are two types of people in college. There’s the “gym is life” crowd, and then there’s the “if it’s more than a five minute walk I’m not coming” crowd. If you identify as the latter, then it’s time to make a change.

Exercise is critical for your immune health. Experts say that it takes an average of 30 minutes of aerobic exercise to increase the circulation of white blood cells in the bloodstream, improving immunity.

You don’t have to become an Olympic athlete overnight to make a difference in your health. A 30 minute walk each day is enough to help you lead a healthier lifestyle.

4. Destress

You stress, so you get sick. You’re sick but life keeps rolling on, so now you’re even more stressed trying to keep up with all the work you’re missing. It’s a vicious cycle!

Don’t feed into this cycle by continuing with the behaviors that lead to stress. Cut out toxic people, get help with schoolwork, resolve issues that are bothering you, and find ways to relax such as playing with animals or finding a fun hobby.

De-stressing is necessary in order to promote immune health, because periods of high stress lead to lower natural killer cell count, inhibited killer T cells, and lowered macrophage activity, all of which increase risk of illness.

5. Clean

Germs are sneaky. Nowhere is safe, including your dorm room. That night you had all your friends over to watch a movie? Someone had touched a public doorknob, then touched your microwave to make popcorn, and now you and your roommate are sick.

Your one defense is to clean, clean, clean your dorm room daily. Lysol wipes are your new best friend. Clean off all surfaces with disinfectant. Make sure your room is clutter and dust free, and that you clean underneath furniture and in hard to reach places.