We present you with 9 simple ways to activate and enhance your Immune System.
Eat More Fruits and Veggies
Pumping up your intake of fruits and vegetables is an important and relatively easy step. Vitamin C obviously comes to mind as ascorbic acid in the vitamin enhances natural killer cells. Zinc also plays a big role, and you can and should maintain a healthy amount of Zinc in a balanced diet, but then if you happen to start feeling symptoms of a cold or flu-like illness, you can provide an extra immune boost with some Zinc supplements as they are known to shorten the duration of symptoms and therefore the duration of cold and flu illnesses.
Also seek out the 3 G’s: Ginger, Ginseng, and Garlic, as they all hold anti-viral properties. Garlic especially helps white blood cells battle viruses and probiotics can reduce bad gut bacteria that can cause illness and may lessen the severity of respiratory infections.
Frequent Physical Activity in Your Lifestyle
We all know this, right? Exercise is not just about weight loss or increased cardio health. Exercise improves immunity by both strengthening the effectiveness of, and speeding up, the response time of antibodies for many types of infections. Exercising once a day for an hour is great, but if you spend the rest of the day sitting down, those benefits decrease.
Increasing physical activity during the day improves circulation and enhances immune function throughout the day. Easy ways to increase this include standing during phone calls, a short walk after a meal, parking your car further away and taking the stairs when able. Even conscious breathwork and stretching can have very beneficial cardio benefits.
Manage Stress
Stress is detrimental to overall health as it affects all aspects of life, including sleep and diet and mood, and even hair care. Consider engaging in mindfulness activities, meditation breaks, massage therapy, regular stretching, or Yoga and Fitness classes.
Vitamin D
Vitamin D supports whole-body immune health and helps protect against infections. Studies have shown a deficiency in Vitamin D is associated with increased rates of upper respiratory infections as well as rates of influenza. Sun exposure is our best provider of the D vitamin, though be mindful of your exposure to maintain optimal skin health. If you cannot get regular sun exposure, then look to get it through a Vitamin D3 supplement.
Limiting Unhealthy Drinking/Eating
Especially at this moment, we do not need to engage in excessive anything. Too much alcohol or bad eating harms the body and seriously reduces the body’s ability to fight off infections, thus lowering our immune health.
Consume Healthy Fats
Fats receive a lot of negative press, but for centuries people have embraced the benefits of healthy types of good fats, such as olive oil, avocado, salmon, and nuts. Pay just as much attention to the type of fats you are eating in your diet as you do the number of fats. The healthy fats you want to eat are called Monounsaturated fats and Polyunsaturated fats because they are good for your heart, your cholesterol, and your overall health. Limit your consumption of Trans fats or Saturated fats, along with any deep-fried food.
Start Your Wellness Journey
We hope you found this information beneficial, and hopefully allow you to choose some very simple and easy choices on ways to increase your immune health. As with trying out anything new, do your own research and talk to your doctor if you have concerns about what may be right for you, and finally- test out something new in small doses first.
We at Garrow Wellness Center are very grateful for each and every one of you who have entered our doors and experienced our spaces, and we welcome the ones yet to come. We meet you where you are at in your wellness journey, starting with your existing lifestyle approach, with the ultimate intention to help you sustainably rise above the tidal wave of modern-day life to sustainably offer the best version of both your inner and outer beauty.