1. Manage your stress. You can’t control everything in your life, but you can change how you react to unpleasant events. Relieve tension through methods such as meditation, yoga, or tai chi- all shown in studies to bolster immunity. Whatever you choose, practice it regularly.
2. Eat well. Without a nourishing diet, your body is more vulnerable to infections. Tieraona Low Dog suggests aiming for a 70% plant-based diet that emphasizes fruits and vegetables, whole grains, seeds, and nuts. Include protein-rich foods low in saturated fat, such as beans and low-mercury fish. During cold and flu season, reach for dark fruits and berries, particularly blueberries and raspberries. Use garlic, onion, ginger, and spices liberally in cooking.
3. Move for 30 minutes every day. Getting regular exercise helps your body avoid succumbing to illness in times of stress. Try biking, walking, and even gardening or cleaning.
4. Go for good bugs. Food and supplements that contain helpful bacteria, known as probiotics, promote digestive health and have been linked to stronger immunity. For everyday health, eat yogurt with active cultures several times weekly. During the cold and flu season, consider adding a supplement (which ash at least 10 times the amount of good bacteria as yogurt) to your prevention routine. Stram recommends taking a supplement with Lactobacillus GG, lactobacillus acidophilus, and Bifidobacterium, and aiming for 10 billion units of bacteria daily for prevention or up to 20 to 40 billion units during an illness.
5. Choose supplements wisely. Though most of us can benefit from a multivitamin, says Low Dog, we don’t need other dietary supplements for immune support. But if you tend to get a lot of colds and flus, try taking the herb astragalus during winter months. Twice a week, suggests Low Dog add 1 to 2 slices of dried astragalus to a pot of soup and cook for 20 to 30 minutes. Remove the astragalus and eat the soup. Alternatively, take 1,000 mg. of astragalus extract daily.
SUSIE’S NOTE: Whenever any of us start to feel icky, we start with a little echinacea, some silver biotics, Oscillo, and extra Vitamin C (either from oranges or vitamins). And we slow down. It really seems to shorten our icky times, or even head off any illnesses before they get started.
6. Prioritize shut-eye. Evidence shows that sleep has wide-ranging effects on immunity. Most of us need about eight hours a night, but quality matters just as much. If you’re waking up tired, it doesn’t matter if you had eight hours or five hours, something is not right. Sleep problems can arise from a number of sources, including stress, a poor diet, or a sedentary lifestyle, so talk to your doctor to identify the cause in each case.