Supporting your immune system
With all the concerns over the spread of the coronavirus and its impact on our general well being I thought that now would be a good time to revisit how you can be supporting your own immune system. Obviously following the govenrment’s advice on hand washing is very important. However making sure that your body is as fit as possible on the immune front is also valuable.
A key player in supporting your immune system is good quality sleep. If you find this difficult see my blog post on struggling to sleep
On the food front garlic contains the active ingredient allicin which helps fight infection. Whilst ”studies have shown that mushrooms increase the production and activity of white blood cells, making them more aggressive. This is a good thing when you have an infection” Douglas Schar, Director of the Institute of Herbal Medicine Washington DC. Out with the cold foods such as salad, in with stews filled with nourishing vegetables such as squashes, winter greens, root vegetables and mushrooms. Enjoy these seasoned with garlic, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamom. Why not try adding roasted nuts, especially walnuts and chestnuts.
Using supplements to augment your diet at this time can also be helpful. Key vitamins are minerals are:
- Zinc – this plays an important role in the functioning of the immuune system
- Vitamin C which can help prevent colds etc as well as relieving symptoms
- Vitamin D – this is know as the sunshine vitamin. During the winter it is best taken as a supplement as sunshine is in short supply!
Stress also lowers the immune system, so aim to be as stress free as possible. Not always easy. Try doing some yoga or book some acupuncture. Acupuncture can not only help to alleviate stress. It can also help to build up the immune system. Contact me for more information. Read my page on acupuncture