Six Simple Ways to Boost Your Immune System
Who wouldn't desire a robust immune system? The pandemic has taught us one crucial lesson: health is wealth. Maybe you're a member of the front-line medical staff. Or you could manage your family and children while working from home. No matter how busy your schedule is, you must pay attention to your health.
Unfortunately, there isn't a magic pill that will instantly boost your immunity. And an apple a day won't keep the doctor away from the onslaught of new diseases that are rapidly appearing. How can you thereby strengthen your body's natural defenses against dangerous pathogens?
What does your immune system do?
The immune system serves as the body's defense against or preventing infection. Without it, the body wouldn't be able to fend off attacks from viruses, parasites, bacteria, and other harmful organisms. The body's immune system comprises a massive network of cells, organs, proteins, and tissues.
A fully functional immune system can distinguish healthy tissue and undesired chemicals. It will undertake a complex attack to defend the body from invaders if it identifies a harmful substance. Additionally, it detects and eliminates damaged and dead cells. However, the immune system is only sometimes accurate. Because of a medical condition or the requirement for specific treatments, it may occasionally be unable to fight efficiently.
The immune system misinterprets good tissue in autoimmune disorders and allergies as diseased, causing an unwarranted onslaught that results in painful and occasionally severe symptoms.
Although increasing your immunity seems appealing, doing so has proven difficult for several reasons. In fact, the immune system is a system, not a single thing. It needs harmony and balance to work successfully. Researchers still need to fully understand the complexity and interdependence of the immune response. As of yet, no direct connections between a healthy lifestyle and improved immune function have been established by science.
However, that doesn't mean that research on how lifestyle choices affect the immune system isn't necessary or exciting. Researchers are looking at how age, psychological stress, physical activity, food, and other factors affect the immune response in both humans and animals. Meanwhile, general healthy lifestyle activities make sense because they are known to improve other aspects of health and are likely to support immune function.
Here are six quick ways to maintain good health and boost your immune system.
A healthy gut
A healthy stomach is necessary for a robust immune system. After all, the gut is where about 80% of your immunity is found. Focus on improving your gut health by giving it foods like curd, yogurt, plantains, and asparagus high in probiotics and prebiotics. This promotes the health and balance of your digestive system. In addition, vitamin C is widely known for enhancing defense mechanisms. So, to boost your immune system, incorporate vitamin C-rich foods like citrus fruits, red bell peppers, and broccoli into your diet. Your immunity may also be weakened by excessive stress. Therefore, choose foods high in antioxidants like berries, carrots, and spinach that can reduce oxidative stress and help you achieve better overall gut health.
Get enough sleep
Though many of us might not be aware, immunity and sleep are strongly related. You must get enough quality sleep to give your immune system the best chance to fend off infection and sickness. In fact, research has found that those who don't get enough good sleep are more susceptible to illness than those who do. To build a robust immune system, adults should aim for 7-8 hours of sleep each night, teens require 8-10 hours, and younger children need about 14 hours. A full night's sleep is necessary for your body to rebuild its proteins and cells.
Regular Exercise
There are various explanations for why this is beneficial. Exercise could help clean the airways and remove bacteria. We are aware that it reduces the flow of stress hormones. Additionally, it maintains your bones strong and lowers your risk of contracting specific ailments like heart disease and fatty liver disease. You can do it on the workouts, too. Overtraining can compromise your immune system, making you more susceptible to the flu and other illnesses. Therefore, choose easy or moderate exercises like brisk walking, yoga, swimming, or cycling.
Stay Hydrated
Your body needs water for various vital functions, including immune system support. Dr. Lin states, "Water is important because our blood and lymph, which have immune cells in them, need water to flow to circulate throughout our bodies."
You regularly lose water through sweat, urine, and bowel movements, even if you're not exercising or perspiring. Make sure you're replenishing the water you lose with water you can utilize to strengthen your immune system, which begins with understanding how much water you should be drinking each day.
While being hydrated won't always free you from bacteria and viruses, it's still crucial for your general health to avoid dehydration. Dehydration can impair your heart and kidney function, digestion, focus, mood, and physical performance and give you headaches. Your vulnerability to sickness may rise as a result of these issues.
To avoid dehydration, you should consume enough fluids daily to keep your urine light yellow. Water is advised because it has no calories, sugar, or additives. While tea and juice can also help you stay hydrated, you should restrict your use of fruit juice and tea with added sugar due to their high sugar content.
Positive Mindset
Your physical and emotional well-being are inextricably linked. According to research, a positive outlook lowers stress and boosts resistance to infection, whereas negative thoughts might suppress your immune system and make you more prone to illness. The body produces too much cortisol, a stress hormone subjected to continual stress.
This weakens your body's resistance to infections and worsens sleep problems and high blood pressure. So start your day with a positive outlook to avoid this. Uncertain of how to do that daily meditation for five minutes can have a significant impact. To lessen your stress and anxiety, you can also engage in yoga, deep breathing, or spend some time in nature.
Vitamins Intake
Vitamin C supports cell function and guards against oxidative environmental stress, strengthening immune response (free radicals and pollutants). Oranges, strawberries, spinach, kiwi, and grapefruit are the most incredible foods to eat to receive vitamin C. Your immune system may respond better to vitamin D, and you may be protected against respiratory illnesses. Although sunlight is a fantastic source and is frequently referred to as "the sunshine vitamin," this depends on the amount of melanin in your skin. For people with fair skin, just 10 minutes of sun exposure each day is sufficient to develop enough vitamin D. Otherwise, it can increase the risk of developing skin cancer.
It's easier said than done to change your lifestyle and incorporate a healthy diet into your busy routine. However, there is an excellent alternative to this. You can take vitamin C and D injections or have an immune system booster IV drip. Medical hubs like Optimized Body & Mind offer IV drips, vitamin injections, and quick and accurate blood tests. So, you can always have your hands on these alternatives without any side effects that would help you fight against harmful bacteria and parasites and will eventually boost your immunity system.
Final Words
Health should always be your first priority. Over the past few years, new viruses like COVID and its sub-variants have occurred and destroyed the everyday life of human beings. These viruses attack those who have weak immune systems. Therefore, you cannot depend on vaccinations to fight off viruses. It may help your body's natural defenses to work with vaccinations to safely build immunity (protection) against viruses. So, to bolster your immune system, above mentioned ways should be incorporated into your lifestyle. A healthy immune system keeps infections out of your body, destroys them, and prevents them from getting in. Get enough sleep, stay active, eat well, maintain a healthy weight, manage stress, and adopt other healthy habits to maintain a strong immune system.