Our immune system needs to function at its peak so it can protect us from disease and foreign intruders. Did you know that your diet has a massive impact on the health of your immune system and preventing illness?
Some foods are packed with nutrients that help the immune system function, whereas others can actually decrease its power to fight back when illness strikes.
Here are the top 8 ways to boost your immune system, naturally:
Eat antioxidant foods
Antioxidants are nutrients that help control and repair the damage of free radicals in our bodies. These could be vitamins like A, C, and E as well as minerals like Zinc, Selenium, and Potassium.
Some good antioxidant food sources are berries, broccoli, cauliflower, nuts, seeds, citrus fruit, pineapples, spinach, tomatoes, peppers, seafood and corn.
Take more zinc
Zinc is a mineral that acts as an enzyme factor in white blood cells. When there is a deficiency of zinc in your system, your immune system will tend to become weaker.
Some good food sources of zinc are meat, fish, and dairy products. You can also take a zinc supplement but do so under the supervision of your doctor.
Get Adequate Sleep
When you don’t sleep enough, your system doesn’t release enough hormones to help regenerate your system and your immune system’s function is weakened. Check out 9 Tips How To Sleep Better to get some more in depth tips to improve your sleep.
Get yourself out in the sun
Sun can be damaging for your skin if you don’t protect yourself. That’s common knowledge. But did you know that mild sun exposure helps release vitamin D in your body which is quite beneficial for your immune system and puts you in a great mood as well? Just 15 minutes per day is enough to get a healthy dose of sun and reap its benefits.
Eat more garlic
Eating garlic may make your breath smell, but you’ll be surprised to learn that it has multiple benefits for your health. This flavorful and robust herb can both boost your immune system and clear circulatory issues for better heart health.
Quit smoking
You’ve heard it a million times before and you’ll hear it again! Smoking is bad for you as it wreaks havoc to your internal organs and weakens your immune system because it blocks sufficient oxygen from being delivered to your body cells.
Additionally, it contains carcinogenic substances which dramatically raise risk of developing cancer and make your immune system too weak to react.
Control your alcohol intake
Alcohol is another harmful substance you should avoid because once it enters your system, it causes all sorts of harmful chemical reactions and even kills your white cells, the cells responsible for fighting illness and infections.
It also interferes with the absorption of vitamins and minerals necessary for a healthy white cell count.
Laugh with your heart
They say laughter is the best medicine and there is a point to that! It beats stress, keeps your heart racing, and strengthens the energy of your immune system so it can fight back illnesses more effectively.
So don’t forget to both laugh and spread laughter, it’s contagious! If you are looking for somewhere to spread the laughter, follow us @HIIT-World and leave a comment! If you want to learn some more about how to stay mentally healthy, check out The Effects of Exercise: Mental Health!