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Simple Rules How To Improve (Boost) Your Immune System

Updated on April 22, 2011

 

People get sick in different ways and on different time basis. Some gets simple cold once a year, while other has repeating infections in a short period of time.

 

What's the main reason for that?

 

People have different immune systems!

 

Depending on its condition, our body will be more or less prone to some illnesses. That is why we have to improve immune system to avoid getting sick.

 

There are several ways to boost immune system and each of them demands taking care of different aspects of one’s life. It could be done naturally without much help from medications and supplements. But, sometimes it’s good to take some supplements to bring the state of one’s immune system to optimal level.

Being happy
Being happy

Taking charge of your life

Being happy and generally content is a key to having good immune system. Different hormones run through our blood. Feeling good and being content, will raise serotonin. Having a good night sleep at night will have positive impact on melatonin. Having enough of those two hormones will cause our body to be healthy.

On the other side stress and depression can influence the cortisol to be secreted in higher levels. And cortisol is stress hormone responsible for immune function and inflammatory response.

If those inflammatory conditions occur very often, they can lead to more severe illnesses such as cancer.

First ask yourself if you are satisfied with your life. Are you satisfied with your job, life partner, the amount of time you spend with your family and friends.

If you think you can improve any of those areas, do it! Even if it requires some major changes, it’s worth while.

Every day you spend in a bad mood, the chances you will get sick are higher. The most important is to increase the number of situations that make you happy and satisfied. And that will definitely boost your immune system.

Learn how to say no

Learning how to say no is not an easy task. Some people don’t have any trouble rejecting others, but many people accept responsibilities and tasks they can’t fulfill. That’s why they don’t feel self-confident, they have lack of time and generally don’t feel good about themselves because they don’t feel they’ve accomplished something valuable. They fail, because they cannot manage to do everything due to lack of time and abilities.

So, next time someone asks you to do something you don’t want to, or do don’t have time to do it or for any other reason, just say no. You will feel calm and avoid stress.

Get rid of silent emotions

Dealing with emotions is another difficult task. If you are experiencing negative emotions or recovering from a difficult divorce or a death of a loved one, your body is full of negative reactions. Just by existing inside you, those negative emotions can make you vulnerable and ready to catch a disease.

Try to get rid of those emotions by talking to people, especially with those who make you feel unhappy.

Physical exercise

Physical activity is very important. It moves our whole body and our immune system. Defense mechanisms can be stimulated by physical exercise. This doesn’t mean that you should spend hours exercising every day. You can turn your everyday activities into exercise.

Spend some time with your partner or friend in a pleasant walk or hike if you like.

If you have a dog, spend some time with it in the nature. Ride a bike, skate, dance, there is a number of possibilities to do something you like and at the same time activate your cells. 20min a day is enough.

The healthiest people are those who are always in the move and who don’t just sit the whole day. People who work in offices and sit the whole day have to make a good recreation plan if they want to maintain a good immune system.

Move yourself and you’ll move your immune system. It’s easy to improve the immune system.

 

Healthy diet

If you are asking the question how to improve immune system, the answer is in eating right food. This is very important when it comes to improving immune system. It is well known that some food literally destroys our immune system, while the other can boost it.

According to this, if you want to improve immune system, you should avoid food that have damaging affect to your cells and increase the consumption of food rich in antioxidants.

Food to be avoided:

  • Refined sugar
  • White flour
  • Fast food
  • Sweet drinks
  • Alcohol
  • Food that contains hydrogenated fat

White sugar and flour have very high GI and they raise the level of glucose in the blood. In that case, our body produces more insulin, which creates inflammatory processes in the body.

Recommended food:

  • Natural sweeteners (rice and barley malt)
  • Unrefined, cold-pressed olive and sesame oil
  • Fish rich in omega-3
  • Dark chocolate (>70% cocoa)
  • Whole grain cereals
  • Green tea
  • Fruits (berries, citrus)
  • Vegetables (green, red, violet)
  • Sprouts
  • Seasons (curcuma, ginger, garlic)
  • Legumes (lentils, beans)
  • Tofu

Curcuma has very strong anti-inflammatory impact, especially curcumin, which is the main ingredient of curcuma.

Some mushrooms can stimulate immune system. The best mushrooms are shiitake and maitake. They contain lentinan which is mainly responsible for boosting the immune system.

Simple food you can consume

Enough is said about the benefits of lemon, oranges and kiwi in flu season. They are full of vitamin C which is great for our immunity. But, there is other food which is extremely healthy, the so called natural boosters of immune system.

Different berries are full with antioxidants, such as blueberries, raspberries, cranberries.

Green tea is also strong antioxidant and should be taken every day.

Green vegetables and sprouts contain lots of chlorophyll, which allows detoxification of our cells.

Different juices

There are some juices that are very efficient in improving immune system, such as aloe vera, noni or acai juice. You can also take liquid chlorophyll.

Probiotic drinks are natural boosters of immune system, because they contain friendly bacteria Lactobacillus bifidus and Lactobacillus acidobacilus. Taking probiotics is a good way how to improve immune system and health in general. Even taking a yoghurt each day can help you maintain a good health.

Supplements

We all know that taking supplements is one how to improve immune system. But, beside multivitamin, which is a classic solution and has a wide range of influence, there are other recommended things you can try.

For example, Royal jelly stimulates the nervous, hormonal and immune system. It affects the regenerating mechanisms in the body through nervous and hormonal system and acts as the natural antibiotic.

 

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