10 WAYS TO BOOST YOUR IMMUNITY FOR HEALTHIER LIVING

Busy schedules and exposure to harsh environmental factors can result in stress that takes a significant toll on your immunity. Thus making you more susceptible to various illnesses. But there are things you can do to boost your immunity.

It is not always easy to boost your immunity. But fortunately, several dietary and lifestyle modifications can help strengthen your body’s ability to fight disease-causing organisms.

Below are some tips that can help strengthen your immunity naturally without much hassle.

Get Enough Sleep Every Day

Over the past few decades, research has delved deeper into the links between sleep and physical health. And it has become more evident that sleep and the immune system are closely related. In fact, insufficient or poor-quality sleep increases the susceptibility to illnesses. For instance, a study has shown that adults who get less than 6 hours of sleep every night are more likely to come down with a cold than those who sleep for at least 6 hours each night. Therefore, getting enough regular and high-quality sleep supports a balanced immune system. 

A balanced immune system includes strong natural and adaptive immunity, efficient response to vaccines, and less severe allergic reactions. You may sleep more when you’re sick. This is normal as it gives your immune system a better chance to fight the illness. 

As an adult, the recommendation is to aim for at least 7 hours of sleep every night. Teenagers need between 8 and 10 hours, while younger children and infants need up to 14 hours.

Sleep does not always come easy. If you find it difficult to sleep, you can focus on your sleep hygiene. That is your habits, routines, and sleeping environment. The following tips can help improve your sleep hygiene.

• Limiting screen time at least an hour before bed because your phone, TV, and computer emit blue light that may interfere with your circadian rhythm.
• Have a regular sleep schedule by going to bed at the same time every night.
• Engage in moderate exercise regularly.
• Use a sleep mask or sleep in a dark room.

Eat More Healthy Fats.

Mild inflammation is a normal body response to stress. However, chronic inflammation can suppress your immune system’s ability to fight harmful pathogens. On the bright side, recent studies have shown that consuming healthy fats provides your body with the essential fatty acids it needs to boost your immunity. One way these fatty acids improve your immunity is by reducing this unfavorable inflammation. 

Some foods rich in these beneficial fatty acids include salmon, olive oil, avocados, nuts, and seeds. 

With its high anti-inflammatory effect, olive oil has been linked to a lower risk of chronic diseases such as hypertension, heart diseases, and type 2 diabetes. Its anti-inflammatory effect may also help your body fight off harmful viruses and bacteria. 

Eat Fermented Foods or Take a Probiotic Supplement.

There is a good bacteria community, known as probiotics, in your gut. Having a good population of these probiotics may help boost your immunity by inhibiting the growth of harmful bacteria in your gut. There is evidence that some probiotics promote the production of natural antibodies in your body.

Fermented foods such as yogurt, natto, kimchi, and sauerkraut are rich in these probiotics, which keep your digestive tract healthy. This helps you prevent as well as reduce the severity of stomach infections. 

Research has shown that a thriving population of gut bacteria can improve your immune system's ability to differentiate between healthy cells and harmful invader organisms. A 3-month study conducted in 126 children showed that those who drank 2.4 ounces (70 mL) of fermented milk daily had 20% fewer childhood infectious diseases than the control group.

If you cannot consume fermented foods regularly, you can incorporate probiotic supplements into your diet. In a 28-day study, 152 people infected with rhinovirus and supplemented with probiotic Bifidobacterium animalis had a more substantial immune response and lower levels of the virus in their nasal mucus than the control group.

Increase Your Consumption of Whole Plant Foods

Daily exposure to harsh environmental elements can cause free radicals to form and accumulate at high levels within your body. This accumulation can result in unfavorable inflammation that puts you at risk for various diseases.

Chronic inflammation has been linked to many health conditions, such as heart disease, Alzheimer’s, and certain cancers. But whole plants are rich in nutrients and antioxidants. These antioxidants help decrease inflammation by fighting free radicals, which ultimately improves your body’s ability to fight against harmful pathogens. 

Whole plant foods also contain fiber that nourishes your gut probiotics to help strengthen your body’s defense.

Furthermore, whole fruits and vegetables are rich in nutrients – including vitamin c – that may reduce the severity and duration of cold/flu.

Examples include fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and legumes.

Limit Consumption of Refined Sugars 

Some new research suggests that refined carbohydrates/sugars may contribute disproportionately to overweight and obesity. And obesity may increase your risk of falling ill or coming down with a chronic disease such as hypertension, heart disease, and type 2 diabetes. In addition, obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease can weaken your immune system.

Reducing your sugar intake can decrease unfavorable inflammation, improve weight loss, reduce your risk of chronic diseases, and significantly boost your immunity.

In an observational study conducted on about 1,000 people, obese people who received the flu vaccine were twice as likely to get the flu as individuals without obesity who received the same vaccine.

Your aim should be to limit your sugar intake to less than 5% of your daily caloric intake. For example, someone on a 2000-calorie diet should only take about 2 tablespoons of sugar per day.

Regular Moderate Exercise

Exercise is good for your health, but not when you overdo it. Because while moderate exercise can enhance your immunity against harmful pathogens, excessive and prolonged high-intensity exercise can impair your immune system.

Several studies have shown that as little as a single session of moderate exercise can improve vaccine effectiveness in people with compromised immune systems. That’s not all. Regular, moderate exercise may reduce inflammation and enhance the regeneration of your immune cells.

The moderate-intensity exercise consists of activities that increase your heart rate to 50-60% higher than your resting heart rate. Some moderate exercises you can include in your routine include brisk walking, steady bicycling, jogging, swimming, and light hiking. 

The general recommendation is to do at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week.

Find Ways to Reduce your Stress Levels

Research has shown that high stress levels promote inflammation and suppress your immune response. This is why stress and anxiety relief are crucial to the state of your immunity.

Some activities that can help you to better manage stress include regular exercise, meditation, journaling, yoga, and other mindfulness practices. Seeing a licensed therapist or counselor can also do you a world of good. It does not matter whether you see the therapist in person or virtually. 

Take Appropriate Supplements

There have been a lot of claims about supplements being able to prevent or even treat COVID19. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) states that there is currently no evidence to support these claims. But this does not make taking supplements pointless. 

Some studies have shown that some supplements can strengthen your body’s general immunity.

• Vitamin C. In a review of over 11,000 people, daily intake of 1000–2000 mg of vitamin C reduced the duration of colds by 8% in adults and 14% in children. However, supplementing did not prevent people from getting cold in the first place.
• Vitamin D. Having insufficient Vitamin D may increase your chances of getting sick. Supplementing may help prevent this effect. But note that taking vitamin D supplements when your body already has enough doesn’t seem to provide extra benefits.
•   A review of people with the common cold, supplementing with more than 75 mg of zinc per day, showed a reduced duration of the cold by 33%.
•   Though more research is needed, a small review did find that elderberry can reduce the severity of viral upper respiratory infections.
•   A study found that echinacea helped people recover from colds a little quicker than those who received a placebo or no treatment.
•   A high-quality study in 146 people found that supplementing with garlic reduced the common cold incidence by about 30%. However, more research is needed to further understand the effect of garlic on immunity.

Though the above supplements demonstrated immune-boosting potential, this is enough to say that they are effective in COVID-19 prevention or treatment. 

You should exercise caution when choosing supplements, as some can interact with prescription or over-the-counter medications. Some may not even be suitable for people with certain health conditions. So, you should talk to a healthcare professional before starting any supplement.

Stay well hydrated

Many people understand that proper hydration is essential for overall health. But the roles of hydration in immunity are not as widespread. Though hydration does not necessarily protect you from harmful bacteria and viruses, optimal hydration does support a healthy immune function. Here are some ways hydration can help your immunity:

• Nutrient Your immune system depends on nutrients in the blood, and the blood is made of mostly water. Without optimal hydration, your body cannot transport nutrients to the immune system efficiently.
• Detoxification. Proper hydration plays a significant role in clearing out toxins and foreign invaders from your body.
• Lymphatic System works alongside the immune system to keep you healthy. It relies heavily on a fluid (lymph) which consists of 90% water. A well-functioning lymphatic system helps remove toxins, pathogens, and waste from your system. It also helps transport infection-fighting white blood cells throughout the body.
• Histamine Balance helps you prevent allergies and ease the symptoms.

A study in adult subjects after a workout session showed that dehydration resulted in immunosuppression.

Perhaps you are wondering what daily quantity of water is enough to prevent dehydration. Ideally, you should drink enough fluid to make your urine pale yellow. You may need to take more liquids if you exercise intensely, work outside or live in a hot climate. The best fluid is water because it is free of calories, additives, and sugar. It is recommended that you cut back on caffeine and alcohol intake.

A general recommendation is to drink when you’re thirsty and stop when you’re no longer thirsty. But this rule may not apply to older adults because their bodies do not signal thirst adequately. So, they begin to lose the urge to drink as they age. Hence, older adults need to regularly drink water even if they do not feel thirsty.

Get Vaccinated

Vaccination against diseases such as flu works with your body’s natural defenses to offer you better protection against those diseases. 

Vaccines protect you by enabling your immune system to respond more rapidly to specific harmful pathogens and destroy them before they can make you sick. There are currently vaccines to prevent more than 20 life-threatening diseases.

Summary

You can strengthen your immunity by making healthy lifestyle and diet changes. Some of these changes include getting adequate sleep, staying hydrated, reducing your sugar intake, exercising regularly, taking supplements, and managing your stress levels.

Although these changes can reinforce your body’s immunity against harmful pathogens, they cannot prevent or treat COVID-19.