A good immune system is like a blessing to a healthy body and it can help in defeating micro-organism causing disease. It is better to get yourself strong and have a comprehensive approach to your health. For the well-functioning immune system, balance and harmony are required among physical, mental and emotional health while considering social factors as well. A weak immunity may give birth to diseases like heart disease, lung disease or respiratory illness so find ways to increase your immunity.
The latest example which we can take is ‘COVID 19’. As we know, the whole world is facing this epidemic. This disease has hit people in large quantities all over the world very badly. And so many people have already lost their lives due to this disease. The doctor is recommending increasing the body’s immunity by taking all the necessary precautions. Strong immunity is very much required in this current scenario where people are getting affected by the deadly virus ‘COVID 19’. So if you are also searching how to increase immunity then below are certain measures which you can boost your immunity.
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Food Factor to Increase Immunity:
• Be wise and eat healthily :
Your body and soul are what you intake, so have a balanced and healthy diet. As per your age group & type of activity you involve in day to day life start having healthy food. Eat all fresh green veggies, increase your intake of fruits, and take wholesome cereals instead of refined ones to make your immune system strong. It’s our immune system that helps in fighting with those infections in a better and faster way. Make sure that you are taking sufficient Vitamin D, Zinc and other minerals, and nutrients as this will help in reducing the infection risk.
You should avoid food containing sugar, trans-fats and ultralow- carbohydrates and also limit your intake of processed food, meat, alcohol. Though it is not specific which food will boost up your immune system, but hold on to a balanced and healthy diet.
• Reduce inflammation :
Some food items support the immune system whereas others may jam the immune system. The consumption of such jamming products can lead to the weakening of your immune system. These products include alcohol, refined sugar, processed meat, processed food, deep-fried food, etc.
Your other body illness might remain unidentified due to the consumption of such inflammatory food. This may lead to the development of a disease, so try to cut down these foods from your daily diet routine.
• Avoid consuming toxins :
Toxins are the biggest enemy of immunity as it has the capability to damage your immune system. These toxins when taken into your body, not only make you sick but also increases the recovery time from your illness. So to make sure that your immune system becomes stronger, try to be away from toxins like food additives, chlorinated or dirty drinking water, pesticides etc.to live a healthy life.
• Stay away from alcohol and smoking :
The studies have found that there is a connection between your immune system and your drinking and smoking habits. It is found that people who have excessive alcohol drinking and smoking habits are more prone to have bad immune functioning. These people are more inclined to respiratory illness and pneumonia and it is more difficult for them to get cured of any infection.
a. Minimize alcohol consumption: Alcohol consumption is directly related to your liver damage. Therefore, it abates your immunity to a large degree. So keep this habit to minimal.
b. Quit smoking: Smoking is a new vogue. It highly affects the lungs and even leads to cancer of palate, mouth, and lungs and deterioration of immunity. So to improve immunity you have to quit smoking. After all, it is well-said “Smoking is injurious to health.”
Activity Acceleration to Increase Immunity:
• Be active, stay fit :
And yes, getting confined inside your house doesn’t mean that you should spend your entire day lying on your couch. Do those planks, sweat on your treadmill or practice yoga or do the household chores. Stating active lowers stress hormones, it increases the blood circulation & activates your metabolic process.
To raise the immunity of your body, it is mandatory to be healthy. And to be healthy, it comes with being active and doing exercise. But be aware that if you exercise a lot it will make you tired and increases your stress which leads to lower the immunity of the body so exercise but not too much that makes you tired.
• Get yourself stress-free :
Each and everything in our life gets linked with the stress, be it your physical or mental well-being. With more stress, you will end up with a weaker immunity system. If you want a good immunity of your body then you should take care of your stress levels because when you take stress the body generates stress hormones that negatively affect the immune system. When you take stress the ability to fight off antigens of the immune system is reduced and you could get infection easily.
The only thing that can fight with your stress and anxiety is your inner self. Make yourself strong from inside so that you can handle any situation calmly. Practice mindful yoga, do meditation and do exercise. Give yourself a break and find out the activities with which you can get peace and become stress-free and thus boosting your immunity.
• Grab an ample amount of sleep :
51% of adults worldwide are sleep deprived. You might be busy and maybe these 24 hours a day is not enough for you but your well-being is of utmost importance. An uninterrupted 8 hours of sleep is very much significant for building a good immune system. When you sleep, a cytokines protein releases by your immune system which reduces the chance of inflammation and infection. When you don’t get enough sleep then infection-fighting antibodies and cells decrease which can make you fall sick easily. It may also lead to the risk of obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases.
If you are getting difficulty in having a sound sleep of 8 hours then, you can go for various sessions available on YouTube to grab some sleeping naps or sleeping music. Let a good sleep reboot your human system to give its 100% the next day.
• Clean your hands properly or sanitize it :
It is very crucial for you to properly wash your hands with a hand wash. You can also go for a sanitizer and sanitize your hand. But the sanitizer needs to contain more than 60% percent of alcohol as that sanitizer is effective and is capable of killing viruses present on the hands.
Nutritional Punch :
Start filling your plate with immune-boosting nutrients as it is one of the ways to stay healthy. Here are some of the vital nutrients which play a significant role in increasing the immune of the body. These are available along with their respective food sources:
- Beta carotene: Sweet potatoes, carrots, mangoes, apricots, spinach, kale, broccoli, squash, cantaloupe, etc.
- Vitamin C: Oranges, grapefruit, kiwi, strawberries, Brussels sprouts, red and green peppers, broccoli, cooked cabbage, cauliflower, etc. View Benefits of Amla juice
- Vitamin D: Eggs, fortified milk and plant milk products; cheese, fortified juice, tofu, mushrooms, etc.
- Zinc: Beans, chickpeas, lentils, tofu, fortified cereals, nuts, seeds, wheat germ, etc.
- Protein: Poultry, milk, yogurt, eggs, cottage cheese, nuts, seeds, beans, lentils, etc.
- Prebiotics: Whole grains, bananas, onions, garlic, leeks, asparagus, artichokes, beans, etc.
- For Hydration: All fluids and water-rich foods, such as fruits, vegetables, and soups.
Boosting Supplements to Increase Immunity:
If your immune system is weak, then here are some of the supplements immunity-boosting properties:
- Vitamin D: For the good functioning of your immune system, Vitamin D is very important for your body. It reduces inflammation which in turn promotes a healthy immune system. It also decreases the risk of respiratory infection.
- Vitamin C: Vitamin C is one of the most popular supplements that safeguards against infection thus make the immunity system better. It helps in decreasing the severity of upper respiratory tract infections, including the common cold.
- Zinc: Zinc is very significant for immune cell development and communication. It plays an important role in the inflammatory response. It may also help in protecting you against respiratory tract infections and decreasing the duration of these infections.
- B Complex Vitamin: If you lack Complex Vitamin B in your body then it may result in a weaker immune response. It includes B12 and B6 and hence it is very important for your strong immune system.
- Turmeric: Turmeric has strong anti-inflammatory properties which result in getting an improved immune system.
- Garlic: With its excellent anti-inflammatory and antiviral properties, it helps in enhancing the immunity by stimulating protective white blood cells like NK cells and macrophages.
Conclusion
These are certain moves which if got embedded in our day to day life then this will escalate the immunity of our body and achieve this by first choosing a healthy lifestyle. There is no proven evidence that the above measures can protect you from COVID-19 but it makes your body’s immunity better. It is better to make your body capable to brawl against any virus. So here is the answer to how to increase immunity then this article may help you. For any query please feel free to comment upon the below comment section.