Eat these foods to boost your immune system

One early morning you wake up to find a severe body ache, with head screeching and aching stomach. Upon checking you find yourself with high temperature. In short you were feeling SICK….

You go to doctor and land up with a series of blood tests to be done.  

When you get the reports in hand, you find your blood counts low and platelets low diagnosed with dengue or typhoid.

Conclusion low immunity ….YES!!! YOUR IMMUNITY …

So what is immunity?

As they say ‘Prevention is better than Cure’. Build a good immune system and prevent diseases.

Immune system is an amazing protection mechanism situated inside every human body. It is designed to defend you against millions of bacteria, microbes, viruses, toxins and parasites that love to invade the body. To understand the power of the immune system, all that one needs to do is to look at what happens to a living being when it dies. This might sound gross, but it does show tell us all something very important about our immune system.

When something dies, its immune system (along with everything else) shuts down. In matter of hours, the body is invaded by all sorts of bacteria, microbes, parasites. None of these things are able to get in when the immune system is strong, but the moment the immune system stops, the door is wide open for diseases to breed. Once you die it only takes a few weeks for these organisms to completely dismantle your body and carry it away, until all that’s left is a skeleton. So safely one can conclude that a strong immune system keeps all of that dismantling from happening when one is alive.

The immune system is complex, intricate and interesting. And there are at least two good reasons for every individual to know more about it. First, it is just plain fascinating to understand where things like fever, hives, inflammation, etc., come from when they happen inside your own body. You also hear a lot about the immune system in the news as new parts of it are understood and new drugs come in the market — knowing about the immune system makes these news stories understandable.

Now that we have understood what is Immune System, I would like to take you through how the immune system works and how can the immune system work after having a proper diet which will help boost the immunity system.

It really takes more than apple a day to keep Doctor Away. Want to fight off that illness that is spreading around your office or your child’s school or your residence?? Aside from practising good hygiene habits, strengthening your immune system plays a key role in keeping the bacteria and germs at bay.

What you eat plays a vital role in boosting your immune system. It’s very sad that many of us don’t eat enough of our natural fighting agents like fresh fruits, vegetables and other foods.You cannot expect to eat 1 cup of broccoli or an orange and have power packed with vitamin C to fight off that runny nose.

A healthy system depends on a balance mix of vitamins and minerals along with healthy sleep pattern and a hefty dose of exercise.

Though we cannot obtain complete dose of our fighting heroes from natural food,caz of which the best is to take pills, but still here are some foods to top up with in order for active functioning of our immune system.

Button Mushrooms – Rich in selenium and B vitamins i.e. riboflavin and niacin helps strengthen your immunity.

Watermelon – When ripe, it provides plenty of antioxidant called glutathione. Refreshing and helpful in keeping infections at bay.

Curds/Yogurts – Probiotics found in it may ease the severity of colds due to live and active cultures.

Spinach – Termed as super food, rich in folate, fibre and vitamin C.  

Sweet potato – Rich in beta carotene that turns into Vitamin A in body helps fight against free radicals in the body and strengthen immunity.

Broccoli – Loaded with Vitamin A & C and anti-oxidants that protects the body from damage. Enjoy with a dash of low fat cheese.

Oats and Barley – These grains contain beta - glucan ,a type of fiber with antimicrobial and antioxidant capabilities.A study reports that when animals eat these foods,they are less likely to contract influenza,herpes and in humans it boosts immunity ,speeds wound healing and may help  anti biotics work better. 

Garlic – this potent onion relative contains active ingredient allicin, which fights infection and bacteria. It helps in preventing against cold and infection.

Fish – Abundant source of selenium found in oysters, crabs, lobsters helps clear flu viruses out of the body. Salmon, mackerel and herring are rich in omega 3 fatty acids which help reduce inflammation, increase air flow and protect against cold and respiratory infections.

Citrus foods – these tangy fruits are a great way to vitamin C. It’s a key anti-oxidant that also supports your immune system. In addition to oranges, you can get vitamin C from kiwi, bell pepper, grape fruit and strawberries.   

Cut down on foods that lead to inflammation like refined foods such as bakery products, sugar, aerated drinks, and convenient foods.

The above foods have proven to have boosted individuals’ immune system and produce more white cells in the body. Eat healthy and build your immune system that will help your system fight against all illnesses. So what are you waiting for get on the path of healthy eating and keep your immune system active and more energetic than ever.