How To Boost The Body's Immune System

If you want to boost your immune system, there are a number of dietary and lifestyle measures you can take to help strengthen your body's natural resistance and help it fight off pathogens. or harmful pathogens. disease-causing organisms.

Strengthen the body's immune system

Get enough sleep to strengthen the body's immunity

Sleep and the body's immune status are closely linked. In fact, insufficient or poor quality sleep can make the body more susceptible to disease.

In a study conducted on 164 healthy adults, those who slept less than 6 hours per night were significantly more likely to catch a cold than those who slept 6 or more hours per night.

Adequate rest can strengthen the body's natural resistance. In addition, getting enough sleep during illness allows the body's immune system to better fight off illness.

Older adults should sleep 7 hours or more per night, while teenagers need 8 to 10 hours and younger children and infants up to 14 hours.

If you have trouble falling asleep, try measures such as not using electronic devices for about an hour before bed, as the blue light emitted by phones, TVs and computers can be disruptive. your circadian rhythm.

Other sleep tips include: sleeping in a completely dark room or going to bed at the same time each night and exercising regularly.

Eat a lot of fiber to strengthen the body's immunity

High-fiber foods like fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and legumes are rich in nutrients and antioxidants that can help the body fight harmful pathogens.

The antioxidants found in these foods help reduce inflammation by fighting unstable compounds called free radicals, which can cause inflammation when they build up in the body in high concentrations.

Meanwhile, the fiber in plant foods provides the gut microbiome, or healthy bacteria in the gut. A healthy gut microbiome will be able to improve immunity and help prevent harmful pathogens from entering the body through the digestive tract.

Furthermore, fruits and vegetables are rich in nutrients like vitamin C that help reduce the duration of the common cold.

Eat lots of healthy fats to boost immunity

Healthy fats, such as olive oil and salmon, can help reduce inflammation caused by the body's immune response to pathogens.

While low-level inflammation is a normal response to stress or injury, chronic inflammation can suppress the body's immune system.

Olive oil is highly anti-inflammatory and reduces the risk of chronic diseases like heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Additionally, the anti-inflammatory properties of this oil can help the body fight bacteria and viruses. cause bacteria and viruses. sick.

Eat more fermented foods or take a probiotic supplement to boost your immunity

Eat more fermented foods to boost immunity

Fermented foods are rich in beneficial bacteria called probiotics, which reside in your digestive tract.

Foods in this group include yogurt, sauerkraut, kimchi, kefir, and fermented soybeans (natto).

In a 3-month study of 126 children, those who drank 2.4 ounces (70 mL) of fermented milk daily had 20% fewer infectious diseases than those who did not.

If you don't regularly eat fermented foods, you can supplement probiotics with a variety of products on the market.

In a 28-day study in 152 people infected with rhinovirus, those supplemented with Bifidobacterium Animalis had a stronger immune response and lower viral concentrations in nasal mucus compared with the control group.

Supplementing functional foods properly to strengthen immunity

While vitamins and supplements can help fill nutritional gaps if your diet isn't getting enough, the best way to get all the essential nutrients is this: get them from food.

Your body absorbs and uses vitamins and nutrients better when they come from food. Therefore, if you intend to use any dietary supplements, you should consult your doctor before using.