Summer is slowly but surely receding again after a year, and the season full of colds, coughs and other potentially fatal diseases is about to begin. Temperatures are slowly starting to drop and instead of cold drinks, it's time for tea and coffee in a thermos. Who hasn't experienced at least a few days with a stuffy nose or sore throat in autumn? But this is not necessarily true. Our body can adapt to such changes very effectively, but we need to help it a little. There is a plethora of 'tried and tested' advice on boosting your immunity that you can find on the internet, but it's quite possible that your grandmother told you the same. But let's forget the grandmotherly advice for a moment and look at what the scientific studies say.
1. Diet is the foundation of everything
A healthy diet can work wonders. Whether it's losing weight, gaining muscle, boosting immunity, or basically anything else, you always need to keep diet in mind. The saying "you are what you eat" doesn't exist for no reason. That's exactly why our parents made us eat fruits and vegetables since childhood. Vitamins, minerals, fiber, protein, healthy fats and much more are indispensable fuel for the human body to build strong immunity. This is especially evident in the fall, when the demands on our immune system are greater than ever. So what foods should not be missing in the diet of a person who wants to support his immunity?
In particular, we should not neglect the sources of vitamin C, which is probably the best known fighter against the classic colds. It is found in large quantities in, for example, broccoli or strawberries. To find out more, check out our list of the best sources of vitamin C. Other beneficial vitamins include B6 (meat, tripe, soya), B12 (dairy products, eggs, seafood), vitamin D (sun, seafood, eggs) and antioxidants.
2. Don't forget to get moving
Regular exercise has been shown to support the immune system. Of course, athletes tend to have much stronger immunity than people who don't get enough exercise. What is the reason for this? Sport is a great way to strengthen your body. When you exercise, all your muscles and organs get properly blooded, allowing white blood cells to reach all corners of your body more easily. In addition, regular exercise also has a positive effect on mental health (more on the effect of stress on immunity in a moment). One does not necessarily have to be a professional athlete to boost one's immunity through sport. Going for a run or working out at the gym for a while is enough. A half-hour walk, for example, also counts. Find a moment to move every day and you'll see that it will have an effect on your immunity.
3. Wear one less layer
As soon as it starts to get colder, we automatically tend to bundle up in as much clothing as possible. But that's not exactly the best solution. While it's clear that most people don't dare go out in 15 degrees with just a short t-shirt, nothing should be overdone. Hardening off (at least a mild form of it) should be considered by anyone with a weak immune system. You don't have to jump into a frozen pond or bathe in a tub of ice right away. Just dressing a little less than usual is plenty. You may be a little cold at first, but after a while you'll get used to it and your immune system will adjust. A great way to boost your immunity even more is to gradually lower the temperature of the water in the shower. This may seem like complete madness at first, but once you get used to this mild discomfort, you won't regret it.
4. Don't neglect your drinking regime
Water is a key factor for the proper functioning of our body. That's why it doesn't pay to forget about it and not follow a drinking regime. In terms of supporting the immune system, sufficient hydration is important especially because of the amount of sap in our body. It is an important part of the immune system and effectively contributes to the fight against infectious diseases. It may not seem like it at first glance, but even when the body is in resting mode, it consumes large amounts of water. Therefore, it needs to be replenished regularly. The average person should drink about 2.5-3 liters of water per day, depending on weight and activity, of course.
5. Get a good night's sleep
There's probably no one who doesn't like to get a good night's sleep. Sleep is an amazing process that has countless positive effects on the human body. One of them is the flushing out of anti-inflammatory cells so that they can fight potential infection. The problem is that sleep is largely neglected by most people. I wonder what percentage of people can say they get 8 hours of sleep on a regular basis? Nowadays, long sleep is considered more of a laziness. However, this attitude is definitely not correct, as lack of sleep can be the cause of many health complications. To make your sleep the best it can be, read our 21 proven tips to improve it.
6. Stay calm
Avoiding stress is basically a superhuman task these days. Sometimes it can seem that no matter what we do, stress always finds a way to catch up with us. The important thing, however, is not to let it completely control you. Our body reacts badly to stress and this has a very negative effect on the immune system response. Mental and physical health are more intertwined than they may seem. That's why it's a good idea to take a moment for yourself every day to relax and clear your head. This can be done, for example, with the aforementioned exercise, walks or anything that helps you unwind. Once you get into a mental state of well-being, your immune system will be much better able to cope with the environmental influences.
7. Live a healthy lifestyle and avoid illness
All the previous points had something in common. In addition to aiming to strengthen the immune system, they also promoted general health. This is quite logical, because the immune system can only function if the whole body is functioning. Healthy diet, exercise, enough sleep, minimum stress, sufficient drinking. Healthy people have all this in common and that is also why they have a strong immune system. So instead of striving for the strongest immunity possible, we should simply strive for health.
Understanding the fact that all the processes in the body are interconnected is crucial to achieving true health and therefore a strong immune system. Everything is closely interconnected and therefore we need to approach every aspect responsibly. You can eat well and have the best bench press, but once you've slacked off on sleep, you'll beyou're under constant stress, and you put on an extra layer on the way to work just in case, your immunity won't be worth much. On the other hand, if you live a healthy lifestyle and have all the above points covered, you don't have to worry about immunity at all.
And many these days are happy to reach for Colostrum, a rising star in immunity care.
That's it on the topic of boosting immunity, but if you have a question you'd like to ask us, be sure to ask in the comments.
Why can you trust us?
Sport has been my lifelong passion, I have been close to it since I was a child. For a long time I was primarily involved in athletics, which also eventually led me to the gym. Every good sprinter knows that to get one tenth of a start, he must therefore sacrifice hundreds of hours in training. And it was this toil behind the curtain, which no one sees, that was my greatest passion.
Every kilo in the gym helped me to move a little closer to my goal and I fell in love with the gym very quickly. Even though I don't race anymore, nothing has changed in my relationship with uncompromising training.