Boosting Your Immune System

Hello, hello! This is Heather Prince here, known as the Root Master because I get to the root, sharing with you today all about the immune system and 3 immune system myths. So let's find out, why is the immune system so important to you?

Your first line of defence is your immune system. It's on the job around the clock to protect you from infectious bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites that cause disease, suffering, and death. The immune system is an extremely complex network of cells and molecules that researchers are still working to understand. Because there is so much about immune function that remains unknown, immune system myths abound, and commercial enterprises have exploited them. The following are 3 common immune system myths. System myth number 1: The more active your immune system is, the healthier you will be. The fact is, where the immune system is concerned, there can be too much of a good thing. A hyperactive immune response is responsible for allergic reactions to ordinary non-toxic substances. It also underlies a number of major diseases including diabetes, lupus, and rheumatoid arthritis. In fact, there may be multiple reasons why the immune system malfunctions. Number 2: Being negative doesn't hurt your immune system. Well, the fact is, a good outlook may be good for your health Because one study of law students showed that their immune systems kept pace with their thoughts about how tough school would be, and when they felt better about school, they had a better immune system. When they were worried, their immune system slowed. The upshot was looking on the bright side might better equip your body to fight illness.

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Many vaccines have health risks. The fact is, nearly everything we do involves some level of risk. The risk of dying in a car accident is 1 in 6,700. The chance of drowning in the bath is 1 in 840,000. But the risk of a serious reaction from a vaccine is small by comparison. 1 in a million for the diphtheria, tetanus, for example, and yet most of us don't hesitate to take a bath or ride in the car. Our immune system and take steps to avoid infection. The first step is washing your hands frequently, and all hand washing is not equal. For it to be effective, make sure you and your family follow these steps. Run warm water over your hands, add soap, and that can even be washing-up liquid, and scrub for at least 20 seconds. And then you rinse and dry them on a clean towel. And if you want to and you like singing, you can even sing Happy Birthday twice if you want to make sure you're doing it for the right amount of time. Now, you can stock up on alcohol-based hand sanitizers for areas where sinks aren't available or when you're out and about, and you can store them out of reach of young children because children must have adult supervision when using them. And make sure your hand sanitizers are at least 60% alcohol, trusted source, and remember that they're not a replacement for washing your hands with soap and warm water. They don't tackle all germs and they Don't work on visibly dirty hands. To help your immune system, it's important not to smoke. The effects of tobacco smoke or vaping on the immune system include greater susceptibility to infections such as pneumonia and the flu virus, and more severe and longer-lasting illnesses. Because it lowers levels of protective antioxidants such as vitamin C in the blood. It's a really good thing to eat a diet high in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Like any fighting force, the immune system army marches on its stomach. Healthy immune system warriors need good regular nourishment, and scientists have long recognized that people who live in poverty and are malnourished are more vulnerable to infectious diseases. So most people turn to vitamin C after they've caught, um, a cold, and that's because it helps build up your immune system. And vitamin C is thought to increase the production of white blood cells, and these are key to fighting infections. And if you think that citrus fruits have the most vitamin C of any fruit or vegetable, think again, because ounce for ounce, the red bell pepper contains twice as much vitamin C as citrus. And they're also a rich source of beta-carotene. And besides boosting your immune system, Vitamin C may help maintain healthy skin. And beta-carotene helps keep your eyes and skin healthy. Now broccoli is a great vegetable because it's supercharged with vitamins and minerals. It's packed with vitamins A, C, and E, as well as many other antioxidants and fibre. And broccoli is one of the healthiest vegetables you can put on your table. Now the key to keeping its power intact is to cook it as little as possible. So use a steamer or actually eat it raw. And another great product to add into your shopping basket is garlic because it's found in every cuisine in the world. It adds a little zing to food and it's a must-have for your health. And early civilizations recognized its value in fighting infections. Now, according to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, trusted source, Garlic may also help lower blood pressure and slow down hardening of the arteries, and garlic's immune-boosting properties seem to come from a heavy concentration of sulfur-containing compounds such as allicin. Another great one is ginger. It's great because it helps decrease inflammation, it helps reduce a sore throat and other inflammatory illnesses, and And it also helps to decrease nausea. It's used in many sweet desserts and it's a great thing to add into your drinks or your soups. And another great vegetable to put in your basket is spinach. It's because it's rich in vitamin C, it's also packed with numerous antioxidants and beta-carotene. Which increases the infection-fighting ability of our immune systems. And similar to broccoli, spinach is healthiest when it's cooked as little as possible, so it's great raw in your salads. And if you cook it with steaming it, it enhances the vitamin A, which is released from oxalic acid. I also suggest that you look out for yoghurts that have live and active cultures. Printed on the label like Greek yoghurt, and these cultures may stimulate your immune system to help fight diseases. So look for some plain yoghurts rather than the ones that are pre-flavoured and loaded with sugar, and you can sweeten your plain yoghurt yourself with healthy fruits and a drizzle of Manuka honey. It's a great source of vitamin D, so select brands fortified with vitamin D because that regulates the immune system and is thought to boost our body's natural defenses against diseases. So when it comes to preventing and fighting off colds, vitamin E tends to take a backseat to vitamin C. However, vitamin E is key to a healthy immune system. It's a fat-soluble vitamin, meaning it requires the presence of fat to be absorbed properly. So nuts such as almonds are packed with the vitamin and also have healthy fats. So a half a cup serving, which is about 46 whole shelled almonds, provides nearly 100% of the recommended daily amount of vitamin E. And you may know turmeric as a key ingredient in many curries, and this bright yellow bitter spice has also been used for years as an anti-inflammatory. A great drink is green and black teas. They're packed with flavonoids, which is a type of antioxidant. And where green tea really excels is in its levels of epigallocatechin gallate, or it's known as EGCG, because that's quite a bit of a mouthful, isn't it? Which is another powerful antioxidant. Now, this EGCG has been shown to enhance immune function. The fermentation process black tea goes through destroys a lot of the EGCG, so green tea, on the other hand, is steamed and not fermented, so the EGCG is preserved. Regular exercise is one of the pillars of healthy living. It improves cardiovascular health, It lowers blood pressure, it helps control your body weight, and protects against a variety of diseases. But does it help to boost your immune system naturally and keep it healthy? Just like a healthy diet, exercise can contribute to general good health and therefore to a healthy immune system. It may contribute even more directly by promoting good circulation, which allows the cells and substances of the immune system to move through the body freely and do their job efficiently. And keep your immunity up by drinking plenty of water to stave off infections. Staying hydrated helps your body naturally eliminate toxins and other bacteria that may cause illness. So we suggest that you reduce drinking alcohol because that means your liver has to work harder to remove the toxins. So water is pure and is much better for you. Sleep plays a vital role in good health and well-being throughout your life. Getting enough quality sleep at the right times can help prevent Protect your mental health, physical health, quality of life, and safety. During sleep, your body is working to support healthy brain function and maintain your physical health. To minimize stress, find an exercise routine or activity that you enjoy. Such as walking, dancing, yoga, Pilates, or activities such as jogging or cycling that involve repetitive movements of your large muscle groups because that's particularly stress-relieving. And meditation is essential to feel well and live a happy life. Meditation can help us to eliminate negative thoughts, worries, anxiety, All factors that can prevent us feeling happy. It has been proved that the practice of meditation carried out on a regular basis will mitigate the symptoms of stress and anxiety. And what makes you laugh? As you can see from this slide, the quote is, one minute of anger weakens the immune system for 4 to 5 hours. 1 minute of laughter boosts the immune system for 24 hours. So have you got a favourite comedian or comedienne? Have you got a favourite programme that makes you laugh? Is there a movie that makes you laugh? Because if there is, make sure that you schedule that into your weekly timetable and watch it And have a good laugh. And what kindness can you do today for yourself and then for others? Because as Marianne Williamson says, every act of kindness on your part is a boost to your own immune system. So here's to boosting your own immune system.

If you found this of interest and you've got any questions, please contact me at heather@heatherprince.co.uk. And if you'd like to arrange a free clarity conversation with me regarding any problems that you've got, then please don't hesitate to contact me and we can schedule that into the calendar.