The immune system plays a vital role in our overall health and wellness. The sole purpose of the immune system is to keep the body free of infections. It works hard to keep infectious bacteria, viruses, and fungi out of the body along with destroying any infectious things that are able to invade the body.
The immune system is made up of cells, proteins, tissues, and organs that work together to ward of infections. The cells that are involved are white blood cells or leukocytes. The leukocytes are broken into two categories of cells, the phagocytes and the lymphocytes. Each type of cell plays an important role in the fight. The phagocytes are cells that destroy organisms invading the body. The lymphocytes are cells that allow the body to recognize and remember previous invading organisms. This memory allows the body a one up on fighting the invading organisms; because the body was able to defeat them once before it stores that information and is able to apply it the second time around.
The more you can do to keep your immune system healthy and functioning properly, the better you will feel. The immune system needs to be fueled properly in order to function well. Taking multivitamin increases the body’s immune function substantially by supplying it with all the needed vitamins and minerals. Some of the most important vitamins and minerals to consume in adequate amounts are vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin B6, zinc, selenium, and iron.
Instead of trying to take many different supplements to receive enough of these vitamins and minerals, consider getting them directly from the source. Oranges, spinach, mushrooms, and fish are great foods to consume that have large quantities of needed vitamins and minerals. Yogurt is also a great addition to your diet because of its probiotics, which provide the body with good bacteria. Green tea and dark chocolate are also of great help to the body by providing antioxidants which help fight cell oxidation. Helping your immune system can also be as simple as adding more garlic and ginger to your meals. Garlic contains allicin, which helps fight infection and ginger is an antioxidant and also helps activate T-cells, which are needed to fight off infections.
Immune Boosting Recipes
Below are four recipes that incorporate immune-boosting foods. Try one today!
DARK CHOCOLATE BERRY PARFAIT
CHICKEN STIR-FRY WITH GARLIC SAUCE
NUTRIENT PACKED SMOOTHIE
GINGER AND GARLIC GLAZED SALMON
Boosting your immune system is easy. Adding in a multivitamin into your daily routine or trying to include more fish into your diet is all that it takes to see some results. Small changes or additions to the diet can have a big effect on the immune system. The more immune boosting changes you make the stronger your immune system will be!
