This is something I would have been writing about in a couple months for the flu/winter season coming up but now is a great time to look at these with the Covid-19 corona virus spreading around the world. We have been fortunate here in New Zealand to limit it and slow it down so much so the medical system can cope with it, but it’s important we still take care of our own health. Here are some great things to help your immune system. Some you know already, and some may just be reminder but still important to consider giving a little more focus and time to them ..
Wash your hands. Winter illnesses are easily spread by hands. Wash both sides of the hands and between the fingers for at least 20 seconds, use soap, and dry hands with a paper towel or clean dry towel.
Lower the lid on the toilet before flushing. Germs and more can go through the air and land up to a 2 metres away if you leave the toilet lid up while flushing. That could be landing on your toothbrush or more…
Quit Smoking/Breathe clean air. If not for yourself then do it for the people around you. One study showed that 75% of children with asthma had at least one parent that smoked. Another study showed Passive smoking (second hand smoke) causes respiratory illness, asthma, poor growth, neurological disorders, and coronary heart diseases. No matter your age, you can do it if you want. Quitline has some great support.
For many people, the money saved from not smoking will easily pay for a weekly massage! How’s that for a great reward that also reduces your stress? 🙂
Another interesting note, studies are also linking asthma to being around chemical cleaning supplies.
Consume great nutrients. This greatly improves immune function and helps to manage your mood if experiencing stress and/or anxiety.
The first step to good nutrition is to remove the highly processed foods from your kitchen. This will allow room for nutrient dense, fresh foods. Eat plenty of veggies, leafy greens, healthy fats, and natural protein rich foods like nuts and fresh meats.
This is where ensuring you are getting at least 6 servings of vegetables per day to get the vital micro-nutrients, and even supplementing with a good quality greens powder can be awesome. (If you buy The Good Green Stuff online use code ‘health4you’ to get a 10% discount.)
The following 5 tips is from a medical doctor that I’ve shared before in a previous post. Consider keeping your immune system even more supported with the following nutritional supplements to give your body even more antiviral defense. There are also some links to order some towards the bottom of this post.
- Fish oil – Omega-3 essential fatty acids have a host of immune benefits too long to list!
- Probiotics – One study showed a dramatic reduction in fever and upper respiratory symptoms in children who took a probiotic with a combination of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium daily throughout the cold and flu season. Probiotics are why fermented foods pack such a punch, so if your child’s palate hasn’t expanded yet to include a lot of fermented foods, be sure to give her a probiotic supplement to keep her gut and immune system healthy!
- Vitamin C – Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant which assists our ability to ward off and deal with infection.
- Vitamin D3 – There is speculation that rates of illness increase over the winter because of the widespread deficiency of Vitamin D. Vitamin D deficiency may be one of the risk factors for sepsis. Studies have shown that people supplemented with adequate levels of Vitamin D3 during the cold and flu season had significantly lower rates of infection. Vitamin D3 increases our body’s production of cathelicidin, an antimicrobial compound, to help fight viral and bacterial infections. The Vitamin D Council recommends a maintenance dosage of 1000IU of Vitamin D3 per 25 pounds of body weight (the dosage may be higher in people with Vitamin D deficiency, which is epidemic and can be measured through an easy blood test). **Vitamin D3 is one of the supplements that I am “religious” about giving to my kids.**
- Zinc – Zinc is required for the normal functioning of white blood cells. Supplementing with just 15mg of zinc per day in adults has been found to improve our immune cells’ ability to ward off infection.
I’ve arranged with one of the NZ supplement distributors to get you 20% off retail price of some of these supplements. Scroll to the bottom of this article to order them to be shipped to you. Please only order enough for you and your family for a couple months so others may order them soon also. If they are out of stock you can order it and they will ship it to you as soon as they receive more in stock.
Stay hydrated! Sure you might not be sweating much, but you’re still using and losing fluids just by breathing and moving around normally.
Make it a priority to drink 500ml of water before breakfast. Keep a bottle of water with you and sip from it frequently all day. Feeling tired or headachy? Staying well hydrated will give you more energy, mental clarity and enhanced digestive function.
Stay active! A 30-minute walk, or similar activity, outside gives you some fresh air and helps your body get stronger. The sunlight also helps keep us healthy. There are plenty of areas in NZ to explore outdoors with only a few people around so you don’t need to worry about big crowds.
Massage. Regular massage and lymphatic drainage helps increase circulation and lymphatic flow while reducing stress levels. All of these help your immune system work better. Book in for a few sessions now. I can bring my essential oil diffuser with oils that have anti-viral and antibiotic properties. If you prefer to come to me at my home office in Okura I can also have one of those germ killing UV lights running in the room in addition to the diffuser. 🙂
Click the link above to book in, or call/text 022-6274400 (including if you have questions for me. Leave a message with your name and number if I don’t answer.
Make sure to apply several of these immune boosting tips to help your immunes system and to also lower stress and anxiety levels!
Here are some the supplements I’ve arranged for you to get at 20% off retail. Just click on the image or Supplement name to add each one to your shopping cart with Pacific Health.
Lifestream Advanced Probiotics MOOD+IMMUNE is a revolutionary product with clinically researched strains of beneficial bacteria that support a healthy digestive system and immune response, and also supports the two way connection our gut fosters with our mental health and wellbeing.
The mind-gut axis is a two way highway between our digestive system and parts of our mind which control our nervous system and our emotions. Current research highlights the need for specific strains of bacteria in our gut being present to support healthy mood responses to stressful situations. A stressful situation can have a knock on effect to our digestive system with some people experiencing changes to their bowel habits, and compromising our immune system defences leading to days off school or work.
3 Immunity Supporters
Magnesium and Zinc, Vit C, and Omega 3’s
Click on any one of the next 3 to add all 3 to your cart. You can remove what you don’t need.
Solgar’s Calcium, Magnesium plus Zinc is a balanced mineral formulation providing multiple forms of these important minerals to increase absorption and metabolism. These minerals are involved in numerous metabolic pathways. Mineral deficiencies are increasingly common in New Zealand. Calcium, Magnesium and Zinc are three of the most important minerals, crucial for bone health, hormonal balance and the healthy function of the heart and nervous system. They work together to the building blocks the health of musculoskeletal and nervous systems. Vegan friendly
SANDERSON® Ester-Plex™ 1300mg is a very high strength, easy to swallow vitamin C which contains the same natural metabolites as our chewable product to ensure optimum bio-availability to the body, so that the vitamin C is absorbed better than ordinary vitamin C. The vitamin C in Ester-Plex™ is also buffered to reduce the chance of gastric upset. Ester-Plex™ 1300mg also contains the natural fruit co-factors rich in vitamin C including Acerola Cherry, Citrus Bioflavanoids, Rosehips and Camu Camu. Vitamin C is not made in the body and has to be taken in food or supplements. SANDERSON® Ester-Plex™ is a potent immune support, an effective antioxidant, and may be beneficial as a support in recovery from injury or at times of stress when the need for vitamin C increases.
Good Health Omega 3 Fish Oil 1500 mg, contains oil from unfarmed, cold water fish. This premium high potency fish oil, contains higher levels of EPA and DHA to meet the necessary requirements of supporting health with a higher level of demand.
Key features
- Sourced from responsible sustainable fishing practices
- Provides a primary source of omega 3 fatty acids EPA and DHA which have been shown to have anti-arrhythmic, antithrombotic and antiinflammatory effects.
- Quality testing – testing after purification ensures the product is well within international quality standards at the time of manufacture, ensuring high quality health oils.
- Promotes cardiovascular, joint and nervous system health
The omega 3 content of the fish oil is tested, using international methods, ensuring that the required levels of purity and quality, comply with stringent, regulatory standards. Good Health use specific testing laboratories for these tests, accredited by the TGA (Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration) and IANZ (International Accreditation NZ).
Harker Immune Boost and Sanderson Pro-Immune FX
Let me know if there’s anything else you’d like and I’ll see what I can source.
Sources:
https://healthykidshappykids.com/2020/02/27/coronavirus-covid-19/
https://www.healthnavigator.org.nz/healthy-living/tips-for-healthy-living/w/winter-tips-for-staying-well/
https://www.bodyandsoul.com.au/health/vitality-for-life/20-easy-winter-health-tips/news-story/c17a7c3b6d43b92477da4b3319608dd4
http://www.holisticperformancenutrition.com/articles–media/ways-to-support-your-immunity-this-winter
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24485173
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23042595
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19205284
Wintergerst ES, Maggini S, Hornig DH. Immune-enhancing role of vitamin C and zinc and effect on clinical conditions. Ann Nutr Metab. 2006;50(2):85-94.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22775448
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8707483
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15256294