5 ways to help maintain immunity-Washington informant

2021-12-14 08:09:38 By : Ms. Linda Lee

In the past few years, you may have heard more about "immunization" than you have ever heard in your life, because we have been dealing with pandemics. To help everyone maintain a strong immune system in the coming months, let us highlight 5 simple ways you can do it!

Nutrition plays an important role in how the immune system works. You can support your immune system by consuming foods that provide these immune-enhancing nutrients every day. There are a few vitamins related to immunity, but the top three are vitamins C, E and B6. We should consume at least three minerals every day to help us maintain a strong immunity; selenium, zinc and copper.

Including more plant foods will help you get most of these vitamins and minerals, and it will automatically help you get more phytonutrients (plant compounds), these phytonutrients also help support the immune system, such as polyphenols, Flavonoids, carotenoids, phytoestrogens, to name a few!

So, with all this and more in mind, she offers 5 ways to help you maintain a strong immunity in the coming months:

#1 — Make half of fruits and vegetables!

When organizing or ordering, please consider whether half of your plate is composed of vegetables and fruits.

* If you eat eggs for breakfast, please add plenty of vegetables.

* If you eat oatmeal, yogurt or chia pudding for breakfast, make sure to include plenty of fruit.

* If you have a sandwich for lunch, put vegetables on half of it or set them aside as raw vegetables for chewing or as a delicious large salad.

* If you want to make pasta for dinner, be sure to fill half of your plate with broccoli, cauliflower or asparagus, or enjoy a dark green leafy salad.

* If you like to eat a few slices of pizza, put vegetables on the pizza and make sure to include dark green leafy salad or raw vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, and celery.

#2-Try to make all your grains and grain products be whole grains!

Choose whole wheat pasta instead of white pasta.

For example, choose brown rice, barley, and quinoa instead of white rice and processed grains.

Choose 100% whole wheat breads, tortillas and buns instead of refined flour products.

Whole wheat flour is mainly used in baking and cooking.

#3 — When it comes to your protein routine, get protein from various foods

* I try to include seafood several times a week. Canned or bagged tuna is important! Salmon is a great way to get high-quality protein, smart fat and fat-soluble vitamins.

* Find interesting ways to add high-protein plant foods such as beans/legumes/tofu/edamame in addition to or in place of meat several times a week.

* Enjoy a handful of nuts every day instead of potato chips and candies.

* Peanuts are the nut with the highest protein content! Choose a natural-style peanut butter (only peanuts and salt) and spread it on whole wheat bread, serve with celery, or stir it into oatmeal or a smooth bowl.

#4 — A healthy gut is essential for a healthy immune system

Basically, we want to feed the beneficial bacteria in the intestines, and then guess what they like? Fiber, especially soluble fiber! This is our problem... The typical Western diet (high fat, high sugar and low fiber) does not do well in this regard. The second thing to remember about a healthy gut is that it is best to have a diverse gut microbiome, because each bacterial strain is responsible for different things. Through a healthy diet (including lots of plant foods such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes and nuts/seeds) and regular exercise, we are helping to create a diverse microbiome.

When eating more fiber-rich foods, it is very important to do two things: drink plenty of water, because fiber needs water to perform its magic (especially soluble fiber combines with water to form a gel), and gradually increase fiber to Adjust your gastrointestinal time!

Here are some foods rich in soluble fiber

Whole grains: oats, barley

Fruits: apples, nectarines, apricots, avocados, passion fruit, guava, pears, oranges, pink grapes, figs

Vegetables: carrots, parsnips, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, sweet potatoes, radishes

Beans and legumes: common beans, fried beans, cranberry beans, kidney beans, French beans, mung beans, pinto beans, black beans, mung beans

Nuts and seeds: linseed, sunflower seed, hazelnut

#5-A lifestyle that is important to immunity

In addition to food choices, there are some things we can do, which also help maintain our immunity.

* Sleep and decompression: Adults should strive for 7-9 hours of sleep every night. To help you do this, if possible, put your phone aside one hour before bed, ask yourself "How can I make my day full of joy?" Then try to make it a reality!

* Exercise: At least 30 minutes of physical exercise 5 days a week!

* Quit smoking: You will smoke if you quit smoking, if you don't smoke, don't start!

* Limit alcohol: limit alcohol intake and avoid alcoholism. If you have not already drunk alcohol, please consider maintaining this state.

Immunity refers to the body's ability to resist infection and disease.

The immune system is a network of human cells, tissues, and organs that help prevent infections and diseases.

Our 70 types of immune cells live in our intestines, and research has linked many diseases to the integrity of the intestinal lining and intestinal bacteria.

The gut microbiome is a delicate balance of friendly and harmful microorganisms. Many of these trillions of microbes live in your small and large intestines. It is unique to you, similar to a fingerprint, it plays a vital role in our health and immunity.

Nice list! It is very difficult to stay healthy when income and budget are tight. I spent a lot of time figuring out how to live within my means. You have explained the simple things that everyone can do. Thanks for sharing.

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