You just had a meeting with your old pals in which one of them was ill with severe cold and fever. Later in the evening, you started developing the symptoms too. Your body aches, and a round of unlimited sneezes starts. You picked the phone up and checked with other friends, and they were all feeling great. So what happened to you?

You caught a cold, maybe because you had a low immune system. A germ was powerful enough to get into your body, and the natural prevention mechanism could not fight it. Now you know what happened, so wouldn't you want to prevent it from happening again? Definitely, you would.

There are two ways to boost your immunity. One is natural, and the other is through medicines. Health researchers always emphasize that beneficial nutrients like flavonoids, carotenoids, minerals, and antioxidants are best received by a human body with a natural resource like food and not supplements or medicines. This, in return, helps boost the immune system and prevents us from the seasonal flu, cold, cough, and hay fever.

So, let us explore more ways to boost immunity naturally.

#1: Fruits

Fruits are a rich source of fiber and provide a wide range of immunity-boosting antioxidants and flavonoids. Fruits rich in vitamin C wipes free radicals from the body that damage the body cells and weaken the immune system. If that is not enough, citrus fruits have anti-cancer, anti-bacterial, and anti-diabetic properties.

Phytochemicals like folic acid, vitamin C, potassium, and pectin present in citrus fruits like strawberries, oranges, grapefruits, and lemons make them natural disease-fighting fruits. According to researchers, these fruits prevent cell-damage, increase collagen production, lower stress hormones, and improve eyesight.

Additionally, blueberries are low in calories but loaded with antioxidants that boost your overall health. A plant pigment flavonoid called 'quercetin' present in apple skin reduces inflammation from the body, thus increasing immunity.

Fruits are a powerhouse of energy and natural sources of multi-vitamins, but the frequency is the key to witnessing results. Add a different combination of these fruits in your daily life and see cough, cold, and flu at an arm's length.

#2-Vegetables

A healthy immune system can be maintained using a plant-based source of nutrients. Their anti-microbial and anti-viral properties also help us fight infections and seasonal diseases.

Luckily, this natural immunity-boosting food can become a regular part of our life in the form of yummy recipes. In this way, our body's nutritional needs will be met in flavorful ways with increased immunity benefits.

With potent antioxidants and vitamin C, broccoli can be taken in creamy and filling soups or sautéed sides with steaks. Sweet potatoes rich in beta-carotene (a type of antioxidant) can be an 11 am or 5 pm snack for us. Spinach has many essential nutrients like carotenoids, Vitamin C and E, and flavonoids that maintain a healthy immune system. It can be taken in salads, soups, or zucchini bites as snacks.

We know of ginger and garlic as a taste enhancer in our daily recipes. Still, we don't see that they contain many anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory properties that fight seasonal ailments. Some people also refer to them as natural anti-biotic because of their amazing medicinal properties.

It is common to consume them with food, but you can also make tea by simmering them with cinnamon sticks. This tea is not only flavorful, but it helps soothe cold, flu and relieves throat pain as well.

#3-Spices

Nutrients become more powerful when they come from food. There is nothing that can replace a wholesome diet. What makes our diet tasty is the spices. But what if our spices boost our immunity while adding flavor to our meals? Sounds cool.

Well, studies show that the spices like cloves, thyme, oregano, cumin, and cinnamon contain anti-microbial properties that not only boost immunity but prevent the growth of food spoiling bacteria in our food.

 Talking about spices and their contribution to our health, a discussion can not be wrapped up without the golden spice called "Turmeric." Turmeric has endless benefits due to its medicinal and antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties. It reduces swelling, inflammation, osteoarthritis pain, cough, and cold symptoms.

More to the surprising facts, an effective anticarcinogen called curcumin present in Turmeric helps prevent cancer.

#4-Seeds

The small treats packed in their unique natural shells are the powerhouse of essential nutrients, vitamins, and minerals. As per experts, immunity is never achieved overnight. It's a daily work in progress, and it is built over time with a proper healthy diet.

All seeds have their unique benefits, but these 4 super seeds are known as immunity boosters - Chia, Pumpkin, Flax, and Sesame seeds. These super seeds are super nourishing. They contain iron, calcium, thiamine, manganese, magnesium, zinc, phosphorous, omega-3, omega-6 fatty acids, and several minerals and vitamins to build a healthy immune system.

They are yummy and nutty in flavor to be consumed alone. However, you can also add them to your morning cereal bowl or in smoothies too.

#5-Drinks

We are lucky that health comes to us in different appealing options. The only important thing is how we incorporate those options into our daily lives. It is almost impossible for busy individuals to follow a proper immunity boosting meal plan. But what is easier is to gulp down a potent drink that fills and fulfills the body's needs. With drinks, it just becomes an unavoidable option 'on the go.' Immunity boosting green smoothies or shakes with fruits and vegetables rich in nutrition can be made part of our breakfast very easily. 

A rich source of vitamin C is orange juice. It can be drunk at any time of the day to ward off cold, flu, and hay fever as it is the best natural immunity booster.

Furthermore, green tea or lemongrass tea can be taken after meals as a source of antioxidants and other bioactive compounds.

#6-Sleep

For an adult to maintain well-being, it is mandatory to sleep 7 hours every night. Good sleep not only improves immunity but also increases daytime productivity. A lethargic sleep-deprived body can not participate in active cerebral tasks, let alone fight diseases.

Sleep is an essential natural state of a body neglecting which may show worst effects on your over health and immune system. Poor sleep can increase blood pressure, inflammation, insulin resistance, weight gain, and cardiovascular disease and decrease blood sugar regulation.

Even after a hectic day, if one struggles to sleep peacefully, natural sleep inducers like chamomile tea or lavender tea or their extracts calm the body and mind and regulate the body's hormonal system.

#7- Exercise

Movement is part of our life. But the daily movement that includes doing chores, running errands, or even casual walks does not count as exercise unless the physical activity increases energy in your body and you burn calories through some vigorous steps.

Exercise is a natural way to maintain a perfect internal and external body and prevent various diseases. A daily exercise routine increases the body's stamina, improves the blood circulation in the body, strengthens the heart and pumping function, improves oxygen circulation, burns excessive body fats, improves mood, and boosts energy and cerebral processes. The benefits of exercise go on and on.

According to the Department of Health and Human Services, one should spend up to 75 minutes a week on vigorous exercise and 150 minutes a week on aerobics to maintain good health. One should also attempt to incorporate different exercises for different body parts and increase weekly exercise time to witness proper health benefits.

It is a fact that physical activity improves oxygen circulation in the body by flushing out bacteria from the lungs and airways. This also eliminates the chance of getting a cough, cold, flu, and other ailments.

White blood cells present in the human body are also known as immune system cells that fight diseases. Daily exercises activate movement in these white blood cells and cause a change in antibodies. As a result, they circulate faster in the body and detect illness earlier than they might have before.

This shows how important it is to exercise daily for a healthier and responsive immune system.

Conclusion

Your body's health should be your top priority. To achieve health goals, one must take the necessary measures. However, consuming healthy food and maintaining a healthy diet are not the only factors to a healthy immune system. Other aspects like avoiding unhealthy food, smoking, and alcohol consumption are strictly necessary as they can ruin your efforts for days in minutes.

Awareness is the key to be aware of other lifestyle practices like maintaining proper oral and physical hygiene to fend off diseases.

Stress management is also another major factor that evaporates immunity in minutes and welcomes diseases related to stress within no time. Hence, maintaining a proper work-life balance and reducing stress-causing aspects in our life contributes to building a better immune system.

                     How To Boost Your Immune System Naturally!