5 Keys Ways To Boost Your Immune System

With everything going on in the world right now with Covid-19, it’s important to take good care of our health and our well-being. During this time, it’s important to stay calm and do everything we can to keep ourselves healthy and happy.

Today’s post is about 5 key things we can do everyday to improve our immune system. Most of them are no-brainers and are very easy to follow. Just like getting better at anything in life, consistency is key. In order to gain the maximum benefits from these tips, you should do them everyday.

One of the best things you should be doing at this time, (other than taking preventative measures like washing your hands and keeping distance between you and others) is to boost and strengthen your immune system.

So, I think it’s extremely important to talk about the daily habits you need to be doing every single day in order to get your body ready to fight off any infection that may come your way. It’s time to bulletproof your immune system!

DISCLAIMER: I AM NOT A LICENSED PROFESSIONAL. The information provided in this blog post is designed to provide helpful information on the subjects discussed. It is not meant to be used, nor should it be used, to diagnose or treat any medical condition. Please consult your own family physician before making any lifestyle changes.

1. Cold showers

This is an unusual one. Millions of people all over the world have already incorporated cold showers into their daily routines.

There are many benefits for taking cold showers such as it:

Reduces stress
Promotes weight loss
Increases willpower
Reduces depression
Improves skin and hair
Promotes faster muscle recovery
Causes higher levels of alertness

In fact, there was a study conducted in 2015 for 3,000 people who never took cold showers before. They took 90 second cold showers for just 30 days. The results were amazing! The researchers found 29% in sickness reduction. That is a high number.

So what’s going on in your body when you take cold showers?

Scientists have discovered that when you take cold showers, your body ends up producing more white blood cells. White blood cells are the soldiers of your immune system. They fight off intruders (sickness and infections) that may enter your body.

It might be hard to start taking cold showers, (I know it was for me) but it’s worth it in the long run. Especially with all the benefits that come with taking cold showers. It’s also kind of fun too! Challenge yourself the next time you take a shower to see if you can do it! You’ll surprise yourself. 😉

2. Reduce stress

Are you stressed out? lonely or depressed? Don’t be surprised if you come down with something. Stress weakens the immune system. Stress happens when life events surpass your ability to cope. It causes your body to produce a hormone called cortisol.

Cortisol isn’t all bad. It’s actually good for you in the short term because it helps your body reduce levels of inflammation throughout the body.

However, if you are stressed for long periods of time, your body will continue to produce cortisol and you will start building up an immunity to it.

Stress for long periods of time can damage your healthy cells and organs including your brain and heart. And that’s a hard thing for your body to deal with especially if it has to deal with an infection at the same time.

Which is why you need to be reducing your stress, and one of the best ways to do this is by meditating. Yup, meditating. It has been shown time and time again in numerous studies to significantly reduce levels of stress. Try it out!

3. Get enough high quality sleep

Everyone knows that lack of sleep causes a lot of problems. Your brain will fog, making it difficult to concentrate and make decisions. Lack of sleep also affects your overall health. It makes you more prone to illness and infections.

People who can get by on 4 hours of sleep sometimes brag about their strength. However, it isn’t healthy to have that much lack of sleep. Your body has RNR time when you are sleeping. Rest and repair, and it needs that time to fix damages and remove toxins from your body while you are sleeping.

Which is why it’s so important to give your body the proper amount of sleep. Which is anywhere between 6-10 hours a night. You should figure out exactly how much sleep you really need. Too much or too less can do more harm to you than good.

I need at least 7 hours of sleep every night. If I have less that 7 hours, I’m tired and if I have more than 7 hours, I’m groggy.

I used to think that sleeping less would help you be more productive. However, I quickly learned that wasn’t the case at all. Good quality sleep is what will help you become more productive throughout the day. It will also keep you in good health and keep your immune system at its best.

4. Moderate exercise

Ok, some of you may love to read this part because the keyword here is, “moderate” exercise. When it comes to strengthening your immune system, exercise is good for you, but only up to a certain point.

If you are working out too hard, it can actually hinder your immune system. Make sure you are getting some form of exercise every single day. I personally think 30 minutes of cardio is perfect for everyday to promote a good immune system.

Don’t push yourself way too hard and do a full body, 2 hour workout because research suggests that it will probably do more harm to you than good. Especially when it comes to fighting off infections.

Just focus on 30 minutes a day to start and focus on making that a daily habit. Regular, consistent exercise leads to substantial benefits in the immune system.

Remember, consistency is key. Just start small everyday and build on that.

5. Eat right and make sure you are well nourished

Focus on eating a well balanced diet that can provide you with all the nutrition you need. Everyone knows that food plays a big part in ones health. With the right kinds of food, you can strengthen your immune system with ease. This means you should be eating enough protein, enough healthy fats, leafy green vegetables and enough fruits every single day.

Here are some foods you should include in your diet to naturally boost and strengthen your immune system.

Eat citrus foods (for Vitamin C)
Eat garlic (anti-bacterial)
Drink hot lemon water in the morning (boosts your immune system and metabolism)
Eat more broccoli (for Vitamins C, A, E, and K and regulates blood sugar levels)
Eat yogurt (for Vitamin D)
Eat ginger (anti-inflammatory)
Drink green tea (antioxidants)
Drink turmeric water (I do this every morning, and it cleared my eczema and helped me strengthen my immune system. Anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, and anti-viral).

Our immune system’s job is to protect the body from disease causing micro-organisms. Our job is to protect our immune system. We need to be taking care of our bodies because our bodies do so much for us.

It keeps us alive and keeps us going. If we have a sick body, we won’t be able to live life the way we want. We live in our body!

It’s up to you to take care of your health. It doesn’t have to be hard! By implementing the tips above, you will already be on your way to strengthening your immune system which will lead to a healthy, happier you! 🙂

What tips do you have for strengthening your immune system? I’d love to hear in the comments below!