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Immune Defence from Kitchen and Garden

Many of the ingredients that may contribute to strengthening our immune systems to help us fight disease can be found in our homes. As well as taking in the right nutrients, herbs & spices, it is important to understand some of the situations that can impact our immune system positively & also help moderate & manage stress.

Back to basics – home and garden: fresh air, moderate sunshine, moderate appropriate exercise, good sleep, rest & relaxation, good social interactions & relationships, engaging in hobbies you enjoy, laughter! Activities such as Meditation, Yoga, Tai Chi, Dancing & Singing can help us to manage stress & boost our immune & brain health. Healthy digestion & a healthy gut microbiome are also important for good immune function. Additionally, there are remedies we can add to help boost our immunity.

The kitchen: More detailed information on the benefits of most these ingredients can be found in individual blogs I have written over the years (see the link at the end). Whilst none of these ingredients are curative or preventative of disease, they may help to modulate a healthier immune system & should be part of a broad & varied diet if you can tolerate them & they are not medically restricted. Some ingredients are listed for their anti-microbial properties:

Black Pepper
Brown Rice
Cacao (raw)
Cayenne Pepper
Cinnamon
Garlic
Ginger
Gut Matters
Lemons
Manuka Honey
Oats
Parsley
Rosemary
Selenium
Sweet Potatoes
Spirulina
Tumeric

Include foods with ‘anti-viral’ properties in your diet:

Brazil nuts for selenium
Citrus fruits for vitamin C, nutrients are richest if picked when ripe
Carrots for beta carotene
Fruit & vegetables for zinc, though our soil is quite depleted
Garlic & onions, ginger, tumeric (commonly used in curries)
Green tea
Spirulina has a unique blend of nutrients that no single source can offer, including B vitamins, minerals, proteins, gamma-linolenic acid & the super antioxidants, such as beta-carotene, vitamin E, trace elements & a number of unexplored bioactive compounds.
Whole grains, including brown rice for B vitamins, meat or marmite for B12

Remedies that may help in addition to a good diet:

Vitamin C in small regular doses or time release, D, selenium, zinc
Vitamin B3 (Nicotinamide), B6 (P5P), B12 (Cobalamin), C & flavinoids in citrus fruits
A mixture of amino acids lysine, proline & N-acetylcysteine, vitamin C (ascorbic acid), selenium mineral & green tea extract was shown to inhibit influenza.
A mixture of Vitamin A & beta carotene, some B’s (particularly B12), E with minerals magnesium, selenium & zinc was as effective as pharmaceutical anti-viral drugs against bird flu
A mixture of coenzyme Q10, selenium & amino acid methionine helped recurrent viral infections
Astragalus, caprylic acid, Chinese herbs (many varieties), cordyceps militaris (mushroom variety), curcumin (tumeric), dandelion extract, echinacea, gardenia, liquorice root (avoid in raised blood pressure)
Specialist/homeopathic remedies can be tested on request