Wendy Schnitzer

Boost Your Immunity Naturally to Sail Through the Cold and Flu Season!  

Has the whole country gone crazy? Our local supermarket was advertising the availability of flu shots last week and while I am glad people are thinking about protecting themselves during the cold and flu season, I am praying that they are not relying on the flu vaccine as the ultimate solution.

So what is the best protection? The answer is proper support of what your body already does on its own--because when the body is treated correctly, it will heal itself.

Here are some simple lifestyle strategies that you can use to naturally boost your immunity:

1. Optimize your vitamin D. Vitamin D is actually a "pro-hormone". You've probably heard about it for bone health, but it is also a powerful immune modulator. Optimal blood levels of vitamin D are 60 ng/ml (be sure to ask for the proper test: 25-hydroxyvitamin D). Ideally, spend 20 minutes a day in the sunshine without sunscreen. If this isn't possible due to your weather or work schedule then you will want to supplement with Vitamin D. A good maintenance dose is 2000 iu daily and if you are working to raise your level the recommendation is 10,000 iu daily for 1-3 months and retest.
2. Stress Less! Stress lowers natural killer cell activity and depletes vitamin C. What to do? Bust a gut... a bit of daily laughter raises natural killer cells and interferon. Click here for an article on 10 Ways to Reduce Stress without Spending a Dime. 
3. Sleep Deep! Just one night of poor sleep raises stress hormones and impairs immune function. Step one is making sure that you are MAKING TIME for 7-9 hours of high quality sleep nightly.
4. Kick the sugar habit. 75 grams of sugar (i.e., 300 calories or the equivalent of most desserts) can lower the ability of white blood cells to kill germs by as much as 40%. Time to make a lateral shift - check out the immune boosting dessert below...
5. And speaking of fruits, be sure you are getting in your rainbow of fruits and veggies daily for the natural antioxidants, anti-viral and anti-bacterial effects, anti-inflammatories and Vitamin C.
6. Supplement your fruits and veggies with some extra Vitamin C. It takes 18 small oranges to reach the 1000 IU dose that is optimal during cold and flu season. Vitamin C boosts your body's ability to produce antibodies and other immune system cells, is antiviral AND reduces the severity of the common cold. The easiest and tastiest way I have found to get my daily dose is by using Emergen-C packets or their new Emergen-C shots (try the Immune+ one).
7. Burst to blast fat AND boost your immune system. Steady state endurance training creates more oxidative stress on the body and has been found to lower immune system functioning immediately post exercise. Not so with high intensity interval training (i.e., do an all-out burst for 30-60 seconds, recover for twice as long and repeat to accumulate 4-8 minutes of all-out bursts). This type of exercise teaches your body how to handle stress better and raises growth hormone so incorporate it into your schedule three days a week. And don't use the "time excuse"; you only need 4 minutes to make a significant difference!

Eating health-promoting foods that increase immune function is a major factor in preventing flu and colds. That's because it's not just a viral infection in your upper respiratory system that causes a cold - it's your body's susceptibility to the virus that really counts. Getting important immune-supporting nutrients from your food, while reducing your intake of food additives that can stress your body, is a very important step in promoting health, both in cold and flu season, as well as throughout the year.

Filled with immune boosting ingredients like five-spice powder, scallions, boy choy and peppers, this soup is a healthy spicy twist on the classic chicken noodle soup.

5-Spice Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe

                        * 8 ounce(s) chicken, cooked, cubed
                        * 4 cup(s) organic chicken broth
                        * 2 scallion(s) (green onions), thinly sliced
                        * 2 teaspoon tamari soy sauce
                        * 2 clove(s) garlic, minced, minced
                        * 1/2 teaspoon five-spice powder
                        * 1/4 teaspoon ginger, ground or 1/2
                        -- teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
                        * 2 cup(s) bok choy, chopped
                        * 1 medium pepper(s), red, bell, thinly sliced
                        * 2 ounce(s) soba noodles, dried,
                        -- broken in 2-inch lengths

1. In a large saucepan combine water, chicken broth, green onions, soy
sauce, garlic, five-spice powder, and ginger. Bring to boiling, Stir in bok
choy, sweet pepper strips, and noodles. Return to boiling; reduce heat. Boil
gently, uncovered, for 3 to 5 minutes or until noodles are just tender. Stir
in the cooked chicken, heat through.
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Did you know that, compared to other fruits and vegetables, apples have been found to be most consistently associated with a reduced risk of cancer, heart disease, asthma and type 2 diabetes? The total antioxidant activity of 100 grams of whole apple (with peel) was found to be equivalent to the antioxidant effect of about 1,500 mg of vitamin C!

This is a great way to start the day or end a meal!

Prep and Cook Time: 10 minutes Ingredients: 2 apples 2 TBS almond butter 1/4 cup maple syrup 1-1/2 tsp almond extract 2 TBS sliced almonds 2 TBS grated coconut

Directions:

1. Coarsely chop almonds and set aside for topping.
2. In a small mixing bowl, blend the almond butter, maple syrup, and almond extract until smooth. It should be the consistency of caramel sauce.
3. Cut the apples into quarters and core. Then cut the quarters into 3 pieces lengthwise and 1/4-inch pieces crosswise. Place in two serving bowls.
4. Drizzle the suace over the two bowls of apples and top with almonds and coconut.

Need ideas for dinner??? Check out what I am cooking at my new blog ... http://fitfoodcoach.wordpress.com