The old adage. An apple a day keeps the doctor away is absolutely true. But have you ever stopped and wondered what it really means?
What we eat affects our health, physically as well as mentally. If you eat nutritious food, you will have a sound body and mind. A healthy and balanced diet gives you the strength to fight when your body is under attack. And that strength lies within your immunity.
What do you know about Immunity??
Your immune system is critical to keep your body protected from the endless diseases and viruses that you might encounter in your daily lives. Conversely, a weak immune system is a welcome invitation to various illnesses. From what you have read so far, you understand that building a robust immune system is crucial.
But before we look into how do you build a strong immune system, let’s understand a few basics of our immune system.
How does the Immune system work?
The immune system comprises various organs, cells, and proteins that work in unison to protect your body against invaders. Your immune system can recognize foreign substances when they invade your body. These foreign substances are called antigens.
When antigens attach themselves to special receptors present in the cells of your immune system, it triggers a series of reactions in your body. Fever, headache, body pain are signs of your body constantly fighting against various bacteria, viruses, and foreign cells.
Did you know, every person typically has 2 types of immune systems throughout their lifetime?
1. Innate Immune System
The innate immune system is a child’s rapid response to the attack of any foreign cells in their body. A child is born with it, and it is essential for your child’s well-being when they are young.
2. Acquired Immune System
As the name suggests, this immune system is developed over time through vaccines and exposure. For, e.g., You only get chickenpox once in your lifetime. But, once you get them, your immune system figures out the antibodies for chickenpox and attacks them even at the slightest of reappearance.
How to make our immune system strong?
Once your immune cells have figured a way to defeat cells of any particular disease, they store that information so the next time you are under attack by the same kind of antigens, no time is lost in figuring out a response.
Currently, we are long under a global pandemic. If it has taught us anything, it is that building a strong immunity goes a long way. The stronger your immune system, the better will be its fighting capacity against any kind of attack.
There are no secrets here that you already don’t know of. A healthy, balanced, nutritious diet, the right amount of exercise, and healthy lifestyle choices can make your immune system strong.
Incorporating the recommended amount of fruits, vegetables, and pulses in your diet can go a long way. But, unfortunately, in most scenarios, our diets fail to give us our body’s required intake of nutrients. This is why including vitamins, minerals, and supplements in your diet can give you that extra fighting strength for the long run.
Can vitamins boost your immunity?
The answer is a strong YES! The deficiency of even a single nutrient can alter your immune response against invaders. Studies show that the deficiency of zinc, folic acid, copper, vitamins A, B6, C, D and E, can alter your immune response.
Let us look at 3 essential vitamins that can boost your immunity:
1. Vitamin C
Did you know, our bodies cannot make vitamin C? Hence, daily intake of Vitamin C is essential.
Vitamin C is one of your most needed vitamins; they promote growth, repair, wear and tear of your body. Vitamin C is also critical for some of the most important functions, such as iron absorption, proper functioning of the immune system, and collagen formation.
Citrus fruits like oranges, grapes, leafy vegetables like spinach, broccoli, and potatoes are your primary source of Vitamin C. Furthermore, supplements can help meet your body’s Vitamin C requirements.
At Foresta Organics, we created ‘Immune Health’- all-natural supplements derived from Tulsi, Amla, Curcumin, and Giloy. In this, Amla is present in adequate amounts for your daily requirement.
2. Vitamin B6
Research shows that Vitamin B6 is vital to support the biochemical reactions in your immune system. In addition, studies amongst older adults show that low levels of Vitamin B6 directly alter your immune response.
A common notion is that vegetarians and vegans find it challenging to include Vitamin B6 in their diet. Although Vitamin B6 is more prevalent in non-vegetarian food items like chicken, seafood like salmon and tuna, green leafy vegetables and chickpeas are also excellent sources of Vitamin B6.
3. Vitamin A
This potent Vitamin is found to be great at fighting off infections that invade your body. Vitamin A is crucial for your immune system and plays a vital role in improving your vision and regular functioning of various organs like the heart, lungs, and kidneys.
Carrots, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, spinach, and bell peppers can do the trick for people who have vegetarian and vegan diets. For non-vegetarians, fish, meat, dairy products are excellent sources of Vitamin A.
The Bottom Line
With new diseases like COVID-19 constantly popping up, it is only right that we take care of your body. No shortcut or magic pill can strengthen your immunity in a jiffy. It is a conscious journey that you should embark on today.
