Immune system plays a vital role in keeping you healthy. Nobody enjoys being sick, and your immune system works tirelessly every day even when you’re not thinking about it to protect you. To keep it strong and effective, you need to nourish it with the right foods and care.

Good food is like the shield and sword for your body defense. Some people think vitamins pills is enough, but food is the true base for strong immune.

Top Foods to Strengthen Immune System

Below are some of the best foods that help your body fight off colds, flu and other sickness, and how they work in our daily lives.

1. Citrus fruits for vitamin C power

When many people catch a cold, first thing they look for is vitamin C. Citrus fruits like orange, grapefruit, lemon and lime are packed with it. Vitamin C is known to help make more white blood cells, which are main fighters against infection.

Eating fresh orange in the morning or adding lemon slice in warm water is an easy habit that can be accomplished within few minutes. Do not only wait till you are sick before eating them. Taking it daily keeps your vitamin C level stable. Some people think only orange has vitamin C but kiwi and papaya are also strong.

2. Garlic.

Garlic has been used for medicine for long time, maybe since time immemorial. It contain a compound called allicin. This is what give garlic its strong smell and strong immune effect.

Crush or chop fresh garlic and let it sit few minutes before cooking. It helps release the good stuff. Add it to soups, rice, or roasted veggies. Some people even chew raw garlic but that can be too strong for stomach. Either way, regular use is what matters, because it works magic

3. Ginger to fight inflammation

Ginger is another root with powerful benefits. It helps reduce inflammation, which means less swelling in the body when you fight infections.

Ginger tea is great if you have sore throat or feel cold. Fresh ginger can be grated into stir fry or blended in smoothies.

If you not use ginger before, start small because the flavor is sharp. But it warms you up and can calm stomach also. It is very good for the body and also works magic in keeping the body’s immune systems stable.

4. Leafy greens and other colorful veggies.

Spinach, kale, and other dark green vegetables give your immune system a big amount of nutrients.

They are full of vitamin A, C, and also iron and folate. It is highly advised you eat them lightly cooked or even raw so they keep the vitamins.

Bright vegetables like red bell pepper also have lots of vitamin C, even more than orange. Mixing colors on your plate is highly advised because, the more colors you mix, the more variety of vitamins and antioxidants.

5. Nuts and seeds for vitamin E

Vitamin E is not talk about as much as vitamin C, but it is a strong antioxidant too. Almonds, sunflower seeds, hazelnuts are all good. They give healthy fats that help vitamins absorb better. A small quantity of mixed nuts as snack is enough. Do not over eat it. This is  because nuts are high in calories, but the good fat is important for cell health.

6. Yogurt and fermented foods

Your gut is a big part of your immune system. Healthy gut bacteria keeps harmful germs in check. Yogurt with live culture, kefir, and fermented foods like kimchi provide probiotics.

When buying yogurt, choose plain ones without added sugar because sugar can lower immunity. You can sweeten it with fruits or a bit honey if you like. Remember not to over sugar it, as it may reduce the immune system boost.

7. Lean proteins for antibodies

Protein is needed to make antibodies, which are the proteins that fight infections. Lean meats, poultry, fish, beans, lentils and eggs all give high quality protein sources.

Fish like salmon also provide omega 3 fatty acids, which help reduce inflammation. If you are vegetarian, mix beans with grains to get full range of amino acids your body need.

8. Green tea and herbal teas

Green tea has antioxidants called catechins. These help your body fight viruses and also reduce inflammation. Hot tea also keeps you hydrated and warm, which is nice in cold season.

You can add lemon or a little honey for taste. Herbal teas like chamomile or peppermint can soothe throat and relax you, which is also good for immune system because it reduces stress rapidly.

9. Berries for antioxidant punch

Blueberries, strawberries, blackberries they all bring lots of antioxidants and vitamin C. They help fix cell damage caused by free radicals.

Fresh berries are best but frozen berries also keep most nutrients. Add them to yogurt, oatmeal or just eat it alone as snack.

10. Water (Very Important)

Sometimes we forget the basic things which is very essential to our body systems. Your body cells need water to function well. Staying hydrated help your blood carry nutrients and flush out toxins. Warm water with lemon is perfect in morning. At least 8 glasses of water a day is okay, but listen to your body.

While these foods help a lot, they are only part of the full picture. Sleep is big factor. If you do not get enough sleep, your immune system gets weak fast. Try to get a sleep of about seven to eight hours most nights.

Exercise also keeps your immune cells active. Even short daily walk is good. And try to reduce stress. Long stress make your body produce hormone that lower immunity.

Also, remember that balance is key. Eating too much of one food will not give extra protection. Variety is important because different nutrients work together. For example, vitamin C help iron absorb, and healthy fats help vitamins A, D, E, K absorb better.

Here, let us devise a simple way to combine these foods in one day, so you can be able to get a maximum result.

• In the morning, take warm water with lemon, bowl of oatmeal topped with blueberries and a handful almonds.
• In the afternoon, you can take spinach salad with grilled chicken, slices of orange, sprinkle of sunflower seeds.
• For snacks, yogurt with fresh strawberries is good.
• For dinner, salmon with garlic and ginger stir fry veggies are best combos
• Green tea and plenty water is highly advised throughout the day.

Also, you can adjust for your taste or what is in season. The main thing is variety and regular intake.

In Conclusion

For your immune system to have a long life span, feed it daily with nutrient and rich foods.

Staying active and sleeping well is very important too. Little steps like adding extra garlic in your soup or little quantity of nuts to your snack can with time, become of a great benefit to the body.

Healthy lifestyle is not about sudden big change but regular habits, which always culminates to a very big success over time.

Begin today with one or two of these foods and build from there. It will also help you in staying strong against sickness.