It’s that time of year again – the kids are back in school, the leaves are starting to turn and the drug companies are blitzing the airwaves with ads to get your flu shot. Whether or not you decide to do so, there are many natural ways to boost your immune system and significantly reduce your risk of getting sick and/or staying sick.
Boost your Vitamin D Levels
Almost everyone in the upper Midwest has low vitamin D levels. We’ve tested hundreds of people and only a handful had adequate vitamin D levels (and they were all supplementing with at least 4000 IU/day of vitamin D3). Get tested (the test you want is called ‘twenty-five hydroxyl vitamin D’ or ’25 (OH) Vit D’) – you want your level to be between 50-60 ng/ml. If you are not supplementing, your levels are most likely (very) low. Here are two easy options:
Micellized D3 – 1 drop twice daily (each drop contains 1200IU of vitamin D3) with meals
D3-5000 – 1 capsules 1-2x/day with meals
Feed the Good Bugs
Everyone has billions of microorganisms (e.g., ‘bugs’) that live inside their gastrointestinal tract that are intricately involved in your immune function. Imbalances in these bacteria can dramatically impact your immune status. Eating foods that promote the good ‘bugs’ like yogurt, kefir, fermented foods, fresh and cooked vegetables, beans, peas and lentils; and avoid foods that feed the bad ‘bugs’ like sugar, white flour products, alcohol, soda and trans-fats. In addition, taking a probiotic (i.e., good bugs) can help make up for any deficits; we recommend Probiotic Complete – 1 capsule 1-2x/day on an empty stomach.
Take Supplemental Support to Boost Your Immune System
Research has shown that the immune system benefits from adequate amounts of vitamin C and zinc. In addition, recent research has shown that certain mushroom extracts help the body identify and destroy foreign invaders (i.e., viruses and bacteria), keeping you healthier.
From October through April everyone at our clinic uses a product called Immune Support on a daily basis (1 tablet 3x/day with meals). As you can imagine, we see a LOT of ill people on any given day and if we are sick, we can’t help very many people get well.
Doing these three things won’t guarantee you won’t get sick, but the research shows that it will drastically reduce the frequency, intensity and duration of whatever Mother Nature throws our way this cold and flu season. And that’s something we can all benefit from!