subject: Natural Immune System Boosters [print this page] Long-term and short-term illness can take a toll on your immune system. While the cost to recover from either might be different, you can use immune system boosters regardless of the time you did not feel well. Even if you just feel run down and do not want to get sick, simple things can rebuild your immune system.
Simple Step #1: Rest! Yes, one of the most important things you can do to boost your immune system is get plenty of rest. This includes sleep and down time. Lack of sleep is common in our busy, stressed world. However, it is perhaps the essential step. If your sleep cycle is messed up, consider taking something short-term to get you back on track. Getting and staying tired can actually increase your risk for staying sick and having more problems. Research has found that lack of sleep even increases your risk for heart attack. Simply put, you need time to sleep and relax if your immune system is going to improve.
Simple Step #2: Breath! You are probably thinking, what, another obvious thing? It is not as obvious as it might seem. Stress and tiredness mean people take fewer breaths that are shallow. This reinforces getting stressed and feeling exhausted. Long, deep breathing through your nose increases the oxygen in your blood, pumps the lymph through your body to filter your immunity, and also helps you relax (so Step #1 is easier). Lots of people talk about going back to basics when times are tough. The same approach will help your immune system.
Simple Step #3: Drink! Okay, do not drink just anything. A couple specific fluids are recommended to boost the immune system. Water, of course, is one of them. Many of the immune responses that happen when you are ill can lead to dehydration. From digestion to kidney health to happy immune function, drink water to boost your body. On a second front, drink green tea and take Cordyceps supplement. It is loaded with compounds that help protect and boost your health. One favorite is citrus flavor. Here you get the benefits of the green tea and the extra Vitamin C with it.
Simple Step #4: Laugh! It may be an old saying, but it is true that laughter is good for you and your immune system. Besides the fact laughter can improve your mood and your outlook, the action of laughter is good for your body. Illness and reduced immune function often result in feeling sluggish. Your physical systems often actually are sluggish at this time. Good belly-laughs help get everything moving again.
Simple Step #5: Exercise! Studies have shown that even people who are struggling from Chronic Fatigue or other long-term immune problems benefit from exercise. To get the best results, know your current limits. At this stage, exercising to total exhaustion does not help you. You want to stretch, loosen and get your body moving to tap into immune system booster chemicals. In addition, you want to avoid problems from lack of movement. Most of your joints make the fluid that keeps things moving well during movements. So the less you move, the more you can hurt and find yourself even less able to move.
You do not have to spend a ton of money or dedicate hours each day to heal your immune system. As you can see, boosters can come from small, manageable changes. You can incorporate these into your daily and weekly routine. Try them for at least four weeks and notice the difference in how you feel.
