Give yourself an immune system boost and protect yourself now before cold and flu season in Arizona, which usually begins in October. The first thing you can do for yourself is work on following a healthy lifestyle. That means avoiding things that increase your chances of getting sick and strengthening your body’s defenses naturally.
You’ll want to try all of the following:
- Don’t smoke
- Eat a diet high in fruits and vegetables
- Exercise regularly
- Maintain a healthy weight
- If you drink alcohol, drink only in moderation
- Get adequate sleep
- Take steps to avoid infection, such as washing your hands frequently and cooking meats thoroughly
- Try to minimize stress
- Stay hydrated
If you’re looking for more proactive steps, try these immune system boosting hacks!
Take Vitamin C
Vitamin C acts as an antioxidant to protect your cells against the effects of free radicals, such as air pollution, cigarette smoke, and irritants that cause lung inflammation. As an added bonus, it helps you store iron in your body. Iron plays a role in regulating your immune system too.
The best immune system boosting part about vitamin C is that it encourages white blood cell production and protects them. This is important because white blood cells are your body’s natural line of defense against diseases.
Does Vitamin C Shorten a Cold/Flu?
Many people believe taking vitamin C won’t shorten the duration of a cold, and they’d be right. Taking the recommended amount of vitamin C, which is about 90mg for adults, won’t help. However, taking an increased dose of 200mg does!
Taking at least 200mg of vitamin C per day did reduce the duration of cold symptoms by an average of 8% in adults and 14% in children. That translates to about one less day of illness. That means a flu, which lasts 3-7 days on average, could be shortened to 2-6 days, on average, with an increased dose of vitamin C in your diet.
Unfortunately, our bodies don’t produce vitamin C, nor do they store it. Vitamin C is water-soluble, meaning you need to take it daily to feel its full effects. That means you’ll need to take about 200mg of vitamin C every day you’re feeling sick to shorten the duration of your illness. Drink plenty of water too, to help naturally flush the vitamin out of your system to avoid stomach cramps, nausea, or diarrhea.
If you’re feeling under the weather and are unable to pick up vitamin C tablets from the pharmacy, contact IV Revival. Their registered nurses will come straight to your door and will get you hooked up with a hydrating IV treatment that is chock-full of vitamin C and other water-soluble immune system boosting vitamins.
Iron is fundamental for Immune System Development
If you’re deficient in iron, you may have a weakened immune system. This is because low iron levels can compromise your body’s non-specific immune response. In other words, your body’s primary mechanism to protect you from pathogens (viruses, bacteria, and microorganisms that cause disease) is weakened.
If it helps, you can think of iron like a metal shield and your immune system as the soldiers on the front line. If you’re low on iron, then your immune system soldiers will be short on shields. This will allow more invaders — the pathogens — to break through their line and get you sick.
Iron Boosts Your Immune System Too
Not only does iron protect your body from pathogens, it plays an essential role in supporting your immune system. Iron is required for immune cells proliferation and maturation when your body detects an infection. More specifically, it is responsible for lymphocytes, which are a form of a white blood cell.
Zinc Can Shorten a Cold
Zinc is often forgotten and overshadowed by iron and vitamin C when it comes to its immune system boosting properties. This is partially because zinc comes in many forms that help your body regulate many different things. One form of zinc may help make proteins and DNA, while another form, such as a lozenge, can help shorten a cold.
A study published in the U.S. National Library of Medicine backed this. The pooled results of the 10 studies showed patients who took zinc had a shorter duration of cold symptoms by about one day compared to those on a placebo.
Zinc can also shorten the duration of the flu. In this case, zinc shortens colds by preventing it from spreading. In most cases, colds are caused by the rhinovirus. Zinc helps prevent the rhinovirus from multiplying.
When given in an appropriate dose by a medical professional, zinc is safe to use and effective. You can feel the power for yourself in IV Revival’s treatments to help fight the flu, common cold, skin disorders, hair loss, wounds, cancer, inflammatory disease, nutritional deficiencies, nerve pain, and more.