Winter Wellness—Ways to Boost Your Immunity
By Erik Nieuwenhuis MS, PT St Luke’s Rehab Services 402-412-4275 Nieuween@stlukes.org

Limiting your exposure to harmful organisms is one of the best preventive measures you can take daily. Washing your hands before you eat, after going to the bathroom, after you shake hands or touch surfaces that others have touched such as door knobs/ computer mouse/ etc… Work to limit your time around people who are sneezing or coughing. These measures can significantly cut you and your families infection risks from the cold and flu season that we are entering in the Siouxland area.

Following are Eight Tips to Boost You and Your Families Immunity for LIFE:

1) Maintain Relationships Those who maintain an active social life and those who participate in religious or community groups are less likely to experience depression than those without community or relationships. Depression reduces your immunity by inhibiting the activity of the T and B warrior cells. Relationships need to be three fold in our life; God, Others and Self.

2) Daily Physical Activity/ Exercise People who get regular physical activity and exercise have significantly improved immune systems, reducing your chances of getting the flu and/ or colds. Being physically active and exercise also reducing the length and severity of your cold and fluJ Each time you get physically active by walking your dog, carrying your son or daughter, taking the stairs at work, scooping snow or raking leaves, or attending Pump and Praise at Sunnybrook Community Church (http://3dwellness4life.blogspot.com/) your body releases endorphins a natural pain killer. The stronger your muscles, the better endurance of your heart and lungs that you have the better your immune system will be and the more you’ll enjoy your daily life.

3) Managing Your Stress Level Stress itself doesn’t weaken your immune system, however poor responses to stressful situations in our daily lives do such as; smoking, eating too much/ not eating/ or making poor choices in what you eat, taking illegal drugs, drinking too much, not exercising or being physically active, are linked to increased risks of infections to your body. Not getting enough sleep daily (7 to 8 hrs each day) is both a cause and an effect of stress. If you don’t get enough sleep daily your bodies immune system fighters the T and B warrior cells are not effective in fighting colds, flu, and infections. Stress Reducers: Deep breathing, prayer, walking and enjoy music or the outdoors, spending quality time with your spouse, children and pets, or engage in any type of exercise.

4) Getting Your Omega 3 Fatty Acids Omega 3 fatty acids in fish and nuts have been shown by research to improve your bodies immunity and reduce your risks for depression. Nuts and fish also are BIG friends of a healthy heart and help prevent heart disease, high blood pressure, and stroke. These fatty acids (or good fats such as poly and mono unsaturated fats) also help to improve your blood sugar control if you are a diabetic. Have a palm full (1 serving) of walnuts/ almonds/ or peanuts 1-2 times daily, 3 servings of fish each week, or take 2 grams of a fish oil supplement daily.

5) Boost Vitamin C and Flavor Flavonoids These are best found in choosing a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains to eat each day. From the book, “The Food Doctor” the 10 top vegetables to improve your immune system are; Asparagus, Broccoli, Carrots, Cauliflower, Garlic, Mushrooms, Brussel sprouts, Red onions, Peppers and Squash. When you have an infection or if you want to prevent one eat lots of raw and/ or lightly steamed vegetables. The above vegetables contain high levels of antioxidants, and have strong antiviral, antibacterial and anti-fungal properties as well as being natural antibiotics. Vitamin C studies have shown that eating 500 milligrams (mg) twice daily works to boost your immune system T and B warrior cells which can be found in the above vegetables, and tomatoes, citrus fruits or you can achieve this with a supplement. Research and I suggest the natural way if possible through your daily intake of fruits and vegetables. Some of the other best sources of fruits to find Vit C and flavonoids are; Cranberry juice, tomato juice, apples, strawberries, and red wine.

6) Avoid High Sugar and Processed Foods High sugar and processed foods such as; Candy, cakes, cookies, donuts, sugar filled cereal, and regular pop or soda should be limited and/ or avoided as much as possible if you are trying to lose/ maintain your weight and build your immunity. These foods can quickly drive your blood sugar level above 250 millimoles per liter of blood (normal is between 65 and 140). Elevated blood sugar levels impairs your bodies ability to destroy bacteria, thus increasing your chances of becoming sick or getting an infection.

7) Change Your Air Filters for Your Heater More Often This is a KEY in today’s culture as many people spend as much as 90% of their time indoors, and indoor levels of many pollutants can be 2 to 5 times higher than outdoor levels according to the American Lung Association. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has identified indoor air pollution as one of the top 5 urgent environmental risks to public health. Exposure to indoor air pollutants such as smoke, household dust, dust mites, pet dander, pollen, molds, smog, bacteria, particles that can carry viruses and other pollutants can pose health risks and contribute to respiratory disease, allergies, and asthma. Filters should be changed every 1 to 3 months, and based on your current health and the home that you live in, habits, and pets. Some brands of Air Filters that we have used in the Nieuwenhuis home are; 3M Filtrete Ultra Allergen 1250 performance rating, DuPont Platinum model Ultimate allergen grades. Check out many of the options at; Lowes, Home Depot or Menards.

You can also purchase air purifiers for your home. We purchased two Sharper Image Ionic breeze professional series germicidal protection air purifiers that have significantly reduced my wife and my allergy problems over the past two years. The most important thing to look for in air purifiers is the size you need for the rooms in your home.

8) Filter the Water YOU Drink It is highly recommended to purchase PUR, Brita or other water filtration systems for your home. These can be put on your water faucet directly or poured into a container that filters the water and is then stored in your fridge. These too can be purchased at Lowes, Home Depot, Menards, Walgreens, WalMart, and HyVee, among others in Siouxland. These will protect you and your family from reduced risks of gastrointestinal illness (such as diarrhea, vomiting, cramps). Water filtration reduces the heavy metals (lead and mercury), chlorine (taste and odor), benzene, MTBE, and TTHMs to provide healthy, clean and great tasting water. Water is one of the keys to drink daily to achieve your goals for health and wellness (increase your energy level)….not to mention drinking water will help you loose body fatJ!!

Sources:
1) Bottom Line Personal Nov 15, 2006 “Boost Your Immunity” Proven ways to stay healthy” by Michael F Roizen MD http://www.realage.com/
2) Healthier You Oct 06 magazine “Making Sick Homes Healthy” by Barbara Seale
3) The Food Doctor (Healing foods for mind and body) Collins and Brown 1999 by Vicki Edgson and Ian Marber
4) The Great Physicians Prescription for Health and Wellness by Jordan Rubin 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.