Winter is upon us, which also means flu season. Now, more than ever, we need to be protecting ourselves and building our immune system. For a couple of weeks now, I have been doing more to strengthen and protect my immune system. I am going to share some of the things that have been helping me to keep my immune system strong. Please know, I am not a medical professional; everything mentioned will not work for everyone.
Fruits and Vegetables
Taking on a more plant-based diet.
Vitamin C
Elderberry
Vitamin D: supplements and/or at least 1 hour in the sun.
Immune system steam: I credit this recipe to The Hood Healer (Instagram and Twitter). I’ve known about immune system steams before but, they only included lemon or lime. With this steam, I used a variety of different citrus and herbs.
Star Anise
Lemon
Lime
Orange
Bay Leaves
Cinnamon Sticks
Mint Leaves
Peppermint Oil
Cutting back or eliminating dairy: Dairy causes mucus to form so, eating a lot of dairy can cause your immune system to weaken and build up with mucus. As someone who is a cheese lover, I really had to cut back on the cheese as I refuse to eat Vegan cheese.
For me, I know they are working, especially the steam. I’ve noticed after doing the steam, I had to dispose of mucus that came up minutes after finishing the steam. When I first started the steam, it didn’t happen but, after about 2 weeks, that’s when I started to feel it. Likewise, with dairy. A week ago, while on vacation. I ate some Cold Stone ice cream. My favorite ice cream place; love the Oreo filling. I always get the same flavor but, this time was different. Maybe an hour or two after finishing it, my nose started to run. It ran for the rest of the day but, calmed down towards the end of the night. That has never happened to me before. The next morning I felt great.; my nose had stopped running and it was as if it didn’t happen. That’s when I knew my body was different and thus, why I am really cutting back on dairy.
I always encourage everyone to do your own research on herbs and supplements. Be safe out there and always remember to protect yourself and your health.