The Best Diet for Your Immune System

Have you ever had a day when you just felt tired, lazy, and maybe a little depressed? A day where you decide not to go to school, or work, or whatever you were supposed to do that day? I think we all have had those days. But what if your immune system decided that it felt tired, lazy, and just felt like taking a day off?

Well, technically that is what could happen if you don't eat your veggies. If you don't feel like eating your vegetables, your immune system may not feel like zapping your viruses, or stomping out your tumors either. So guess what, your mother was right, you need to eat your veggies. The more you can eat in an organic, raw state the better your immune system likes it too.

The single most important thing you can do for your immune system is eat your vegetables. A balanced, nutritious diet is important, but by far the green peppers speak louder to your immune system than the hamburger on your plate.

Your immune system is an army, and why would any army be expected to march to inadequate C rations, or expect hungry soldiers to win the war on t.v. dinners, fast food lunches, and cinnamon rolls? Almost any nutritional deficiency will most likely be an immunosuppressive.

Of course we know that the immune system has reserves in the average healthy person, so how deficient do we need to be in nutrients before we start having problems? Do we merely have to be slightly deficient, or do we have to be bordering on scurvy? Just how much of which nutrient do we need in order to have an infusion of health?

In a perfect world we would have areas of research that could determine each persons individual nutritional needs. The exact diet that would make your immune system tick. We are each a little different, so it takes some experimentation for us on an individual basis to know what makes us feel our best. By all means, design the diet that best works for you, but I would bet money that for most of us the more we eat raw and organic the more we will experience radiant health.

For me, my body loves chlorella and spirulina, a seaweed absolutely drenched in the B-vitamins. The only problem is, you need money to buy it, you can't grow it in your backyard. So, here is the most general list of foods that researchers have come up with that are affordable and easy to obtain.

You want to go for a diet high in fiber, low in fat, and rich in whole grains, fruits, and vegetables. A diet high enough in calories so that you can obtain a well enough rounded array of nutrients, and not too many calories of high fat, low nutrition foods. The key is a balanced, moderate attitude about life in general, with diet being no exception.

I could give you reasons where any one particular food would be beneficial, but we are looking for variety, foods that contain specific nutrients that your immune system is sure to love.

Vitamin A- Wow! It looks like this nutrient does more for you than make you bright eyed. It seems as this is the number one nutrient associated with a lowered cancer risk, and your immune system seems to just eat it up. What does it do exactly for the immune system? Well, lets see it Vitamin A helps maintain the integrity of your skin and mucous membranes, which is your bodies first immune system defense against invaders.

B Vitamins- Vitamin B6 is probably the most important B vitamin for your immune system. Do you like organic brown rice and liver? Yum. Tests have shown that people who eat their B vitamins have a greater lymphocyte response to immune system challenges.

Vitamin C-"Just about any immunologic function that anybody's ever studied works better in the presence of vitamin C," Says Jeffrey Delafuente, associate professor of pharmacy and medicine at the University of Florida. Think orange juice, spinach, fresh fruits and vegetables of every kind.

Vitamin D- Get your sunshine and don't forget to eat your salmon, and take Vitamin D3 supplements. Vitamin D is now coming to light as one of the most important nutrients known for keeping us healthy. Particularly they keep our phagocytes healthy, those immune system soldiers on the look-out for anything that doesn't belong there.

Calcium- Yum. Low fat dairy products like Yogurt

Copper-without copper your T-lymphocytes aren't working at its optimum, which means you have an increased risk of infection. So eat your beans, because they are rich in copper

Iron- Without iron you lose your pep, but so does your immune system so cook your food in iron pots, eat your liver, spinach, sunflower seeds, and beans

Magnesium-nuts and whole grains

Selenium- Think brazil nuts, whole grains, rice, and tuna

Zinc- It looks like there is nothing in your immune system that doesn't need zinc. Zinc is important for the maturation and complete development of your T-Cells. Zinc supplementation seems to make a difference in the aging population.

Drink pure, healthy, life-giving water and not just a cup or two. Orange juice is good, but make water the number one beverage in your life. I drink 3 quarts everyday, and more if I am exercising or thirsty.

The foods that keep your hair shining, your face glowing, and keeps cancer at bay seem to be the same foods which your immune system needs to work at its optimum. With so many auto-immune diseases inflicting so many people, why not start early in your fight for health and well-being?

*I am not a doctor, please consult your physician for further counseling of your nutritional needs*

Sources:

Michaud & Feinstein "Fighting Disease"
www.healthyfoodsreference.com
www.naturalnews.com
http://www.immunesystemetc.com/Nutrition.html
http://www.nutritional-supplement-educational-centre.com/foods-to-boost-immune-system.html