5 DAILY WAYS TO BOOST YOUR IMMUNITY

To ensure you stay healthy, prevention is a paramount. There are 2 ways of achieving this: you either eliminate health risks or hazards from your daily life (through hygienic and sanitary practices and other specific preventive methods), or you enhance the ability of your body to resist illness. The ability of the body to defend itself from foreign threats is called immunity and it is responsibility of certain special cells in the body, and their products, to defend us from alien invasion. Fortunately, these immune cells can be manipulated to enhance their activity e.g. in immunization. However, there are other subtle, yet effective, ways of boosting your immunity which involve a little adjustment in your lifestyle resulting in a dramatic enhancement of the ability of the body to defend itself. They include:

EAT LIKE A RABBIT! 

Of course I don’t expect you to visit a zoo and ask for the rabbit cook book or menu! However, incorporating fruits and vegetables diet into your diet is a sure way to boost your immunity. Your immune cells and the weapons they use in fighting infections are largely dependent on nutrients provided by your diet. Some diets in particular, stimulate the production and action of the immune cells. Specific nutrients which you should make a habit of including in your daily diet are: Vitamins B, E, C, K (Think “BECKy boosts immunity”). The reason is that these possess antioxidants, especially vitamins E and C, which help fight infections and stimulate the formation of immune cells. They also promote wound healing. A few sources of these include:
Vitamin B Complex : Green leafy vegetables, vegetable soup,

Vitamin E: Nuts, seeds, papaya, kiwi and vegetable oils.

Vitamin C: Oranges, lemons, tangerine, tomatoes, sweet potatoes & chicken pepper soup (oh yes!).

Vitamin K: Spinach, asparagus, broccoli, kale, parsley, onions and brussel sprouts

LISTEN TO MUSIC 

It doesn’t really matter who the singer is, the secret is to listen to music that makes you feel good and takes you to cloud nine. Be it Mozart, Beyonce, Osadebe, Justin Beiber, Lil Wayne or Sky B. A research group from McGill University, Montreal, Canada, showed that listening to music which sends shivers down your spine stimulates the same part of the brain that is activated by food and sex. Furthermore, it has been shown that there is a link between creating music and an increase in NK-cells; cells which seek and destroy infections and foreign objects in the body. So music boosts immunity, though, I wouldn't prescribe joining a rock band as a type of immunization.

STRESS LESS

Stress suppresses immunity. It does this in different ways. First, stress causes the release of stress hormones, particularly, corticosteroids. These steroids are chemicals that suppress the ability of the body to  generate an immune response by suppressing the formation of the cells which fight infection. produce an effective immune response. which immunity is a potent immunity killer. Also, stress burns up whatever little nutrients you have already and deprives your immune system of raw materials which it requires to form new cells, antibodies and components of an immune response. 

SLEEP!!!

Sleep is extremely important for the brain and immune system to function optimally. Lack of sleep has adverse effects on your health. Ever  wondered who so many students fall ill during examination  periods? Especially when they get next to no sleep at night? Apart from making you feeling sluggish, irritable, and forgetful, not getting enough sleep can reduce the effectiveness of your immune system by up to 50 percent. This is because sleep time is when the body and immune system do most of its repairs and rejuvenation. Strive to get 7-8 hours of sleep each night. Remember rest and relaxation go hand in hand. But don't come to work 2 hours late and tell your boss you were building your immune system all through the night. He might just . . . 

JUST DANCE!!! 

Who  would have thought Lady Gaga was giving medical advice with her hit single, "Just Dance". Stagnation slows the immune system, and conversely, movement activates the immune system. Additionally, dancing, which is exercise,warms up your body. This "warming up" is known to suppress bacterial invasion and overgrowth in the body and also stimulates the immune system.  Other forms of exercise have this benefit in common. Furthermore, there is evidence that "touching" someone, which happens a lot when you're dancing in the club or with a group of friends, has a stimulatory effects on immunity. Dancing is also also a "stress buster". Thus it reduces the tendency that  stress suppress your immunity and at the same time encourages good immune function cos it leaves you happy, and a happy person has a happy & strong immune system. So take dance classes or go clubbing and instead of telling your dad or spouse your wanna go clubbing (which most likely would earn you a NO!) you could say, "dad, i wanna go boost my immunity at the county club tonight, wanna join me?". I'm certain you'll get an unexpected positive outcome just for humor.

These are a few ways to keep your immune system sharp and on guard through healthy lifestyle modifications. Note that none of these include medications. These have their roles but and would be discussed subsequently on Dokinta. For today, I want you to focus on strategies which cost you almost nothing. Moreover, these outlined 5 steps have 1 thing in common; the are all fun. So try them out, starting with this weekend, and see what magic it does for you. For sure you are bound to be healthier, happier and more fun. 

Dokinta cares.