Four Housekeeping Rules to Boost Immunity

Getting sick often can be a gentle sign from nature that we need to slow down and invest in self-care. If you’re feeling run down, popping a lemsip and heading back to the office is the complete the opposite of what you should be doing. When we’re sick, we need to slow down, cool off and plug the batteries back in to recharge.rnThese are the top three housekeeping rules for boosting immunity to prevent the winter blues.

1)Drink enough good quality water.

Adequate hydration is essential for life and our immunity is one system suffers if we’re not getting enough. We need to be well hydrated to support the health of our protective mucous barrier systems against infections.rnAim to drink enough to prevent dry skin, dry lips, or dark strong smelling urine.Consider adding in cups of warm water between cup of tea, immunity boosting herbal teas, or fresh pressed organic vegetable juices.

2)Eat for immunity

A powerful immune system needs a wide range of nutrients to perform at its best. Choose minimally processed foods that have plenty of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants to properly charge immune defenses.rnEat to fuel immunity by choosing enough good nutritious food to outweigh any processed, contaminated, and toxic food. It’s not just about eating more oranges for vitamin C. Aim to eat wide variety of colorful vegetables and fruit in general. All vegetables and fruit have a unique combination of nutrients all offering unique health promoting properties for vibrant immunity.

3)Rest more

Getting enough quality rest is essential for a strong immune system. Chronic sleep deprivation makes us more vulnerable to catching colds and flues. Schedule enough time for adequate rest by getting to bed earlier. rnSleep deprivation activates the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis increasing cortisol levels and resulting in immune suppression. Skimping on restful sleep also leads to impaired immunity, a full sleep cycle is needed to regulate and re-balance immunity One simple trick to promote better quality sleep is by turning out the lights earlier in the evening leaving only a few dim lamps. Place rules around screen time too and install blue light filters onto your devices. This helps to optimize production of melatonin which is the hormone messenger responsible for putting us out quickly and promoting immune regenerating restorative sleep.

4)Exercise less

Moving the body is incredibly healthy for immunity. However, there’s a fine balance between moving enough and exercising too much.Consider passing off some early morning exercise session for the additional snooze.rnIntense exercise when your immune system has more important things to worry about will often make a cold worse. Over training can lead to lowered immunity. Tightness, and a chronic sniffle or itch in the back of the throat are signs that your immunity would benefit from easing off exercise for more recovery time.rnMassage, sauna, screeching, yoga, and gentle walking help by improving blood and lymph flow. The lymph system plays an important role in immunity. It likes to be stimulated to effectively clear dead invaders from the body.rnInvest in adequate self-care to reap the benefits of improved resilience and energy year round.