Tips for a Tip-Top Immune System: Reducing Chemical Stress
Your immune system is like an army that defends your body against any unwanted invaders such as the bacteria and viruses that make us “sick”.
You’re immune system is doing its best for you, but are you doing your best for it?
The natural state of you body is to express health, if you are not expressing health; it means that something is interfering with your natural expression. This could be caused by physical, chemical or emotional stress.
There are some simple tools we could be utilising that may help to strengthen your immune system and keep you from getting sick. I thought I’d share this with you because lets face it; no one wants to get sick.
Tips for Tackling Chemical Stressors:
Essentially “you are what you eat”.
For you to be at your best health you must be healthy at a cellular level. Cells in our body are constantly being replaced therefore in order to have healthy cells there are a number of nutrients that we require in our diet.
If we want to live a healthy life we need to put “living foods” into our body. It’s best to choose foods that are in their closest form to living, whether this has just been pulled out of the ground, picked off a tree or cut off an animal.
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Good Fats or Unsaturated fats have a double bond chain, creating gaps between hydrogen molecules and have actually been shown to lower cholesterol these will be liquid at room temperature and can be found in products such as oily fish such as salmon and trout, nuts and seeds, vegetable oils and avocados.
Omega 3 Fatty Acids are essential for our health and immune system as well as being of vital importance to our brain and nervous system. This can be taken in the form of fish oil.
Coconut oil, a medium-chain fatty acid, has antimicrobial properties that support your immune system as well as positively impacting on regulation of cholesterol levels. Consuming coconut oil in moderation will help your body to absorb fat-soluble vitamins, helping your body to get the nutrients it requires.
Side Note: Coconut oil can also be used topically/as a natural moisturiser!
Did you know that over 70% of your immune system is actually in your gut! Poor dietary choices, medications and stress are just a few things that can deplete the gut of its beneficial bacteria. This is why a good quality probiotic is also vitally important to get that balance of good bacteria in your gut.
A healthy gut equals a healthy immune system, which equals a healthy you.
Supplementing a high dosage of Vitamin C and D is essential in reducing inflammation and assisting your immune system function. Speak to your healthcare practitioner about a suitable dosage for you.
Lastly, drink plenty of water. The average adult should be consuming 2-3 litres of water each day. Us humans are made up of 70% water and it is vital for our health and wellbeing.
– Avoid:
Even though you are unaware of it most of the time your immune system is constantly fighting unwanted pathogens to keep you at your best health.
Here are just a few ways that your immune system is helping you to fight infection; running nose, coughing, sneezing, vomiting and increased temperatures. Although these symptoms seem like “bad” things to most of us they are actually “good”. If these things weren’t occurring it would actually be more of a concern. These mechanisms are our bodies’ way of getting rid of pathogens (unwanted invaders).
Taking medications like a cold and flu tablet may mask these symptoms, but they aren’t actually doing us any good. It is just masking symptoms that are integral in our recovery. The immune system is an expensive energy system, this is why you get so tired, it is important to listen to your body and rest.
Avoid unnatural foods, foods in packets, GMO foods; foods with preservatives and chemicals are dead foods. These can be a toxic tax on your cells. The devitalised state of foods is having a severe impact on your immune system, the chemicals (synthetic hormones, fertilisers, pesticides etc.) actually attack your immune army and deplete it and in turn your health.
Limit your intake of sugar as it impacts on your immune system creating a reduced your immune response.
Exclude white products such as flour and dairy milk (and once again sugar) as these all create inflammation in the body and inhibit your immune system. Dairy is not essential for achieving your calcium needs, as calcium can also be absorbed through eating dark leafy green vegetables, seeds i.e. chia seeds, some fish as well as almonds.
Minimising other chemical stressors these could include avoiding smoking, caffeinated and alcoholic beverages, skipping meals and more.
Remember:
Our body is self-healing and self-regulating, it is designed to express health, when stress builds in the body whether is it physical, chemical or emotional it affects our body, brain and nervous system. When our nervous system is under stress it can create interference with how our brain and body are connecting with one another. When the body has this interference it cannot function optimally.
If you would be interested in learning more we would love to help. Here at Global Chiropractic we are passionate about caring for the individuals and families of our community in order for them to achieve their best health.
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