Pump Up Your Immune System - Jan 2011

The nice thing about modern medicine, is we have an arsenal of antibiotics that are able to wipe out bacteria with a wallop. But it doesn’t mean you should rely on medicine to address your chronic immunity issues, especially because there are plenty of foreign invaders that won’t respond to medicinal attacks.

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One of the best ways to pump up your immune system is by eating the foods and getting the nutrients that have been shown to improve your natural defence.

• Shitake mushrooms may increase your natural killer T-cells
• Vegetables, especially cruciferous ones like cabbage, broccoli and brussel sprouts
• Cocoa and coffee because of the antioxidants – in moderation
• Alcohol – red wine in moderation
• Probiotics in yoghurt and digestive aids
• Omega-3 fatty acids found in olive oil, avocado, fish oils, nuts
• Resveratrol found in red wine and grapes
• Catechins found in green tea
• Quercetin found in onions, tomatoes, garlic and apples
• Lycopene found in tomatoes and red grapefruit

Avoid:

• Simple sugars
• Syrups
• Enriched and non-whole grains
• Saturated fats
• Trans fats
• Excessive alcohol
• Fish with mercury

Source: Slimming & Health