Boosting your Immune System

Washing hands is on everyone’s mind with the Coronavirus doing the rounds. But maintaining a healthy immune system is something we all need to work at daily to strengthen our bodies defence against all kinds of germs, old and new. To do that research shows that your emotions and physical wellbeing play a role in building a healthy immune system.

Here are the basics:

Keep your hands clean

It sounds basic, but your hands touch everything, money to the bottle of mayonnaise on the shelf in the shop. Everything you touch has at some stage been touched by someone else, and that's the way germs spread. So, washing your hands limits the germs you host and spread.

  • Wash for 20 seconds: Wash your hands by using soap and rub your hands together in all kinds of directions. Make sure you rub soap everywhere on the back and the inside of your hands, also between and around all the fingers. Do this for 20 seconds but remember to save water and do not let the water run for 20 seconds.
  • To sanitise or not?: There is a lot of contradiction in the research about the benefits versus the potential harm sanitising can do. By sanitising your hands you can kill the good bacteria on our skins that actually help you to keep us healthy. Excessive use also dries out your hands which may cause them to crack, creating a direct entry point for germs. This topic is one you need to decide for yourself. I'm leaning toward rather washing my hands correctly with soap, than using sanitiser. Read some more
Washing hands
food

Wholesome Nutrition

Eating a healthy balanced diet daily is essential to building up a strong immune system to help fight any unwelcome germs.

  • Fruits: apples, oranges, lemons, limes, kiwi, papaya, melons, berries
  • Vegetables: bell peppers, broccoli, spinach, tomatoes, kale, cauliflower
  • Nuts: almonds, walnuts, pistachios, macadamia nuts, brazil nuts
  • Seeds: sunflower seeds, flax seeds
  • Protein Foods:wild-caught fish, free-range poultry and eggs, grass-fed beef and mutton and yoghurt
  • Whole Grains: brown rice, barley, couscous, quinoa, oats, buckwheat
  • Fats and Oils: olive oil, coconut oil, avocados, butter
  • Herbs and Spices: garlic, cinnamon, black pepper, ginger,
  • Beverages: green tea, kombucha, coconut water, kefir

Stay away from the following:

Get Plenty of Sleep

When you sleep, your body repairs itself, so it is essential to allow your body to get plenty of sleep. You need at least 8 hours of sleep a night.

  • Put Away your cell phone: We are tempted to check our phones quickly, and it ends up taking more time than anticipated. We are taking away precious sleeping time.
  • Do something relaxing: Before you get into bed, do a few stretches and take a nice shower to loosen up tight muscles.
  • Essential oils: Lavender and Roman Chamomile have been used for centuries to help with sleep. Defuse it in your room or put a drop or two on your pillow. (Read about some more essential oils to use for a good night's rest)
sleep
breath

Breathe Deeply

Breathing is something we do naturally. But how deep do you breathe? We need to take deeper breaths so that we get more oxygen in our bodies.

  • Breath in through your nose: The follicles in our noses have the important jobs of keeping unwanted particles and germs out of our lungs. So, it is important to breathe in through our noses.
  • Take deep breaths: The air you breathe in through your nose should go all the way down in your belly. 70–80% of the inhaling should be done by the diaphragm so that your breathing is nice and deep
  • Breath out through the mouth: Push all the air out through your mouth so that your lungs are empty and there is space for more oxygen to come in again. (Interested reading more https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/take-a-deep-breath)

What deep breaths will help with:

  • Decreases stress, increases calm: Deep breathing ups your endorphins, the "feel good" chemical and lowers your heart rate.
  • Stimulates the lymphatic system that detoxifies your body: Breathing releases carbon monoxide. Shallow breathing does not release all the carbon monoxide and your body must work overtime to release these toxins.
  • Improves your immunity: When your blood is fully oxygenated, it carries and absorbs nutrients and vitamins more efficiently
  • Improves digestion: Oxygen filled blood helps your organs to function more effectively, including your intestines.
  • Helps support correct posture: For you to breath deep so that your diaphragm moves, you will have to adjust your posture to the proper form.

Get Rid of the Toxins in Your House

Our home routine products are full of harmful toxins that damage our respiratory systems and general health. An example of this is that the average woman will put 166 toxins on her face daily through her regular beauty routine. We have not even started on the cleaning products in our houses. Check out our page "Know the enemy" to see a list of toxins you will find in your house. Do a quick check and see how many unknown toxins are in your home.

There are plant-based products as alternatives to all of those toxin loaded products. Essential oils are not just for perfumes. e.g. Lemon is a great degreaser.

Check out our all-natural laundry liquid for as low as R1,82/load of washing!

The app Think Dirty will help you to identify which products have toxins in them. It is as easy as scanning the barcode. It does, however, have limited South African made products on it.
Link to: Google Play Store | Apple store

Usual plastic bottles from a household isolated on black - pollution and environment concept
exrcise

Exercise Regularly

Getting daily exercise and keeping your body fit and active is another way to ensure that your body is ready to tackle anything that comes at it.

  • Exercising will lower the release of stress hormones into your body.
  • The rise in your body temperature during exercise may prevent bacteria from growing.
  • Because your heart rate increases it circulates antibodies and white blood cells more rapidly so that they can detect illnesses earlier and start doing their job quicker.
  • Physical activity may help flush out bacteria in the lungs and airways.
  • Exercise aids with weight control.

Essential Oils

Essential oils are an excellent way to boost your immune system and have been used since ancient times.

  • Eucalyptus is used in a lot of over-the-counter cold and flu remedies to loosen phlegm and relieve congestion. The reason for its effectiveness is a compound called 1,8-cineole, which has powerful anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, and anti-bacterial properties.
  • Oreganum is a powerful anti-bacterial, thanks to the high levels of the active compounds: carvacrol and thymol. It is suggested that these two compounds kill bacterial cells by making the cell membranes more permeable.
  • Cloves have eugenol, which has been shown to act as a natural anti-oxidant.
  • Rosemary was considered sacred by ancient Hebrews, Greeks, Egyptians, and Romans, and it was used for numerous purposes. It is said to have high antiseptic, anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory, and anti-oxidant properties.
  • One of cinnamon bark’s constituents is Cinnamaldehyde which exhibits high anti-fungal, anti-bacterial, and anti-microbial properties. Cinnamon Essential Oil is said to reduce inflammation, eliminate viruses, and boost immunity effectively.
Thieves

Where did the name "Thieves" come from

Thieves

Thieves is an Essential oil blend of Cinnamon, Clove, Eucalyptus Radiata, Rosemary and Lemon oils created by Young Living's Dr Garry Young. The name Thieves is significant to where he found the blend. The blend is based on the old spice traders, turned thieves, recipe in the 1500s with the black plague. Because of the closed harbours, the traders had to find another form of income. They knew their spices and oils and created a blend that protected them from getting the plague while they were stealing from the dead.

Building our immune systems is something we need to focus on consciously. Focus on your breathing, get enough sleep, eat well and get rid of the toxins in our homes that are silent killers without us noticing. Till next time be naturally healthy.