Supporting your body through seasonal changes

Your immune system can benefit from good quality nutrition and healthy lifestyle choices, and may help to lessen the impact of illness.

​As the seasons change our bodies can become more susceptible to illness. With autumn and winter approaching, it’s good to ensure you are giving your immune system the best support it can get.
 
A great place to start is with good nutrition. A healthy diet packed full of colourful vegetables and fruit, good lean protein, essential fatty acids, whole grains and enough water to keep you well hydrated, will get you off to a good start.

Include 5-10 serves of colourful vegetables each day and 2 serves of fruit. Make your plate look like a rainbow. This will help your body to receive the beneficial nutrients it needs to support your overall health and immune system. It will also provide the fibre you need to keep your elimination pathways active and provide prebiotics for your gut microbiome to feed on.

Include good quality protein, either lean meat (organic and free range if possible, or what your budget will allow), or vegetarian sources such as kidney beans, black beans, adzuki beans, chickpeas, lentils, tofu, tempeh, quinoa, green peas, chia seeds, nuts and nut butters. Protein is utilised in your body to build and repair tissue, build bone, muscle, cartilage, skin and blood as well as make enzymes, hormones and other body chemicals.

Small oily fish such as sardines, mackerel, and herring, as well as wild caught salmon are a great source of Omega-3 fatty acids. If fish isn't your go to then flaxseeds, chia seeds, walnuts and avocados are also a good nutritional source. Omega-3 fatty acid is anti-inflammatory, lowers levels of triglyceride and LDL cholesterol, promotes healthy skin, and supports the integrity of the lipid bilayer of cell membranes for good cell health.

Probiotics support your gut microbiome and have been shown to have significant positive effects on the immune system. Fermented foods such as sauerkraut, kimchi, miso, kefir and pot set natural plain yoghurt are great sources. Probiotics support your gut microbiome and have been found to have a significant positive effect on the immune system.

Drink at least 2 litres of water each day and 1 litre more if exercising. Herbal teas are a lovely way to drink more water. There are many soothing herbal teas available on the market. Keeping your fluid levels up is beneficial to your overall health and further promote elimination of toxins.
 
Soups are another great way to keep your fluid intake up as well as providing extra nutrition. Cooking vegetables and meat this way keeps the nutrients in the pot, giving you all the health benefits. They are warming and a great comfort food especially if you are feeling unwell.

Lifestyle choices such as good quality sleep, regular exercise and where possible reducing stress are also important factors in keeping your body healthy and functioning to it's best ability. 

Following these recommendations may help to support your immune system to lessen the effects of possible illness during the change of seasons.

If you would like to know more about how to support your health and well-being book a naturopathic appointment with me. Together we can create a plan to best suit you. 

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