Dr. Vijay

Catching a cold once in a while is nothing to worry about, but needing to take sick leave every few weeks is a sign of low immunity. Immunity can be defined as our ability to fight infections. By eating right and making a few lifestyle changes, you can easily strengthen your immune system and lower your risk of catching infections. On that note, here are 10 ways to strengthen your immune system.

1. Eat a balanced meal: Along with fruits and vegetables, your body also requires carbohydrates and proteins. Eating a balanced diet helps keep your blood sugar levels stable and allows your body to prioritize building your immune system over generating energy to perform normal tasks.
2. Drink plenty of water: When you’re ill, fluids help transport nutrients to the infected area and flush out toxins from the same. Hence, it is important to stay hydrated in order to recover faster from an illness and to build your immune system.
3. Probiotics: 80% of your immune system is located in the gut. Probiotics help the body produce more healthy gut bacteria. Thus, probiotics directly boost the immune system.
4. A good night’s sleep: Ideally, a person should get 8 to 10 hours of sleep on a daily basis. While we are asleep, the body produces cytokines ad antibodies that are vital to a strong immune system. Depriving the body of this sleep can thus make us more susceptible to infections.
5. Get some sun: While we put a lot of effort into protecting ourselves from the harmful UV rays of the sun, sunlight is also a rich source of vitamin D. Vitamin D helps protect us from a number of serious illnesses. Apart from sunlight we can also get vitamin D by adding cod liver oil, egg yolks and fatty fish to our diet.
6. Quit sugar: Sugar is an immunosuppressant and hence cutting out added sugar from your diet can have a drastic effect on your immunity. Added sugar refers only to refined sugar in cubed, crystal or powdered form and not the natural sweetners in fruits.
7. Exercise: Regular exercise improves blood circulation and boosts the production of antibodies. A healthy circulatory system combined with antibodies enables your body to fight infections in any part of your body.
8. Avoid tobacco and alcohol: Alcohol impairs the immune system and tobacco smoke weakens the body’s basic immune system. This holds true for both first hand and second hand smoke.
9. Reduce stress: Stress increases the production of a hormone called cortisol. Cortisol suppresses the immune system and thus makes us more susceptible to illnesses.
10. Prevent germs from spreading: Lastly, make simple things like washing your hands before eating and after coming home or using the toilet a habit. This prevents germs from spreading and entering our bodies. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a gynaecologist.

Asthma is something which affects quite a large number of people. As a matter of fact, up to 20 percent of the population is affected by it. Isn’t it surprising that the ways to treat it are not so well known, taking into account how many people it affects? So, wouldn’t it be a great idea to learn more about it and learn to treat it in a pretty unique way?

When a person has asthma, the airways of the respiratory system become narrower than they usually are and this, in turn, leads to a shortage of breath. While many people would normally go to a conventional doctor in order to treat asthma, it may come as a rude shock to know that asthma is often triggered by reactions to conventional medicines such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which are also known as NSAIDs. Things are not that straightforward, are they?

Ayurveda is a body of medicine which looks not at just patching up and fixing medical problems, but rather to maintain a high level of overall health. Considering this, it should not be much of a surprise to come to know that when it comes to the treatment of asthma, Ayurveda is not superficial like a lot of other methods of treatment. As a matter of fact, it not only looks at the respiratory system but also at the gastrointestinal system in order to provide a comprehensive solution for a patient who is affected by asthma.

According to Ayurveda, the body is divided into three doshas and in the case of asthma, it is the kappa dosha which is culpable. If the asthma is detected before too long, a fully effective treatment can be undertaken and the patient can be restored to his or her pre-asthma level. However, if there is a significant delay between the time that asthma sets in and its detection, only management is possible.

Foods which trigger asthma are to be avoided like the plague! Examples of these foods happen to be animal products and dairy products such as curd. In addition to this, bananas and sugary foods or sweets, including sugar, in itself, are to be avoided.

A paste of rock salt, mustard oil or clarified butter can help if it is rubbed on the chest. Medicines such as Sitopalaadi choorna are to be taken, with this specific medicine ingested with honey. Kapha kartari addresses the issues with the Kapha and with it, asthma should be on its way to becoming a minor problem pretty soon! If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult an Ayurveda.

1. Garlic

Garlic is nature’s antibiotic, so it's great to add to your diet when you're feeling not-so-hot. Compounds like allistatin, allicin, garlicin, and ajoene deliver super-strong antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, and immune-enhancing benefits. Fresh garlic is best (and large quantities of it!) so add the flavor-maker to your meals. It’s incredible for you, so the garlic breath is worth it!

2. Green tea

Green tea contains polyphenols, potent plant antioxidants, which give it immune-system boosting effects. And, egcg, the active compound in green tea, has been known to fight bacteria and viruses. Matcha is the most nutrient-rich green tea, making an already simple daily booster even easier to get in your system.

 
3. Coconut oil

Coconut oil has many unique health-promoting benefits. It contains lauric acid, which has been shown to enhance immunity and improve heart and thyroid health. It’s also anti-fungal, antibacterial and antiviral, so making it a staple in your diet is a smart idea if you want to feel your best. And, don’t be concerned about the fat — the medium-chain fatty acids in coconut oil are converted to energy quickly in the body, as opposed to being stored.

4. Turmeric

Turmeric is one of the foods with the highest antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Curcumin, the active ingredient in turmeric, is antiviral, anti-fungal, and can help protect against cancer. Inflammation is linked to many chronic diseases, so turmeric is a must. Up your body's absorption significantly by mixing turmeric with black pepper.

5. Fermented foods

If you want to boost your immune system in a major way, adding fermented foods, like sauerkraut and kimchi, is important. Fermented foods contain healthy, friendly bacteria that help to balance your gut flora — this is where 70% of your immune system is housed! it's crucial to keep everything in working order down there.

If you’re looking for immune-boosting supplements, 3 of my top picks are probiotics, vitamin D and glutathione. But, when it comes to easy — and delicious — everyday improvements, healthy food is really where it's at.