5 immune booster steps

When there is illness afoot, it reminds me of my grandmother - mother of 13 - who would say, “Cleanliness is next to godliness.”  I think she was trying to preserve her sanity, but cleanliness definitely helps out the universal pull to wellness. So, in the current climate it is good to keep sanitation priority.
At the same time, humans have always lived with germs and the human body is a wonderful infection fighter when given the right tools - food, sleep, water, sun.
Here are my five tips for boosting your immune system:

1. Eating a lot of zinc rich foods helps to increase disease fighting antibodies and strengthens your immune system.  Chickpeas, cashews, sesame seeds are high in zinc and easy to add to dishes. 
2. Fill up on vitamin C through fresh fruits and vegetables rather than supplements which do not work as well at immune boosting.  One jolieLife favorite is cauliflower - one serving has 77% of your recommended daily intake of vitamin C.
3. Ginger, ginger, ginger. I often add chopped ginger to my morning warm water and lemon.  Also, we use it liberally when cooking. A natural pain and fever reducer, ginger also increases circulation helping the body to remove toxins and viruses from the body.
4. Turmeric - another jolieLife star - is antiviral, antibacterial and antimicrobial.  Use it in soups, when you saute vegetables, or blended with nut milk for a smoothie.  With turmeric, a little goes a long way - use about ½ inch of fresh turmeric or ¼ teaspoon of ground turmeric.
5. Get outside. Luckily, it is getting warmer and it is easier.  Fresh air helps clear out viruses as well as bacteria and microbes.

Julia
​xo