9 Ways to Boost Your Immune System Naturally With Functional Medicine
You’re probably like most of us…
Since 2020, words like Covid-19, immunity, and inflammation float around almost daily. And the news is flooded with the newest strain. You can’t even scroll the internet without reading a headline about the latest vaccine.
What you don’t hear about is the state of your immune system and your ability to fight off viruses and diseases naturally.
Most of you know that a stronger immune system means you don’t get sick as often. Covid showed us how chronic disease and compromised immune systems increase your risk of complications and death. Things like:
Obesity
Diabetes type II
Hypertension
…and others.(1)
What isn’t a normal part of the conversation is how you can activate your internal army to do what it needs to – fight viruses and prevent disease.
I’m Dr. Martina Sturm at Denver Sports and Holistic Medicine. This week, we’re chatting about how you can boost your immune system naturally and help you defend against this year’s cold and flu season.
The Connection Between Inflammation and Immunity
A key part of knowing how to strengthen your immune system is understanding the role inflammation has in your body – how to balance it.
Not all inflammation is bad. In fact, your body needs a certain level of inflammation. In the beginning stages of an illness, inflammation activates your body’s natural defenses – your immune system.
However, it becomes problematic when you have a constant state of low-level inflammation in your body. This forces your immune system to work overtime and makes it easier to develop things like:
Diabetes type II
Alzheimer’s disease
Autoimmune diseases
Cancer
Cardiovascular Diseases
Chronic inflammation can make it difficult to lose weight and causes pain and fatigue.
When your immune system is constantly fighting inflammation inside your body, it lacks the strength to fight off bigger and more threatening viruses like Covid-19. Simply put, chronic inflammation wears out your natural defenses.(1)
The good news is there are many ways you can boost your immune system naturally. Some tools we’ll talk about are ones you can start implementing today. Others require the guidance of a healthcare professional, such as a functional medicine doctor.
First, let’s start with a few easy things you can do today to upgrade your immune system.
How to Boost Your Immune System Naturally Without Spending Money
In healthcare – and yes, even holistic healthcare – we’ve overcomplicated and overwhelmed most of you with tons of information. But it doesn’t have to be this way. And that’s why I want to make sure we highlight simple tools that can have a big impact on your health.
1. Getting Outside Is the Ultimate Package
There’s nothing easier than getting outside. In fact, it’s your convenience store of ingredients you need to strengthen your immune system.
Fresh air
Sunlight to improve Vitamin D production
Movement
Temperature exposure (e.g. sauna/cold showers/plunges)
Sunlight regulates your circadian rhythm to improve sleep (2)
If you’re looking to get the biggest bang for your buck, getting outside more is about as simple as it gets. But the benefits go even deeper.
There are multiple studies citing the positive effects of nature on our immune system – like anti-inflammatory, anti-allergic, and anti-asthmatic effects.
Going outside helps decrease inflammation in the body by stimulating leukocytes and releasing the natural killer cells, cytokines. These cells help your immune system fight off viral infections and cancer.(3)(4)
And when you move in nature, the results are even better.
2. Exercise Is Easy to Do
We can easily overwhelm ourselves in the debate of which type of movement is best when it comes to exercise. But in this day and age, when more than half our days are spent sitting down and in front of screens, any form of movement and exercise is better than none.
The key to maximizing the benefits of exercise and its ability to boost your immune system is to be consistent – the hardest part, right?
Regular, moderate exercise helps build our immune systems by increasing those natural killer cells. It also helps boost your white blood cells and antibodies to fight infections.
Exercise increases your circulation and decreases your stress hormone, cortisol – a source of inflammation. Not only that, but we know regular exercise also helps support mental clarity, increases physical strength and endurance, and is your best antidepressant..
But none of this matters if you aren’t getting enough sleep.(5)
3. Sleep Is a Crucial Ingredient
You’ll spend one-third of your entire life sleeping. Sleep is essential for helping the body maintain balance of its systems. Without an adequate amount of restorative sleep, you can experience:
A slow down of your metabolism
More inflammation inside your body
Greater risk of developing chronic disease
When you don’t get enough sleep, your body starts to produce pro-inflammatory cytokines. These killer cells increase inflammation and actually keep you from getting the restorative sleep you need.
Whereas anti-inflammatory cytokines, the ones that help you fight off disease, infection, and cancer, help you get more restful sleep.(6)
I’m sure by now you’re noticing the connection between inflammation and your immune system. But this next immune-boosting activity might not be what you’d expect.
4. Connect With Others
Your relationships have an impact on your immune system, but your immune system also impacts your relationships.
A 2019 study looked at these two factors. They found that if you’re socially isolated, lonely, or feel threatened by others, you’re likely to have an increase of inflammation in your body.
And the more inflammation you have inside your body, the more likely you are to be sensitive to social stimuli and avoid things like public spaces and large gatherings.
And if your immune system is weakened, you’re less likely to expose yourself to situations and places where there is a greater risk of catching a virus.
On the flip side, there is evidence to support engaging in social outings and experiences. Positive interactions with others may help boost your body’s natural antiviral response and decrease inflammation and boost oxytocin, the love hormone.(7)
To wrap up this section, if you want low-cost options to help boost your immune system naturally, it’s as simple as:
Going outside
Moving your body
Sleeping well
Spending time with people you love
But that’s not the only way you can enhance your immunity to fight off viruses. With the help of a functional medicine doctor, you can try the following methods.
5. Learn What Foods Can Improve Your Immune System
What you eat and the nutrients absorbed into your body directly affect your immune system. The foundation of your immune system is your gut microbiome, where the majority of your immune system lives.
When you’re constantly eating inflammatory foods, your system gets overwhelmed and leaves you in a chronic state of inflammation.(20)
To help you reduce inflammation and restore your tired immune system, research suggests eating a diet high in:
Phytonutrients
Water and lipid-soluble vitamins
Antioxidants
Dietary fiber
This means eating plenty of fruits and vegetables, as well as spices, herbs, nuts, and seeds. Also, getting 25-35 grams of dietary fiber from whole foods and eating fermented foods like sauerkraut and kefir all support your gut microbiome.
Foods you want to avoid include:
Processed foods found in the middle aisles of the grocery store, even many “health foods” (learn to read your food labels).
Foods high in sugar and high fructose corn syrup like white bread, flour, and soft drinks.
Seed oils, like sunflower, safflower, canola, peanut and palm oil are hidden in processed and restaurant food, as well as many “health foods”. Read your labels and ask waiters what oil your food is cooked in and request alternatives like butter, ghee, tallow or coconut oil.
The way you cook your food can also affect inflammation in your body. Cooking methods that increase inflammation – like grilling, frying, and broiling – should be minimized. Instead, try boiling, steaming, and cooking your food at lower temperatures and use healthy fats, not oils to help to reduce this inflammatory process.(1)
Unfortunately, no matter how hard we try to get the nutrients we need from our food, it still isn’t enough. High-quality supplements and vitamins can help further support your immune system.
6. Supplements, Vitamins, and Your Immune System
There are multiple supplements, plant-based botanicals, and other nutrients that help fight off inflammation and relieve your symptoms when an illness hits.
Vitamin C helps fight off infection and can shorten a cold or virus. When taken in higher doses, it can also act as an anti-histamine and anti-inflammatory. (5)(8)
Vitamin D is known as the “sunshine vitamin.” Americans today live a more urbanized and sedentary lifestyle. Deficiency in this immune-boosting vitamin is common. And there is a strong correlation between vitamin D deficiency and those who experienced complications from Covid-19.(5)(9)
Vitamin A helps your body fight off infection, especially respiratory illnesses.(10)
Zinc boosts your immunity and helps prevent the common cold, and can shorten the duration and severity of your symptoms.(5)(11)(12)
Quercetin is found in many fruits and vegetables. It’s a powerful antioxidant and may have anti-inflammatory effects helping to prevent tissue damage from acute viral infections. There’s also research identifying this polyphenol as having anti-carcinogenic properties.(13)(14)
Selenium is an antioxidant that helps boost your immunity to fight off bacteria, viruses, and even cancer cells.(15)
N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is a precursor compound that helps your body create the antioxidant glutathione. Glutathione has been used to loosen thick mucus in the lungs. NAC has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and immune-boosting characteristics that can suppress viruses and reduce inflammation.(16)
Glutamine is a nonessential amino acid and is an important source of energy for your immune system as well as one of the other amino acids that make up glutathione.(17)
Honey, in its raw form, has antioxidant and anti-microbial properties. It can also help with minor pain and inflammation of the mucous membranes, which is why it’s recommended for colds and sore throats.(18)
Garlic can help minimize symptoms from upper respiratory infections (like a cold) and prevent similar infections.(19)
Probiotics can help boost your gut microbiome to support your immune system’s ability to fight off inflammation.(5)(20)
Another valuable tool that’s recognized to help you enhance and bolster your immunity is acupuncture.
7. Acupuncture Is a Powerful Immune Boosting Tool
Acupuncture has been practiced for over 2,000 years. It’s proven to help manage your immune system’s response to inflammation and even balance the systems of the body.
Using acupoints to stimulate specific regions of the body, acupuncture can boost your immune system to decrease inflammation and prevent infections.(21)
And not just inflammation caused by bacteria or from a virus. It’s a powerful tool in regulating your stress response caused by hormones like cortisol.(22)
If you don’t like needles, there are other ways you can minimize underlying inflammation in the body, although, you’ll be surprised at how deeply relaxing and healing acupuncture feels.
8. Discover How Red Light Therapy Can Help You Build a Stronger Immune System
Red or infrared light therapy has been used to treat inflammation for over 100 years. It's non-invasive, safe, and affordable. Plus, you can see changes after only 48 hours of treatment.
Near-infrared light therapy can penetrate into the tissue's mitochondria (the powerhouse of the cell) causing regenerative and anti-inflammatory effects.(23)(24)
A recent study showed that infrared exposure interacts with a key inflammatory pathway found in people with Covid-19. It can also suppress inflammation in people with rheumatoid arthritis.(25)
And like red or infrared light therapy, immune-boosting injections can also help treat underlying inflammation.
9. Use Immune Boosting Injections to Prevent Getting immune-boosting injections Sick
Injection therapy uses specific substances at key trigger points to stimulate your body’s innate immune response to healing.
One example is using a combination of glutathione, vitamin C, and zinc to strengthen your immune system.(26)
Every body is different, but taking action now will help you boost your immune system for cold and flu season, and the rest of the year too. Monthly injections throughout fall and winter can be a game changer.
Get the Personalized Attention You Need to Optimize Your Health
Some of the ways you can fend off the latest strain of Covid-19, the flu, or the common cold are easy to do – some you can start today. Others discussed in this blog need the guidance of a functional medicine doctor.
We’re all unique beings. What works best for you may not work or be appropriate for someone else.
But that’s where I come in. The importance of combating inflammation not only helps us fight off the cold or flu going around, but is key in helping you fight off more severe viruses like Covid-19 and preventing chronic disease.
At Denver Sports and Holistic Medicine, I partner with you to help boost your immune system naturally so you can sail through this year's cold and flu season better than ever.
To find out how using a functional medicine approach can help you strengthen your immune system, book a FREE 15-minute consultation to learn more.
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