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With the first cold nights, autumn winds, sleet, and temperatures that can jump by a dozen or so degrees during the day, our bodies experience weakness at this time of year. As we adapt to the colder weather, changeable weather, and colds that threaten our health, it is worth supporting the immune system with preparations that will help it function properly. Today, we will review 5 supplements that boost immunity.
Everything you need to know about the immune system
Let’s start with how our immune response is created. Immune cells are distributed throughout the body to effectively deal with inflammation, regardless of its source or location. The immune system reaches its full functionality around our maturity.
Our natural “defense system” remembers all the pathogenic microorganisms it comes into contact with and learns to respond to them. When we first get sick, and when we get vaccinated, our body develops healthy defensive habits that make it respond more efficiently and quickly to future threats. Information stored by so-called immune memory cells recognize and eliminate threats.
Our immune arsenal consists of the skin and mucous membranes, which make it difficult for uninvited guests to enter the body, phagocytes, which absorb and eliminate microorganisms, and lymphocytes and the antibodies they produce, which recognize threats and neutralize them or pass them on for neutralization by phagocytes.
Weakened immunity – how to deal with it?
As we age, our body's ability to effectively defend itself decreases. This is a natural process that we can speed up or slow down by choosing a more or less healthy lifestyle, a balanced diet, physical activity, good habits and supplementation. Our immunity is destroyed by stress, life in a constant rush and at the highest speed, insufficient sleep, a low-quality diet consisting of a large amount of processed products poor in antioxidants, as well as too often taking antibiotics and stimulants.
Immunity is also weakened when external factors put our body to the test: for example, when we travel to a different climate zone and our body has to quickly adapt to new conditions, or when the weather outside plays tricks on us and we experience sudden temperature changes.
When we notice ourselves prone to infections, recurring and prolonged colds, sleep problems, or skin diseases such as herpes, the easiest way to restore balance is to pay more attention to our diet. It is from food that we draw the nutrients that we need to fight microorganisms and constantly regenerate. That is why at Activlab we constantly remind about the role of balanced meals not only for building a dream figure and condition, but also in prevention.
5 Supplements That Boost Immunity
Healthy nutrition is the basis, and in periods of reduced immunity caused by weather, changes in lifestyle or lower mood, it is worth reaching for supplements that will help improve the immune system:
- Complex preparations designed with immunity in mind – complex supplements containing extracts from plants known for their immune-supporting properties, such as garlic or elderberry, as well as vitamins. Such preparations are aimed at strengthening the immune response, thanks to which they work cleverly in exactly those areas that require support. Garlic is not a coincidence that it is a traditional remedy for colds – its beneficial effects on the immune system and its ability to stimulate lymphocytes are beyond doubt. [1] Elderberry, in turn, is added to supplements from this group because it helps remove harmful metabolic products and strengthens the walls of blood vessels and has anti-inflammatory properties.
- Complex vitamin and ginseng supplements – ginseng root contains biologically active ginsenosides – these versatile macromolecules are believed to increase both mental and physical immunity. Ginsenosides stimulate the immune system, help control inflammation and increase the body's ability to respond to infections. [2] Supplements enriched with vitamins A, C and D provide full support in maintaining a healthy body balance.
- Rosehip supplements – as an excellent, natural source of vitamin C, rosehip has been with us for years in the fight for better immunity. Ascorbic acid increases the activity of white blood cells and their ability to quickly reach inflammatory conditions. Vitamin C also affects the synthesis of some antibodies. Rosehip fruit protects cells from oxidative stress and helps seal blood vessels.
- Acerola supplements – like wild rose, acerola is a natural source of easily absorbable vitamin C. Its content in the fruit is as much as 3 percent (according to researchers, acerola contains about 50-100 times more vitamin C than lemons or oranges! [3] ). Acerola fruit has high antioxidant properties, supporting the regenerative processes of our body and its ability to defend itself against microorganisms.
- Highly concentrated vitamin C preparations – there are many preparations available on the market with a high, so-called “burst” dose of vitamin C. Ascorbic acid is the basis of supplementation during periods of increased risk of infection, and manufacturers today offer a large selection of preparations in various concentrations, forms, with or without additives. A high concentration of vitamin C is 1000 mg, although products containing up to 1500 or 2000 mg per portion are also available. Depending on preferences, we can choose shots, tablets, pills and sachets with soluble powder. Lysine (this amino acid enhances its effect) or zinc is also added to vitamin C, additionally stimulating the immune system.
[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4417560/
[2] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3659612/
[3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6098779/
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