Gut health and immunity are linked, and the older I get, the more I notice what I have instinctively known for about 30 years; that my health is linked to what food and drink I nourish my body with.

Foods and inflammation and foods that heal. This week I want to focus on foods that support our immune system.

All citrus fruits are high in Vitamin C. So are capsicums, kiwi fruit, and cranberries. Broccoli is high in vitamins A, C and E as well as fibre and antioxidants. Spinach is high in vitamin C and antioxidants. Carrot is high in Vitamin A. Mushrooms high in vitamin D.

Garlic is great at fighting infections. Ginger decreases inflammation, sore throat and nausea

Yoghurt has live and active cultures and vitamin D.

Almonds are high in Vitamin E, Sunflower seeds have phosphorus, magnesium, Vitamin B6 and E.

Turmeric – curcumin

Blueberries – antioxidants

Dark chocolate – antioxidants

Oily Fish – omega 3 fatty acids

Sweet Potatoes and Papaya are high in beta carotene

Green tea, and in particular Matcha (a type of Green Tea) are high in flavonoids.

Kefir is a fermented drink with live cultures.

Wheatgrass juice is high in chlorophyll.

I don’t consider myself a cook, but by including some of these foods in our daily food intake, helps support our body, digestive system, immune system, heart health and mental health.

Sometimes, despite our best efforts and food intake, we can still benefit from taking supplements. The following are some supplements that are useful to take to support healthy body, but please, consult your doctor, and if you suffer from any side effects, please stop taking them.

Omega 3 fatty acids – great for brain, heart health, lowers blood pressure, BUT can also be high in sugar and not good for diabetes, and can also cause diarrhoea and can have other side effects.

Probiotics – for those who can’t have yoghurt, or who can’t tolerate dairy, these may help with digestive health.

Vitamin D –for muscular skeletal health

Melatonin – for sleep

Curcumin (Turmeric) – for immune health, muscle aches and pains

Magnesium – muscular skeletal health, bones, muscle aches

Doterra supplements – DDR Prime, Copiaba Softgels, Alpha CRS, Micro Plex VM and EO Mega – for a range of health benefits. I can provide you with more details of these supplements if you are interested, just let me know.

I suggest trying any of these or other supplements you feel you may need, but listen to your body and stop if the side effects are too annoying. Also don’t take them forever, it is important to give our body a rest from the supplements sometimes. (For example, if we took Echinacea all the time, it wouldn’t be as effective then if we did get the cold and flu).

Immune Support – Herbs

Here are some of the herbs we can use to support a healthy immune system:

• Astragalus
• Black Elderberry
• Clove
• Echinacea
• Ginger
• Gingseng
• Goldenseal
• Olive Leaf
• Oregano

How do we use them? That’s a very good question. As supplements, as extracts, in cooking, in herbal teas, decoctions, tinctures, as essential oils diffused, applied topically, or (in moderation) taken internally.

Herbal Teas – we can make our own or source them from a shop – it really is as easy as we want it to be              

• Chamomile
• Peppermint
• Ginger
• Lemon
• Hibiscus
• Echinacea
• Roobois
• Rose Hip