When it comes to COVID-19, let us clarify that there is no evidence that dietary supplements or nutrients can protect you from this awful virus. To keep yourself safe continue physically distancing and ensure good hygiene practice. What we want to discuss here is general immune health, especially during the autumn and winter months.
Get some shut-eye
Sleep is crucial for health and wellbeing. Inadequate sleep is linked to vulnerability to sickness. Aim to get at the very least, seven hours of sleep every night. Do everything to aid your sleep from turning off screens, removing laptops or TVs from your bedroom and anything else that might be hindering a good night's rest. Wind down by reading or a warm bath before bed to prepare your body for rest.
Move your body
Exercising not only keeps you healthy and active but it's a great stress relief for the body. However, to boost immunity try exercises which are non-competitive as over-training can suppress immunity. Gentle yet effective forms of exercise such as yoga, pilates and even jogging will keep the body in great condition during the colder months. Needless to say that exercise aids sleep.
Eat, drink and be merry
Eat clean nutritious food that provides vitamins B, C, D and E and minerals such as iron and zinc. Citrus fruit, leafy greens, spinach, broccoli, almonds, bananas and chickpeas are just some of the long list of foods that are vitamin-rich. With fewer hours of sunlight in autumn and winter it may be beneficial to add a daily vitamin D supplement to your diet.
Your favourite M-EAT! biltong is rich in both iron and zinc. In general biltong provides the 8 to 12 mg of zinc that we require each day to help with effective immune function. Just 100grams of lean beef as found in M-EAT! biltong contains as much as 2.6mg of iron because it is made from pure, grass-fed beef. You can also increase biltong in your diet creatively by adding it to meals or simply eating it as a snack.
Drinking alcohol only moderately will also help keep the body's immunity in good shape. Staying hydrated with at least three litres of water a day has immeasurable health benefits.
Reduce stress
Make small lifestyle tweaks to reduce your exposure to stress and anxiety which have a negative effect on natural defences. Whilst it may not be as easy to avoid stress altogether, particularly at present, there are plenty of ways to minimise it. If your supermarket delivery slots are filling up too fast, switch over to M-EAT! deliveries. We have plenty of them available stress-free! Jesting aside, you can also try breathing techniques, yoga and meditation at home which are wonderful and enjoyable ways to relieve stress.