Immune-boosting foods to get you through the winter

Avoiding sickness during the colder months can be quite the challenge, but there are some foods that can help support your immune system through winter.

That being said, there’s no single food or nutrient that’s going to magically boost immunity overnight – it takes time for dietary and lifestyle changes to kick-in. The key is to eat a variety of fresh and colourful whole fruits and vegetables each day, along with high-quality whole grains, plant-based proteins, and a splash of healthy oils.

In conjunction with a healthy, balanced diet, it’s also important to ensure you’re getting enough quality sleep, washing your hands often, reducing stress, and doing regular exercise to keep your body’s natural defences in fighting form.

Here are some of our top immune-boosting foods to incorporate into your diet in the months leading up to winter:

Leafy greens

We know that darky leafy greens such as spinach, kale, and collard greens provide loads of health benefits. They’re excellent sources of fibre, folate, iron, calcium, and vitamins C and K. They also play a critical role in regulating the immune system by providing important chemical symbols that help immune cells in the gut function properly. Our Raw Nutrients Greens is made up of a powerful blend of organic spirulina, chlorella, wheatgrass, kale, spinach, herbs and more. It’s an easy way to get more greens into your diet, and it also provides a wholefood source of Vitamin B12 to support energy production and prebiotics to promote gut health.

Nuts & Seeds

Foods including sunflower seeds, almonds, avocado, peanuts, and hazelnuts provide a good source of Vitamin E. This vitamin acts as an antioxidant in the body and can have an anti-inflammatory effect, helping to protect cells from the damage caused by free radicals.

Citrus fruits

Citrus fruits such as oranges, lemons, grapefruits, and limes are packed full of vitamin C, fibre, antioxidants, minerals, and enzymes. Vitamin C is an important antioxidant that helps the body repair tissue and produce white blood cells to fight infections. Each serve of our Raw Wholefood Extracts Women’s Multi contains a whopping 85% of your recommended daily intake of Vitamin C, along with Zinc, B Vitamins, Iron, Vitamin D3, and more, to help you feel your best.

Ginger

A common cold-fighting ingredient, ginger boasts powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. We recommend whole food source ginger over a supplement, so try adding it into your cooking or cup of tea.

Healthy Fats

Healthy fats help our body to store and absorb fat soluble vitamins, like Vitamins A and E. To maintain a high-functioning immune system, it’s important to include Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids into our diet (a lower ratio of Omega-6 to Omega 3 is ideal). Plant-based food sources include hemp seeds, avocados, walnuts, chia seeds, flaxseeds, and of course our Amazonia Açaí, which is also a fantastic source of antioxidants.

Orange foods

Orange foods such as carrots, pumpkin, and sweet potato, are rich in Vitamin A which supports immunity by promoting cell growth and development, as well as the production of mucus membranes (which act as a physical barrier to stop germs getting into the body). It also supports healthy skin, which is a critical first line of defence against infection.

Fermented foods

Fermented foods containing probiotics, such as kombucha, kefir, kimchi, and some yogurts, help increase the diversity of bacteria in your gut microbiome and improve the body’s immune responses.

Prebiotic foods

Foods including garlic, onions, leeks, and asparagus are considered prebiotic foods because they contain fibre and oligosaccharides to feed and support the good bacteria in your gut, which in turn supports a healthy immune system. Our Raw Probiotics Biotic Ferment is packed with 3 billion probiotics and prebiotics per serve, purely from organic fermented whole foods. Each morning, simply mix it with water or add it to your morning smoothie or yoghurt bowl for a healthy hit of gut-loving pre- and probiotics.

Water

This one’s not a food as such but drinking at least 2L of water each day helps your body naturally eliminate toxins and the build-up of bacteria that can cause illness. Not to mention being properly hydrated can also help improve sleep quality, cognition, and mood.