You can start boosting your immune system by making changes to activities that are already part of your daily routine - diet, exercise and sleep. Begin to eliminate unhealthy activities that you engage in and reduce negative environmental factors as much as possible.

The more effort you put into it, the greater will be the benefit but even small changes will help, so don't fail to act simply because you can't follow all the steps.

We all know that a nutritionally balanced diet is necessary for general good health. The body finds, in the foods we eat, the building blocks for it's constant generation of new cells needed to replace old or damaged cells. From the foods we eat our cells manufacture the energy we need for everything from simple breathing, to running a marathon.

A nutritionally balanced diet is also necessary for a healthy immune system. According to Dr. David Katz, director of Yale's Prevention Research Center, "Not only are essential nutrients critical for the production and maintenance of key germ-fighting cells in the immune system, but a balanced diet also has a strong effect on vascular function, and the immune system is dependent on blood flow."http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/diet.fitness/11/14/cl.best.defense/index.html

So how can you ensure you are providing your immune system with those essential nutrients? A good place to start is with the recommendations shown on the FDA's food pyramidhttp://www.mypyramid.gov/

1. Eat whole grains rather than refined grains when possible. Examples of whole grains are whole-wheat flour, oatmeal, brown rice and bulgur. Examples of refined grains are white flour or bread, white rice, most pastas & noodles.
2. Eat more fruits and vegetables and vary them as much as season and budget allows. The CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) recommends a minimum of five a dayhttp://www.fruitsandveggiesmatter.gov/. The most nutrient dense fruits and vegetables are those with deep, dark colors (dark green, red, orange, bright yellow). These are full of antioxidants and carotenoids. Both of these increase the body's production of specific cells used by the immune system to fight infections. Some fruits are especially rich in bioflavenoids which aids the immune system by strengthening the cellular wall so that harmful substances cannot penetrate it.
3. Most of your fats should come from food sources (like nuts, some kinds of fish, avocados) and vegetable oils. These contain mostly monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats which do not raise blood levels of LDL cholesterol (bad cholesterol). Although these oils are high in calories, they should not be eliminated from your diet because they contain some essential fatty acids that cannot be obtained from other food sources. Omega-3 fatty acids (found in fish oil, for example) have been shown to "prevent the development of inflammatory diseases by affecting different steps of the immune response."http://ncp.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/24/4/487 Assure you are getting an adequate amount either through diet or supplements.
4. Minimize your use of solid fats (butter, margarine, shortening). They are high in calories and contain saturated fats and trans fats that raise blood levels of LDL cholesterol. High levels of LDL increase the risk of heart disease. A disabled cardiovascular system cannot properly move the immune systems defensive cells to the site of infection.
5. As much as possible, eliminate foods with trans fat. Trans fat not only raises your LDL cholesterol, but it lowers your HDL (good cholesterol). This combination (high LDL, and low HDL cholesterol) is associated with risk of heart disease and produces a low-grade, but chronic systemic inflammation. An immune system constantly battling such chronic conditions is not as available to defend the body against attack. While dairy and beef contain small amounts of naturally occurring trans fat, most of it is found in processed foods. To determine if a food product contains trans fat, look on the label for the words "partially hydrogenated vegetable oil." Such foods should be avoided.http://www.umm.edu/features/transfats.htm

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Regular moderate exercise is good for you and your immune system. The benefits of aerobic exercise for the cardiovascular system are well established. Strength exercises strengthen the muscular-skeletal system. Recent research shows that regular moderate exercise can also boost your immune system. http://cchealth.clevelandclinic.org/also-issue/heal-thyself The sedentary person that does not enjoy exercise should not be discouraged. A mere 20 to 30 minutes of moderate exercise (like a brisk walk) for 5 days a week will strengthen the immune system. The daily time can even be broken down into 10 or 15 minute intervals. The exercise should be moderate. Overly long or intense exercise sessions can actually depress the immune system.

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With the hectic pace of modern life, many find extra time by reducing the number of hours they sleep. If you are one of those, your immune system is being weaken and those "found" hours may soon be lost again to illness. Although the mechanism is not yet understood, researcher at Stanford University have demonstrated that the immune system is most active at night while sleeping.http://health.usnews.com/articles/health/healthday/2008/12/15/immune-system-works-better-at-night.html What this means is that if you don't get adequate sleep, you are relying on your immune system to protect you when is not operating at it's most efficient level. According to medical journalist Colette Bouchez, "Some studies even suggest that those who get six hours or less of sleep have 50 percent less immunity protection than those who get eight hours per night."http://www.webmd.com/cold-and-flu/features/using-your-immune-system-to-stay-well

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Psycological Bulletin reported that "stress suppresses immune system function and that, over time, the immune system does not adapt but instead continues to wear away."http://www.livestrong.com/article/22689-stress-affect-immune-system While you cannot eliminate all stress from you life, you can reduce it. There are many effective techniques for reducing stress. If you have already introduced regular moderate exercise, that will help. Sleep deprivation increases the production of stress hormones. That's another good reason to get enough rest. There are many kinds of relaxation techniques. Guided imagery works for some, yoga or tai chi for others. Both breathing exercises and biofeedback can be effective. Regular time given to prayer or mediation has been shown to decrease stress levels. Nurture healthy relationships. Having a supportive person to talk to is a great stress reducer. Finally, seek out professional counseling if needed.

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Sometimes we are our own worst enemy. If you are a smoker you already know that quitting is not easy. But it is probably the single most important thing you can do to strengthen your immune system, and to improve your health overall. As soon as 20 minutes after you smoke your last cigarette, your heart rate and blood pressure will begin to drop. In as little as one year after quitting, you will have half the risk of coronary heart disease as a smoker. The American Cancer Society provides a helpful 'Guide to Quit Smoking on it's website.http://www.cancer.org/docroot/PED/content/PED_10_13X_Guide_for_Quitting_Smoking.asp Additional resources can be found on the CDC's websitehttp://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/quit_smoking/how_to_quit/index.htm If you drink alcohol, do it in moderation. Do not use recreational drugs. Significantly reduce your consumption of sugar in all it's forms. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reported that ""100 grams of sugar from glucose, fructose, sucrose, honey or orange juice caused a significant decrease in the ability of white blood cells to engulf and destroy bacteria. This decrease in immune function was still present five hours after sugar was consumed.""http://educate-yourself.org/nutrition/

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