Simple Strategies to Improve Your Nutrition and Boost Your Immune System

Cold and flu season is winding down, but the germs are still around to make you sick. Your immune system is your best protection against illness, and it needs good nutrition to function at its best.

Making small improvements to your diet can boost immune health, improving your defenses against harmful germs so you don’t get sick, or at least not too sick.

Our team at  Pro-Health Urgent Care of Midland in Midland, Michigan, wants you to stay healthy this summer so you can avoid visits to urgent care for unexpected illnesses. In this month’s blog, we share simple strategies to improve your nutrition and boost your immune system.

Eat more fruits and veggies

Fruits and vegetables are loaded with many nutrients your immune system needs to make protective immune cells — such as vitamin C, beta-carotene, and antioxidants. Eating more fruits and vegetables is key to boosting your immune system.

Adults should eat a minimum of four servings of fruits and veggies each day, but getting closer to seven servings is better. Add fruit to your cereal, eat a salad at lunch, snack on grapes or carrots, and double your veggies at dinner to meet your daily needs for good nutrition.

Add more color

Getting your daily servings of fruits and vegetables is a good start. But to maximize nutrition and boost immune health, eat a rainbow of fruits and vegetables to vary your nutrient intake for more protection power.

Phytonutrients are compounds in fruits and vegetables responsible for color. Anthocyanins make eggplants purple, lycopene makes watermelon red, and beta-carotene makes carrots orange. Phytonutrients are part of the plants' defense system, protecting against disease and damage.

The plant compounds also benefit human health, working as anti-inflammatory agents and antioxidants in the body. Eating a rainbow of fruits and vegetables provides a greater variety of phytonutrients for better protection.

Get enough protein

Despite an apparent push for getting more protein, most people have no problems meeting their daily needs. To maximize nutrition and boost immune health, choose healthy proteins like:

• Fatty fish: salmon, tuna, mackerel
• Poultry: chicken, turkey, and eggs
• Legumes: beans, peas, and lentils
• Nuts and seeds

These proteins provide the amino acids your immune system needs to make immune cells and other nutrients that benefit overall health, like B vitamins, magnesium, and fiber.

Include some fermented foods

Your body is home to trillions of microorganisms, both good and bad. Maintaining the right balance of these microorganisms is important for immune health, and what you eat influences this balance.

Fermented foods like yogurt, kombucha, and kimchi are a source of good microorganisms, also called probiotics. Include fermented foods in your diet to help maintain the right balance. 

Summer is a great time for implementing new strategies that improve nutrition and benefit your immune system. It not only helps you fight off summer germs but may boost your defenses heading into the next cold and flu season.

If you have a sore throat, lingering cough, or other concerning symptoms and you need medical care, call Pro-Health Urgent Care of Midland today or book your urgent care appointment online. 

We offer testing for acute illnesses like COVID-19 and urinary tract infections (UTIs). Telehealth visits are also available.