With the cold fall and winter months settling in, it’s time to start thinking about ways to boost your immune function. Luckily, Mother Nature has provided us with plenty of gifts from the Earth to support your body during these months. Today I’m going to share my top 4 Immune Boosting Herbs and how you can incorporate them into your diet!
Turmeric
This super powered spice has become super popular in the health food and scientific research world, and for good reason! Used for thousands of years in Ayurvedic medicine, it’s affordable and super powered addition to the diet that has powerful anti-inflammatory effects and helps support phase 1 liver detoxification.
In addition to liver support, which is crucial for staying healthy and happy, this bright yellow spice has also been found to help support the immune system by modulating the activation of T cells, B cells, macrophages, neutrophils, natural killer cells, and dendritic cells.
All of these parts of the immune system function together to help keep you healthy and happy all winter long!
It has very little flavor (unless you use too much then it starts to taste suspiciously like dirt) so you can add a sprinkling to stir fries, eggs, soups, salad dressings, smoothies, coffee, hot cocoa, or my personal favorite, is Golden Milk!
Pick up your organic turmeric right here!
Ginger
Related to turmeric, ginger also grows underground and provides a range of potent health benefits. Though you most likely think of ginger as solely an anti-nausea aid, it’s also a powerful immunosupportive food as well.
Some studies indicate that the volatile oils found in this spice can affect both cell-mediated immune responses and the nonspecific immune system.
It also has great antibacterial properties and one study showed that consuming fresh ginger provides protection against a virus that causes upper respiratory illness.
This broad spectrum approach to immune support gives all the more reason to include ginger in your diet as part of a delicious preventative health plan.
Pick up your Organic Ginger right here!
Bonus: Ashwagandha
Excessive stress depletes immune function and leaves you prone to developing all the nasty colds and flus circulating through school or the office, which is why I love taking ashwagandha daily throughout the winter.
Long used in Ayurvedic medicine as a tonic and general rejuvenator, ashwagandha has the reputation as an herbal preparation that promotes a youthful state of physical and mental health and expands happiness. Nutritionists and naturopaths refer to it as an adaptogen, whose primary function is supporting your body and adrenal glands during times of stress by enhancing your body’s natural resilience to physical and emotional stress.
Get it in a bundle with Ginger and Turmeric right here!
Cinnamon
Nothing says fall quite like the beautiful aroma of cinnamon! And luckily for your body, this powerful spice may help to inhibit the growth of certain influenza viruses! And it turns out the volatile oils responsible for its delicious scent also have amazing antimicrobial effects to help ward off any nasty bacteria that may be weakening your immune system. The fewer bacteria your immune system has to fight off during cold and flu season, the better off you’ll feel!
Since cinnamon tastes good in pretty much everything you can feel free to add it to sweet potato hash browns, your delicious Golden Milk, cookies, and smoothies!
Pick up your Organic Cinnamon right here!
Medicinal Mushrooms
Medicinal mushrooms have been used for centuries by Chinese herbal practitioners. Blends that contain chaga and maitake mushrooms are great for strengthening the immune system.
What’s cool about medicinal mushrooms is that they are called ‘immunomodulators.’ What’s an immunomodulator? Mushrooms contain unique molecules that help to regulate and normalize the immune systems function. The mushrooms can attribute this immune boosting capabilities because of their high level of polysaccharides and specifically Beta-glucans.
This was just one reason why we created our popular mushroom blend RISE, which contains Chaga mushrooms, Maitake mushrooms, Cordyceps mushrooms and Lions Mane mushrooms.
You can pick up a bottle of RISE Mushrooms here.
Armed with these immune boosting herbs and mushrooms you’ll be well on your way to making it through cold and flu season with a strong immune system and hopefully fewer illnesses!
3 comments
Of course you should research herbs you plan to take. But to come out with blanket statement like “Folk with Thyroid should be real careful”, about consuming Ashwagandha without providing any resources about your concern is irresponsible.
https://draxe.com/ashwagandha-proven-to-heal-thyroid-and-adrenals/
Good information. Easy to understand. If some of the people follow then u helped a lot. As good nutritional info is hard to get even from doctors.
Folks with thyroid should be real careful and do research before taking ashwagandha.