| Your food and healthy lifestyle choices boost your | | | | Stay away from excess sugar and unhealthy fats, |
| immune system, and that can prevent you from | | | | such as saturated fat and trans fats. Make a real |
| coming down with colds and flu. The key is not waiting | | | | effort to give up the Mc Junk meals. Keep healthy |
| until you get sick to make these changes; you need to | | | | snacks handy so you won't be so tempted to eat less |
| revamp your diet and lifestyle before the cold and flu | | | | healthy options. Try dried fruit or trail mix. |
| bugs hits you. | | | | If the cold or flu bug bites here's a daily menu based |
| Drink lots of water, eat a healthy balanced diet | | | | on experts' recommendations: |
| supplemented with a whole food supplement for extra | | | | Breakfast |
| protection, exercise often and get restful sleep. | | | | Orange juice or half a grapefruit. Both are great |
| Eat More Fruits and Vegetables | | | | sources of vitamin C, which could shorten the duration |
| You know you need to eat lots of fruits and | | | | of colds. |
| vegetables. The problem with this age - old phrase is | | | | Whole-grain cereal or bread. Whole grains are rich in |
| that people tend to like the fruits more than the | | | | vitamins and minerals, including zinc and vitamin E, |
| veggies. If you really hate a certain vegetable it's | | | | which can help keep your immune system healthy. |
| probably not going to do you a lot of good if you have | | | | Black tea. Real tea leaves (not herbal) have |
| to force yourself to eat it. To keep your immune | | | | substances that speed the action of cilia, the tiny |
| system strong, you have to actually get the fruits and | | | | hairlike cells lining your nasal pas-sages, helping them |
| veggies in your body, you have to make it happen. | | | | expel germs. |
| People tend to eat fewer fruits and vegetables in the | | | | Mid-morning snack |
| winter, which is the opposite of what you should be | | | | Yogurt with fresh fruit. |
| doing. Everyone needs at least five servings of fruits | | | | Lunch |
| and vegetables every day to get adequate vitamins, | | | | Chicken soup. Nebraska researchers used a traditional |
| minerals, fiber and antioxidants -- all things we need for | | | | recipe they called "Grandma's Soup," which had |
| a healthy immune system. | | | | veggies like onions, parsnips, and carrots, along with |
| Make sure that fruits and vegetables are part of | | | | chicken. But most of the commercial varieties they |
| every meal. You can add berries or a sliced banana to | | | | tested reduced inflammation, too. For even more |
| your whole grain cereal at breakfast and drink a glass | | | | protection, add a clove or two of garlic. |
| of 100% orange or grapefruit juice. Pack a bunch of | | | | Anise-seed cookie. Anise seeds, with their licorice-like |
| grapes or an apple with your sandwich for lunch, and | | | | flavor, have been found to help break up congestion. |
| top that sandwich with tomato slices, avocado, sprouts | | | | Dinner |
| and lettuce. Start dinner off with a salad or vegetable | | | | Salad of bitter greens. Watercress and arugula can |
| soup, or serve a big salad as a healthy dinner. Keep a | | | | make a salad special-and research shows they may |
| bowl of oranges, apples and pears on your counter | | | | also have antiviral effects. Bitter greens are especially |
| top to grab as quick snacks. | | | | helpful in relieving chest congestion, sniffles, and |
| Keep Up Your Healthy Diet | | | | coughs. |
| While you want to focus on increasing the amount of | | | | Pasta with tomato sauce and plenty of garlic. Because |
| fruits and vegetables you eat, don't forget to choose | | | | the pungent bulb is one of the most potent |
| other healthy foods to supply nutrients your immune | | | | disease-fighting foods around, it's worth having at least |
| system needs. A healthy balanced diet with lean | | | | two servings a day. Raw garlic has the most benefits, |
| meats, fish, poultry, low-fat dairy, legumes, whole grains, | | | | but cooked garlic also packs a punch. |
| nuts and seeds provides your body with all of the | | | | Ginger tea. It's different and refreshing-and ginger is |
| nutrients you need for general health. A healthy body | | | | loaded with virus-fighting substances, including several |
| tends to have a healthier immune system. | | | | that act directly against cold viruses."(One substance, |
| Protein sources such as lean meats, dairy, eggs and | | | | gingerol, can suppress coughing.) Boil water; then steep |
| legumes are especially important because they supply | | | | a tablespoon of fresh shredded ginger for 2 or 3 |
| the amino acids that your body needs to build the | | | | minutes. |
| components of your immune system. Lean meats also | | | | Honey and lemon drink: for a bedtime drink that helps |
| contain iron and zinc; deficiencies of these minerals can | | | | to soothe sore throats and coughing - squeeze the |
| depress your immune system. | | | | juice of a lemon into a mug of hot water and add a |
| Of course, avoiding unhealthy food is important too. | | | | teaspoon of honey, stir to dissolve. |