- Mikki D
5 Things you should be doing RIGHT NOW to boost your immune system and health.
A lot of people are taking a personal inventory right now. People are realizing that they are not as healthy as they thought they w
ere. Or that many of the things they thought were healthy or good for them, are not. Research and studies show a tremendous value on the things I'm going to share with you.
Eating a plant based diet - This is number one thing you can do. Research show your mom was right, eat your vegetables. Make sure that you diet is 80% vegetable based, and that they are organic. There are thousands of stories and hundreds of books written by health coaches, nutritionists and doctors, my book included, that tout the remarkable healing power of plants. If you are not sure where to start, or what to cook, I include over 80 recipes that take less than 30 minutes or less to make, a complete shopping list, a "NO" list, 2 week detox and a 4 week plan broken down into 2 phases. You can get it here.
Exercise - Get active for 45-60 minutes a day. Mix it up. And unless you have certain body composition goals, don't worry about what it is, or HIIT vs LISS, just move for an hour and you're good.
Key Supplements - There are millions of supplements on the market. But they are not all created equal. Many of them have contaminants like heavy metals, arsenic, chlorine, GMO's, gluten and dioxins. Many of them don't even have the amount (iu or mcg/mg) of the nutrients in them that they claim. Many brands purchased at big box retailers are guilty of selling "dirty" vitamins. The good news is that there ARE good, reputable vitamins companies that are testing their vitamins and making sure that they formulas are pure, and contain what they say they do. Some of the most important supplements you can be taking right now, are those that build and support your body's immune system. When our immune is strong and operating properly, we can take a blow, and keep on going. This is what our immune system is for. When you are living in a constant state of immunosuppression (dampening of the body's ability to ward off disease and infection.) your immune system has a hard time working properly. Unfortunately, most people are living this way because of the lack of nutrients in their diet, and the constant flow of chemicals, food additives, GMO's, antigens and heavy metals that we are exposed to through the air, indoor and outdoor pollution, medicines, vaccines, processed foods, meat, dairy and even tap water. At a minimum, I take the following each day for my immune/overall health: Vitamin C Vitamin D Zinc Probiotic Topical HGH Immune herb complex (garlic, berberine, ginger, elderberry, astragalus, echinacea) NAC Now as I mentioned, not all supplements are created equal. There are also formulas that are considered "therapeutic" or "clinical" grade, and these are the brands I take. Most the retail brands are not going to pack the power, or have the purity needed to make a difference. In fact, they can make things worse. One thing I also do to minimize taking some many pills is use MULTI-TASKING formulas. All that added up can be over $250, and that is out of a lot of people's budgets, so I take this one for only $60. It's 12 different immune and health supplements in one bottle.
Grounding or "Earthing" - I know, I know, sounds super granola. Just stay with me. There is a powerful new documentary on this topic. It is a MUST watch. It covers what people have known for thousands of years have known, that walking on the earth with your bare feet, can heal the body. "Earthing refers to a physical connection that takes place between the electrical frequencies of the human body and those of the earth. Just like the sun constantly provides us with important energy, nutrients and vitamins, the earth too is a source of subtle energy that provides important elements that contribute to optimum health. Despite the human body’s biological design as a natural conductor, many of us have misplaced our connection with Earth’s energy and this reality can have some severe repercussions...Connecting our bare skin to the ground for extended periods of time can significantly reduce inflammation leading to often dramatic health benefits." Check out this powerful documentary here and download free guide to earthing.
Sleep - Not getting enough? Well you're not alone, studies show most Americans are not getting the 8 hours we need. Sleep deprivation can have extremely detrimental effects on our minds and health. People that don't get enough sleep are prone to higher levels of weight gain and obesity, lower brain function, eat more calories (and as a result gain more weight) and get sicker more often because they have lowered immune systems. We live in a world where we are bombarded by blue light from screens. This bue light disrupts the output of melatonin and ruins our sleep schedules. "Research shows that the shorter wavelengths in blue light is what causes the body to produce less melatonin because the body is more sensitive to this type of light. Other studies have found that blue wavelengths suppress delta brainwaves, which induce sleep, and boost alpha wavelengths, which create alertness." Research also show that cumulative blue light can damage our retina, and in certain wavelengths, blue light is implicated in the development of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), So in a nutshell, put your phone 45-60 min before you go sleep, or if you're that addicted, as many are, at a minimum wear blue-blocking glasses in the evening starting at dusk. Melatonin is not just for sleep, your body produces this much needed hormone that also acts as a powerful anti-oxidant. "Melatonin has a free radical scavenger, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant effects. It scavenges reactive oxygen and nitrogen species and increases antioxidant defenses, thus it prevents tissue damage and blocks transcriptional factors of pro-inflammatory cytokines. "Melatonin prevents degenerative changes in the central nervous system in models of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease and reduces free radical damage to DNA which may lead to cancer and many other situations." Here is the fantastic article that outlines the benefits of melatonin to the body overall, and it's much deeper and more critical than you probably realized.
If you have any questions about what brands to buy, developing a meal plan, or getting healthier and want guidance, I am here to help. Please reach out to me if I can help you in anyway!
Yours in health,
Mikki
Stay connected: