Boost Your Immune System To Avoid Flu & Other Viruses
Most of us are aware that our immune system is important to our well being but are we doing enough to boost this immune system?
TL;DR: When the cold winter weather appears along with the threat of colds and flu, there is much we can do to improve our immune system to make us less vulnerable. For a stronger immune system, avoid too much coffee, all sugar (fructose) and artificial sweeteners - and the biggest baddy of them all is smoking, as the more you smoke, the harder your immune system has to work. Include fresh herbs, raw fruits and vegetables, sufficient protein, garlic and top immune boosting foods such as apples, oranges, broccoli, olive oil, green leafy vegetables and whole grains. Get out in the fresh air to exercise, make time for your friends, manage your stress and get a good night's sleep. Vitamin D is vital too, as many people are actually deficient, and vitamin C from a wide range of vegetables and fruits - not just oranges - also helps to boost our immunity. If you have taken antibiotics recently, restore the healthy flora balance in your body with a daily probiotic. And practice hygiene by washing your hands frequently in soap and water. Take care of your immune system - it is more important than you ever realized.
When the cold winter weather appears along with the threat of colds and flu, there is much we can do to improve our immune system to make us less vulnerable.
Along with a healthy, balanced diet and making sure to drink sufficient water, there is much more you can do to boost your immune system.
Also read: Our complete guide to natural allergy relief
In this post:
- For a stronger immune system, what should you avoid?
- For a stronger immune system, what should you include?
- Other important ways to boost your immune system
- To sum up
- Sources
- Related reading on immunity, allergies and natural remedies
For a stronger immune system, what should you avoid?
Well too much coffee, all sugar (fructose) and artificial sweeteners are three.
- While coffee does come with benefits, it can cause dehydration and even deprive your body of minerals and vitamins. So if you have a daily cup of coffee, make sure you have two extra glasses of water to counteract any possible adverse effects.
- Keep sugar to the minimum and change to the safer, natural stevia.
- Artificial sweeteners contain chemicals that are potentially harmful to the immune system.
And the biggest baddy of them all is of course smoking. Cigarette smoke has thousands of chemicals, many of which are known carcinogens. When you introduce cigarette smoke to your body, you are inviting multiple invaders for your immune system to chase, catch and remove. The more you smoke, the harder your immune system has to work. So of course your immune system is going to be weakened.
For a stronger immune system, what should you include?
- Aromatherapy can help fight colds and flu - and many natural remedies can also help boost your immune system.
- Fresh herbs, raw fruits and vegetables are all good too. Use pure and natural lemon juice every day to keep your body’s acid/alkali balance at the best level for healthy bacteria to thrive.
- Make sure you eat sufficient quantities of protein – meat, fish, nuts, eggs and whole beans.
- Some of the top foods for immune system boosting are apples, oranges, broccoli, cantaloupe, brown rice, olive oil, green leafy vegetables, whole grains, fruit and roots.
- Garlic either raw or in cooked form is another excellent immune booster
Other important ways to boost your immune system
- Make sure you get out in the fresh air (winter and summer) to exercise, to do deep breathing and just to have some fun. Don’t be so bound up in your work or your chores that you never have time for yourself.
- Make time for your friends, have a good laugh as often as you can and learn to relax and get a good night’s sleep.
- If you are eating, drinking water, exercising well and managing your stress, then not only will your immune system receive a massive boost but a good night’s sleep will usually follow.
- Vitamin D is vital too. Even if you are in the sun exposing as much skin as possible for at least twenty minutes a day during the warmer months, you are not able to store enough vitamin D for the winter months. Ideally, a blood test can give you your vitamin D as many people are actually deficient. In the meantime, the suggested supplement dose is 4000 to 5000 IUs daily to boost your levels. Taking with butter or coconut oil will help with absorption as will Vitamin K2 and Magnesium. Vitamin K2 can be found in Brie cheese but you can also take a Vitamin K2 supplement a couple of times a week along with a magnesium supplement daily.
- Vitamin C also helps to boost our immunity systems. We might think that if we have an glass of fresh orange juice from time to time, that will provide us with sufficient vitamin C to keep us safe from colds and flu especially during the winter months. But it is not just oranges...Make sure to include as many as possible of these other foods in your diet:
- Vegetables: cabbage, chili peppers, green leafy vegetables including spinach, peppers, potatoes, tomatoes, watercress, garlic and more.
- Fruits: grapefruit, guava, kiwis, mango, strawberries, watermelon, lemon, cherries, bilberries and most of the red fruits.
Remember too that if you have taken antibiotics recently, you will need to restore the healthy flora balance in your body by taking a daily probiotic containing acidophilus. Unfortunately, antibiotics can harm the good bacteria in your system while they are fighting an infection in your body.
To sum up
If you can boost your immune system by following as many of these suggestions above, you are much less likely to become sick. You have a good chance of avoiding the flu as well as all those other conditions that can rear their ugly heads when your immune system is compromised.
Obviously, it is also important to practice hygiene by washing your hands frequently in soap and water and remembering to sneeze into the crook of your arm if you cannot reach a tissue in time.
Take care of your immune system – it is more important than you ever realized.
Sources
- Benefits of moderate sun exposure. (2017). Harvard Health Publishing. (Accessed 1 September, 2021).
- Family Health Team. (2015). Some sunlight may benefit your health, if you’re older. Cleveland Clinic. (Accessed 1 September, 2021).
- Holick MF. (2008). Vitamin D and sunlight: Strategies for cancer prevention and other health benefits. Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology. (Accessed 1 September, 2021).
- Lambert GW, et al. (2002). Effect of sunlight and season on serotonin turnover in the brain. The Lancet. (Accessed 1 September, 2021).
- How to boost your immune system. Harvard Health Publishing. (Accessed November 2, 2026).
- Vitamin D: Fact sheet for consumers. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. (Accessed November 2, 2026).
- Hemilä H, Chalker E. (2013). Vitamin C for preventing and treating the common cold. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. (Accessed November 2, 2026).
- Use of non-sugar sweeteners: WHO guideline. (2023). World Health Organization. (Accessed November 2, 2026).
- Smoking and overall health. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Accessed November 2, 2026).
- Killer SC, Blannin AK, Jeukendrup AE. (2014). No evidence of dehydration with moderate daily coffee intake. PLOS ONE. (Accessed November 2, 2026).
- Prather AA, et al. (2015). Behaviorally assessed sleep and susceptibility to the common cold. SLEEP. (Accessed November 2, 2026).
- Guo Q, et al. (2019). Probiotics for the prevention of pediatric antibiotic-associated diarrhea. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. (Accessed November 2, 2026).
- Handwashing facts and statistics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Accessed November 2, 2026).