What your Doctor won't prescribe you...

Some of you lovely people may recall me talking about the importance now of your macronutrients and micronutrients in my classes before the gyms shut down.

Quickly recapping for you because this is very important for your immune health.

Macronutrients form the main concept of your overall nutrition 

You have 3 macronutrients which you are familiar with AKA Protein, Carbohydrates (sugars and starches) and Fats 

We don’t usually have issues getting macronutrients into our system 

What happens though, is many of us do not vary our meals very much on a daily basis.

What this means is potentially we limiting our intake of our essential micronutrients which are particularly important right now as we focus on health, immunity and strength. Micronutrients essentially refer to your vitamins and minerals. 

When we do not vary our eating enough we limit our intake of these essential micronutrients and therefore can potentially hinder our full potential for immunity. 

Obviously all micronutrients are important. But wait! Before you go and rush out to stock up on supplements haphazardly, it’s first best to consider the micronutrients that are particularly good to focus on now from a immune stand point and try to include the right foods or habits to bring these in to your body by a more natural means.

Right now, let’s consider the micronutrients that aid your immunity immensely. Amongst others- These are are vitamin A, C & D

Going back to the title, when did your doctor last turn around and suggest you need to review your diet, instead of throwing you a bunch of smarties without batting an eyelid because you said you did not feel well???

The more we respond to this band aiding approach to health, the more these problems in the world will occur.

Vitamin A 

Vit A essential for many body processes

✅supports immune health 

✅Aids vision during night and poor lighting 

✅Supports daily replacement of skin cells,  thus creates protection  from infection 

✅Maintains integrity and function for all surface tissues for example skin, respiratory tract,  gut lining 

✅Essential for growth development and reproduction 

Food sources of vitamin A

Fruits and vegetables

✅Dark green leafy vegetables, spinach broccoli 

✅Orange-fleshed sweet potatoes

✅Carrots

✅Squashes/pumpkins

✅Yellow maize

✅Mangoes

✅Papayas

✅Melon

✅Apricot 

Animal sources

✅Fish Liver, beef liver, eggs, milk (including breast milk)

Oils

✅Red palm oil or biruti palm oil

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is essential for many body processes

✅Protects our immune system. 

✅Has been shown to treat illnesses like the common cold and even cancer 

✅Reduces the severity of allergic reactions

✅Aids the synthesis and metabolism of tyrosine, folic acid and tryptophan, hydroxylation of glycine, proline, lysine carnitine and catecholamin

✅Lowers blood cholesterol by facilitating the conversion of cholesterol into bile acids

✅increases the absorption of iron in the gut by reducing ferric to ferrous state. 

✅As an antioxidant, it protects the body from various deleterious effects of free radicals, pollutants and toxins. 

Food sources of vitamin C

Fruits and vegetables

Vitamin C is found in 

✅citrus fruits,

✅Kiwi fruit 

✅green peppers, red peppers, ✅strawberries, 

✅tomatoes,

✅broccoli, 

✅brussels sprouts, 

✅turnip, 

✅Indian gooseberry and other leafy vegetables. 

Animal Sources

Note : The animal sources are poor in vitamin C content and the level is usually <30–40 mg/100 g. Therefore plant sources become important because of high content of vitamin C up to 5,000 mg/100 g.

Vitamin D

Important to note that in the science world vitamin D is considered more like a hormone than a vitamin due to the fact that it has receptors on virtually every cell in the body. 

Also important to note that vitamin D deficiency effects 50% of the population worldwide. (Therefore,  this also includes Australia)

Vit D also known as the sunshine vitamin  is essential for many body processes

✅Increases autoimmunity 

✅Reduces susceptibility for infection 

✅Supports bones, muscles and connective tissue health (including your teeth) because this essential micronutrient regulates calcium in your body. 

✅supports lung function and cardiovascular health 

✅Regulates insulin levels and supports diabetes management

✅ influences the expression of genes involved in cancer development  

Food sources of vitamin D

Fruits and vegetables

✅portabella mushrooms

✅Orange/s juice

Animal Sources

✅fatty fish (salmon, tuna, sardines, swordfish), 

✅beef liver 

✅egg yolks, 

✅beef liver, 

Now that you are armed with this information, it’s all about taking action. If you truly want to get into tip top shape, my recommendation is to create a meal plan for yourself for the next 7 days and beyond, with recipes that include the above ingredients.

Be patient with the process here. Creating true wellness will take time and consistency. But it’s worth it’s weight in gold once you start feeling better.

Hopefully this information will give you a better insight as to how to sharpen your immunity sword and get focussed on creating your own health by making smart choices.