Which is why prep is key. And not of the body brushing, fake tan and blow dry variety (although there is always a time and a place for this). We're talking about preparing the body and mind for the inevitable deluge of stresses, consumption and external environmental factors over the next few months by boosting our immunity naturally.

As a Nutritional Therapist it would be fitting for me to focus on immune boosting foods - it's not about going crazy though, these need to fit into your lifestyle and be accessible to achieve. Look through the list and see which ones you can start to easily incorporate; maybe it's an extra portion of anti-oxidant rich veg at dinner time, a smoothie mid-morning or swapping that afternoon cuppa for a glass of water or herbal tea. Seriously - every little bit helps and I promise you, your body and mind will thank you for it - and who wants to leave the dance floor early anyway?!

VitalVitalityNutrients

There are a number of nutrients that we can access through the food we eat that are known to contribute to normal immune functioning. These are the nutrients we want to give some time and thought to when we're shopping and make sure we're getting them into our daily diet in one way or form. Lets start with the good ol 'antioxidants'.

Antioxidants:

Before we go any further here's is a quick explanation of what antioxidants do - essentially they are substances (natural or manmade) which are stable enough to be able to donate an electron to to an unstable molecule within the body. This prevents the unstable molecule from acting mischievously, stealing electrons from other molecules that it shouldn't do and causing free radical damage as a result. So think of the antioxidant as your internal peace maker, it's generous, considerate and when it sees any trouble it goes and sorts out the trouble maker before it can cause any more damage. So this is why we need lots and lots of antioxidants especially when we're consuming more of the troublesome types (processed foods, sugar, alcohol, smoking...). Following are the top antioxidants and foods that are rich sources of them - remember though the highest concentration of the vitamin is going to be found in foods that haven't been messed about with, so try and eat it in it's most natural, unprocessed form:

Vitamin A - Sweet potato, carrot, spinach, kale, swiss chard, squash, peppers

Vitamin C - Broccoli, brussel sprouts (see, no excuse!), cauliflower, kale,cabbageand fruits including papaya, strawberries and oranges - not especially seasonal orlocal at this time of year so try to bulk up on the veg options

Vitamin E - Sunflower seeds, almonds, spinach, swiss chard, broccoli, avocados, tomatoes

Additional key nutrients involved in supporting immunity:

B Vitamins - There are different B Vitamins but those that are really key to immunity are found in your oily fish - sardines, salmon, meat and poultry e.g. turkey, beef and chicken and vegetable proteins like lentil and beans. Remember though the quality of the fish and meat dramatically affects the vitamin and mineral quality - it's worth spending that bit more when it comes to these types of foods.

Zinc - So, so important for immunity, especially the functioning of our T cells and white blood cells, but so often neglected. Rich zinc sources include beef, lamb, spinach, shiitake mushrooms, sesame seeds and pumpkin seeds.

Vitamin D - It's impossible to avoid the coverage of Vitamin D lately and how the Government is recommending a daily supplement of Vitamin D as although it is found in foods our richest source is the sun - and we don't see much of that in summer, let alone winter! Vitamin D supplements may well be required but before you decide on this get a quick blood test done to check your levels, choose a good quality supplement and make sure it's in the D3 form which is the most effective form for humans.

Quench your thirst:

And no, not with bubbles, not all the time anyway. Make sure you keep your fluid levels up during the day with water and herbal teas. Introduce a routine to make things easier - e.g. carry a Sigg bottle of water with you at work and know you need to get through it, or promise yourself you'll swap a builders for a herbal tea. Or consider stuffing all of the greens into a blender and make a smoothie. There's no point eating all of these amazing, nutritious foods if your cells are so dehydrated and shrivelled up that none of the nutrients can actually pass through.

Time to party (& recover):

Now I think that's enough to get you started, there are so many other variables at play here though that can affect your immune response - from your levels of stress, sleep habits, your gut - did you know 70% of your immune system is in your gut?, your diet - far too much to cover in this article! But hopefully this has provided the foundations of where to start and with every food shop you do you can include an item from the above knowing you're doing what you can to support yourself through the festive season.

2016 & beyond....

If this has piped your interest and you're keen to find out more about eating well in 2016 & beyond then come along to my 1st workshop of 2016, taking place on Saturday 30th January here at The Centre for Integral Health.

Book your place now!