What are the ways to improve immunity?

At present, there is no special method that can quickly improve immunity. The truly effective methods are long-term adjustments to daily lifestyle habits. Most of the health products and dietary prescriptions promoted on the market to "boost immunity in 7 days" are marketing gimmicks. Healthy people do not need to blindly follow the trend.

When I was working as a content operator for an Internet company two years ago, there was a little girl in the department who was born in 1998. She used to stay up late to catch hot spots, and she would catch a cold every time the season changed. Sometimes she would catch the disease the next day when someone in the same group sneezed. Later, she adjusted with us for half a year. Last winter, when half of the people in the department got the flu, she didn't even cough twice, and she was in particularly good condition.

When it comes to adjustments, the first thing she changes is her diet. She previously ordered takeout and ate less vegetables. She always wanted to rely on effervescent tablets to supplement vitamin C. In fact, the academic community has always had different views on the role of extra vitamin C supplements in healthy people's immunity: some studies have shown that supplementing with about 100 mg of vitamin C every day can shorten the course of the common cold. Others believe that as long as you can eat 300 grams of dark green vegetables and about half a catty of fresh fruit every day, there is no need for additional supplements. Excessive intake may increase the risk of urinary system stones. At that time, we ordered stir-fried vegetables a la carte every day at noon, and shared a box of strawberries in the afternoon, which was much more reliable than drinking effervescent tablets every day.

Eating right is the foundation. If you don’t exercise properly, it will hinder your immunity. In order to keep fit, a colleague suddenly got a fitness card and ran five kilometers every day and exercised. After three days of training, he immediately developed a fever and a cold. He went to the doctor and said that it was a temporary decrease in immunity caused by excessive exercise. You can think of your immunity as a little guard you raise. If you lie down all day long, the guard will follow suit. If you suddenly put an extra large load on it, it will be too tired to function. Just get 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise every week. For example, get off work two stops early and walk for 20 minutes, go for a walk in the park and climb a hill on weekends, which is enough for daily training of the guard.

What is more important than eating and moving is sleeping well. I have previously checked relevant research in "Natural Immunology". People who sleep less than 6 hours a day for a week will have about 30% decrease in the phagocytic activity of immune cells in the body, which is equivalent to giving the guard a half-day holiday. When the virus invades, no one will work at all. Of course, more sleep is not always better. Many people sleep for more than ten hours at a stretch on weekends. They feel dizzy when they wake up, and their immune activity has not improved. Adults just need to maintain a regular sleep of 7-9 hours a day, and don't reverse day and night. During that time, all of us agreed to turn off our phones before 12 o'clock to go to bed. After more than a month of persistence, everyone felt that they were much more energetic during the day.

Oh, by the way, many people don’t take the impact of emotions seriously. My friend who does psychological counseling said that many of the clients she receives who are chronically anxious and stressed have recurring oral ulcers and frequent allergies. This is because the cortisol secreted by the body under long-term high pressure suppresses immune function, which is equivalent to giving the guard a "no attack" order. Of course, the virus can penetrate directly. You don’t need to force yourself to engage in complicated mindfulness meditation, just do small things that can relax you, such as raising a succulent pot, soaking your feet for 10 minutes when you get home from get off work, or even squatting downstairs and petting a stray cat for five minutes, which can help relax your mood.

Recently, many people have asked me whether taking immune globulin can improve immunity. I specifically asked my clinical friends. Most of these preparations are used for patients with immune deficiencies and severe infections. Injections for healthy people basically have no effect on improving immunity. On the contrary, they may disrupt their own immune balance. There is really no need to spend thousands of dollars. To put it bluntly, immunity can never be built up by taking supplements. If you treat your body well, it will naturally build the strongest protective wall for you.