All nutrients, vitamins, and minerals work together to build and maintain your health. All are important and the basis of those nutrients should come from our food.
I encourage everyone to increase the amount of vegetables and fruit in their diet. Since many store-bought vegetables and fruit are depleted in vitamins and minerals, supplementation is required.
Here is a list of excellent vitamins and supplements for immune support:
Vitamin D — This is extremely important for those of us in the Midwest due to the lack of sunlight. It also helps lift depression. I take this year-round and take 10,000 mg daily.
Vitamin C — The average adult needs 2000 mg daily. If you smoke then an additional 50 mg per cigarette is required to help protect you from damage. When I was in nutrition class, ¼ of the book was about the benefits of vitamin C!
Multi-Vitamins — I prefer a liquid multi because I know it gets broken down in my digestive tract. Since they are a capsule, it goes down easier too.
Zinc — Start small and work up with this one and always take it with food. It can make you feel nauseous at first if you are severely depleted, but the body can get used to it over time. Zinc helps you kill viruses so it is important to keep this in your daily supplements. It is severely depleted from our food so supplementation is a must.
Astralagus supplement is taken from the root of this plant.
Astragalus — This herb has been used for centuries in Traditional Chinese Medicine and has health benefits including immune-boosting, anti-aging, and anti-inflammatory effects. It’s great for fatigue, allergies, and the common cold. This is great before and after having covid (to reduce the inflammation in the brain from the protein spikes of covid).
Melatonin — The benefits of melatonin are more than just a sleep aid!
- It improves immune function, especially in the elderly
- Knocks out a wide range of viruses
- Lowers cholesterol and normalizes blood pressure (It did for me. My blood pressure was slightly elevated until I started taking this.)
- Relieves irritable bowel syndrome and inflammatory bowel disease
- Helps with the covid brain fog and confusion
The amount of melatonin to take is relatively small i.e. 1mg, 3mg, or 5mg. It doesn’t require a lot. Start out small. I took as much as 10mg after covid to help clear the brain fog.
NAC — Stands for N-acetyl cysteine and is important for immune system function. It is essential for making the powerful antioxidant glutathione. It also helps with detoxification to prevent or diminish kidney and liver damage. It is good for the brain and also helps to relieve the effects of covid on the brain.
IV’s of vitamin C, B, and glutathione are a wonderful boost to your immune system. These are administered by a doctor. I felt so much better after those treatments.
I hope this helps you and I wish you a healthy new year!
Blessings,
Diane