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Winter Ready - Group Talk - Week Commencing 18th November 2024.



Winter is the key season when viruses tend to circulate such as colds and flus. Unfortunately there is no single food or specific diet that can boost our immunity. However a healthy, balanced diet is important for supporting your immune system.


The nutrients we need to include within our diets are;


  • Vitamin A

  • Vitamin B6

  • Vitamin B12

  • Vitamin C

  • Vitamin D

  • Copper

  • Folate

  • Iron

  • Selenium

  • Zinc


We shouldn't get these nutrients from supplements, accept for Vitamin D, unless directed by a dietician/nutritionist prescribing the correct dosage, as supplements can be harmful if taken in too large a dose, and in fact only supports the supplement businesses.


We should attain these nutrients from our diet and the food we eat, focusing on;


  • Vegetables

  • Fruit

  • Nuts

  • Seeds

  • Wholegrains

  • Diary Products

  • Fortified Alternatives

  • Meat

  • Fish

  • Plant Proteins (Pulses)

  • Fermented Foods - Kimchi, Sauerkraut...

  • Probiotics - Live Yogurts, Kefir...


It is important we eat a wide range of fruit and vegetables to make certain we achieve the variety of nutrients our immune system requires. As all the different micronutrients play a different part in the immune system, not one is a specific hero.


Its important that we eat the rainbow, as the different colours offer an array of phytochemicals which help protect us from disease. i.e. antioxidants, carotenoids...


Remember frozen fruit and vegetables can be more nutritious than fresh, because frozen produce is frozen immediately after harvest.


But tinned produce still offers us the health benefits if we run out of fresh and frozen produce;


Vitamin C

  • Red Bell Peppers

  • Oranges

  • Grapefruit

  • Kiwi

  • Green Bell Peppers

  • Broccoli

  • Strawberries

  • Brussel Sprouts

  • Ginger


Vitamin B6

  • Chickpeas

  • Beef and Beef Liver

  • Cold water fish i.e. Salmon, Tuna...

  • Chicken Breast

  • Fortified Cereals

  • Potatoes

  • Turkey

  • Bananas

  • Bulgar wheat

  • Cottage Cheese

  • Squash (Winter)


Vitamin B6

  • Beef Liver

  • Clams

  • Oysters

  • Meat

  • Fish

  • Poultry

  • Eggs

  • Milk

  • Diary Produce


Vitamin A

  • Organ Meat (Beef Liver...)

  • Fish

  • Eggs

  • Diary Produce

  • Leafy Green Vegetables

  • Orange and yellow Vegetables

  • Cantaloupe Melon

  • Mangos

  • Apricots

  • Grapefruit

  • Fortified Cereals


Zinc

  • Oysters

  • Beef Lean Cuts

  • Blue Crab

  • Pumpkin Seeds

  • Turkey Breast

  • Cheddar Cheese

  • Prawn/Shrimp

  • Lentils

  • Sardines

  • Greek Yogurt

  • Milk


Selenium

  • Brazil Nuts

  • Tuna

  • Halibut

  • Sardines

  • Lean Meat

  • Cottage Cheese

  • Brown Rice

  • Eggs

  • Oatmeal

  • Milk and Yogurt

  • Lentils

  • Nuts and Seeds

  • Peas


Copper

  • Organ Meat

  • Shell Fish

  • Fish

  • Nuts and Seeds

  • Wholegrains

  • Cocoa

  • Potatoes

  • Mushrooms

  • Avocados

  • Chickpeas

  • Water

  • Black Pepper

  • Dark Leafy Greens

  • Tofu


Folate

  • Dark Leafy Green

  • Asparagus

  • Brussel Sprouts

  • Broccoli

  • Citrus Fruit

  • Melons

  • Bananas

  • Strawberries

  • Black-eyed Peas

  • Kidney Beans

  • Nuts

  • Fortified Foods

  • Eggs

  • Diary

  • Meat (Liver)


Iron

  • Meat

  • Poultry

  • Fish

  • Organ Meat

  • Beans

  • Pulses

  • Nuts and Seeds

  • Fortified Foods

  • Unpeeled Potatoes

  • Vegetables


In addition to eating a nutrient rich diet its important to stay hydrated, by drinking water, water helps boost our immune system too, as it helps our bodies produce lymph, which carry our white blood cells and other immune system cells around our bodies. We should avoid drinks that dehydrate us i.e. Tea, Coffee, Pop...


Eating a nutrient dense diet supports our bodies whole health and well-being including our immune system, the varied variety of whole foods enable our bodies to stay as healthy as possible, let us not forget though that diet alone cannot keep us healthy, its important to be active where we can.


Resources;









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