Food that Heals : Vegetables & Fruits

Food is essential to our body to work optimally. We get most of the nutrients and
antioxidants we need from fruits and vegetables. That said, you need to ensure
that you have a diet that includes as many fruits and vegetables to get the
nutrients and antioxidants that will help strengthen your immune system.

A diet that contains vitamin E, vitamin D, and selenium is important. These are rarely found in processed food (unless enriched), and your body has more chances of absorbing what it needs when you eat fresh whole foods. Leafy greens, nuts, citrus fruits are all excellent choices of foods that are high in nutrients and antioxidants that are known to boost your immune system.

Nutrient Rich Whole Foods

Broccoli & Carrots

Most cruciferous vegetables have phytonutrients that can help boost the immune system. Broccoli is rich in antioxidant vitamins, and one serving contributes to a third of the daily intake recommended for vitamin A.

Not only does carrot contain vitamins A, B, C, and E, it also contains zinc. Zinc is known to be an essential mineral for the health of our immune system. If the body is deficient in nutrients like zinc, it weakens the immune system and makes viruses stronger.

Garlic

Spinach & Sweet Potato

Another vegetable that has a similar effect on our immune system as zinc is garlic. Garlic has the ability, according to some research, to keep a cold at bay (and maybe vampires?). Some studies even demonstrate that individuals who were living with cancer were able to boost their immune system by increasing their intake of garlic.

Spinach is a significant source of vitamin C but also contains vitamin E. It is essential to keep it raw to ensure that you get all the nutrients from it. You can add it to a salad or a sandwich.

If you are trying to increase your intake of vitamin A, sweet potato is the one ingredient you need. One serving contains more than three times the daily recommendation of vitamin A and is also full of other good antioxidants.

Citrus

Citrus fruits are full of vitamin C which is critical to the immune system. Its consummation recommendation is 75 mg to 90 mg a day. Just add sliced lemon to your water, which will provide around 50% of the daily intake. You can also eat grapefruit or orange with your breakfast. This breakfast will be the other half of your consumption for the day.

Watermelon & Blueberries

The watermelon is also full of immune-boosting nutrients. It’s an excellent source of potassium (which helps regulate the body functions), vitamin A and vitamin C.

Pomegranates

Berries, in general, are packed with antioxidants. Blueberries are at the top of all the fruits and vegetables for the number of antioxidants it contains. Not only does research show the power of blueberries on our immune system, but it is also linked to a lower risk of stomach fat, cholesterol, heart diseases, and cancer.

Since pomegranates contain a great variety of antioxidants, it is a great choice to cover many nutrients that we need. It is known to have anti-inflammatory proprieties and therefore help us with immunity.