Last updated on August 21, 2024 by Dr. Subashri Thanigaivel
In chess, they say the best offense is the defense.
Defense is a proactive approach that indirectly attacks the offensive threats. The famous marvel character Captain America holds “Shield” as his weapon while fighting his enemies. It is a wise choice.
What is the best defense system that the world has ever witnessed?
“Human Immune System,”
I agree with this answer. Well, it is my favorite defense system. The lymphocytes, also known as White Blood cells, are the best soldiers that anybody could ask for. They play a huge role in the immunity system. These biological molecules can attack even the invisible enemies; antigens.
Antigens are the microorganisms ranging from bacteria to our recent global star COVID-19. These deadly organisms teach the importance of building immunity systems proactively.
If you questioned “How to build immunity?” then this article is for you. Keep reading further to learn about immunity diseases and disorders, immunity boosting foods and immunity booster medicine in Ayurveda.
DOWNLOAD : HOW TO BUILD IMMUNITY WITH HOME REMEDIES
How to build immunity ?
Immunity is all about building, not achieving.
Align yourself towards sowing habits and harvesting wellness by building systems, not a goal. Scott Adams, the famous author of Dilbert Series (Comic Character Creator), once said that “A system is something you do regularly that increases your odds of happiness in the long run”.
He spoke the truth. The COVID-19 patients who fought the coronavirus infection had an impressive immunity system, which they built daily and kept repeating the same for a long time.
Many of you are sitting at home, slouching on the couch and having the mental breakdown during this COVID-19 . Running behind masks and sanitizer are temporary band aids. I am not against them, but your immune system helps on the longer run.
Don’t worry, the world has slowed down so you can rediscover yourself. Take advantage of this pandemic lockdown and build immunity. To set up a good human immune system every individual need to understand 3 things,
1.Remove the toxins from your body.
2.Keep producing new WBC to boost your immunity.
3.Consistent and constant efforts is must.
Removing toxins from your body
When you consume food, the liver turns them into soluble molecules which your body can absorb as energy. The rest of the non-soluble molecules (also known as toxins) is absorbed by your liver and sent to the excretory system. When the liver encounters toxins, it becomes vulnerable to internal inflammation which leads to chronic ailments and decreases immunity. In your immunity boosting foods chart, you need to have fruits, vegetables and nuts that controls the oxidative damage done to the liver.
Keep producing WBC
As we discussed earlier, WBC are the first line soldiers who go to the battle to kill the deadly microorganisms or foreign substance your body comes in contact with. The old WBC will be removed by a biological cell process known as apoptosis, and new ones are produced. If your food doesn’t help in boosting the production of new WBC cells, it lowers your immunity further down. So focus on the meals that act as immunity boosters for your WBC production.
Consistent and Constant efforts
It takes time, efforts and actual work to build a good immune system for your body. The process requires synchronized body-mind work to set a stronger defense system in your body. Keep doing the same thing daily without making excuses.
Now you know how your immune system works. In absence of a robust immune system, you will experience ailments which makes you weak day by day.
Immunity Diseases
Immunity disorders or diseases are a result of having a poor immune system, prolonged bad diet and improper biological clock. The disorders that come as a result of these junk habits are known as “Auto-immune diseases”. Apart from them, a poor immune system increases chances of becoming victim to undetermined viral attacks like SARS, MERS and COVID-19.
Since liver and WBC are playing a huge role in flushing out the toxins, they are prone to these immunity diseases.
Auto-immune diseases result from chronic stress, so they don’t kill you but make your day-to-day survival hard. One of the common auto-immune conditions is “Rheumatoid Arthritis”. People with RA face struggles in their life. It forces them to quit jobs, sacrifice dreams for nothing, and leading a normal life is their biggest challenge.
RELATED: Suganthi, 31-year-old talks about her pregnancy with RA and how did she recover?
Everybody catches a fever or cold. A healthy body is not about preventing all the infections but also being able to fight and recover from them. Most of the immunity disorders portray the inability of your body to combat the triggered inflammation or the infection.
Unlike many acute diseases, immunity disorders don’t have one time antidote shot. It needs to be managed. Keep them under control, restrict them from crossing the threshold line.
Auto-immune condition needs to be fought by improving your immune system.
Foods to build immunity
At LiveRight, our Chief Ayurveda Officer Dr.Subashri pities the liver by telling “If the liver had vocal chords, it wouldn’t talk but just cry”. She says that we send things that are 100% toxic straight into our stomach without even thinking for a second.
If you could pause a moment and give a deep thought to her words, the reality would hit you. It’s been a week of quarantine.
What did you eat for the past 10 days?
Never ending list of chips, noodles, instant mix food, ready to cook meals, processed and perfectly packaged diet bowls, soda, soft drinks, biscuits and junk snacks.
Is the quarantine is to improve your health or come out with a weak body so that corona can easily attack you?
Hygiene and social distancing helps, but without immunity it is a blind driving.
Immunity Boosting Foods & Medicines In Ayurveda
Immunity boosting food in Ayurveda can be found in your kitchen or visit a herbal store nearby. Ayurveda supports the concept of “the immune system is not a goal but a process” through “Dinacharya”.
Dinacharya is about building daily routines that leads to a better lifestyle. At LiveRight, Dinacharya is a foundational practice in the “Art of Wellness”. Changing one petty thing in your daily routine can change your life forever. In the same way, consuming immunity medicine in Ayurveda can change your immune system into a “Rock”star.
Ayurvedic medicines, as immunity boosters, are the herbs used in preparation of decoctions and lehyams. Unlike other form medicine systems, in taking an Ayurvedic immunity medicines leaves no scar in your internal organs.
Vitamin – C is must
WBC cells are produced when you have an appreciable amount of antioxidants in your body. Vitamin -C is rich in antioxidants. This needs to be included daily in your meal plan at least once. Citrus fruits have abundant Vitamin-C. Oranges, lemons, tangerines and other citrus family fruits are excellent sources of immunity boosting foods.
You can also consume Vitamin-C via tomatoes, sweet potatoes, any spinach, cabbage and green peas.
In Ayurveda, the rich Vitamin-C food, which is also an immunity booster is “Emblica Officinalis Gaertn” AKA Indian Gooseberry. This fruit has abundant antioxidants that helps in healing the internal inflammation, flushing out toxins and enhancing the production of WBC. Amla, known as amalaki in sanskrit, is an immunity booster medicine in Ayurveda.
Detoxify the toxins from Liver
Liver absorbs the toxins present in the food you eat. During metabolism, the liver pushes out these toxins that don’t serve energy. Your liver interacts with thousands of toxins daily and accumulates internal inflammation. You have to eat quite a lot of food and ayurveda herbs that can remove this internal inflammation and build immunity at the same time.
Beetroot, the dark pinkish red vegetable activates your liver enzymes and reduces inflammation. This immunity boosting food has a betalains compound which aids in eliminating the oxidative stress experienced by your liver. Beetroot juice, poriyal and even a smoothie is refreshing.
Apart from this, you can intake Banana, Walnuts, Figs to decrease your liver inflammation. These can be your desserts in your meal plan. These are rich in antioxidants, and potassium, which is proved to enhance the optimal function of your liver.
When you look at Ayurveda, immunity booster medicine recommended is Cuminum cyminum, (Cumin seeds)Curcuma longa(Turmeric) and Eclipta prostrata(Bhringraj). They are all found in your kitchen.
Turmeric, the best immunity medicine in Ayurveda. You can add this spice in the form of powder in your every meal you cook. It also gives a great aroma too. Cumin seeds are used in India for Chutney and in gravies in the form of powder.
You would have known Bhringraj for its medicinal benefits in hair, but it plays a major role in fighting liver inflammation. It is known as “karisalankanni keerai” in tamil. Just like any spinach, you can cook the same with pulse and eat with rice or rotis.
The best time right now is to shop for fish if you can get it. Marinate the fish with turmeric and cumin powder and boil them with a little salt and pepper. Eat them with the Bhringraj spinach as a side. It is a perfect yummy and healthy food for your body without compromising taste or health.
Conclusion
Building an immune system is not hard but challenging because it is a daily work. In this fast running world, everybody is looking for instant results.
You have to wait for a while till you can actually reap the benefits. Abraham Lincoln said once, he feared a man who spent hours in sharpening his axe rather than one who spent in cutting the trees.
It makes sense. If you keep building the immunity daily then you can kill anything (may be even a COVID-2050 in nearby future) in one shot
