8 ways to optimize your immunity and protect your health.

Let’s start with the hard truth.

You can’t fully control whether you catch a cold, the flu, or COVID-19.

You also can’t control how your body will react once it’s exposed to a pathogen.

There are many different factors that determine your body’s response. Some you can impact, like nutrient deficiencies. Others you can’t do anything about, like your age.

But even among the factors you can influence, no single tweak or “hack” can control such a complex system. (Short of a proven vaccine or drug therapy.)

No magical supplement, superfood, diet plan, or exercise routine can ensure you’ll stay healthy. 

There is good news, though: When it comes to your immune system, your daily actions can make a meaningful difference.

By consistently practicing healthy behaviors, you can:

  • reduce your exposure and susceptibility
  • help optimize your immune function over time
  • better prepare your body to fight off foreign invaders

Plus, focusing on constructive behaviors might help you feel just a little bit more in control. And that could help ease the anxiety and stress that come with all the uncertainty.

Our suggestion: Prioritize the “big rocks,” or pillars, of a healthy lifestyle.

  • Eat mostly minimally-processed whole foods
  • Get enough protein, fruits, and vegetables
  • Consume an appropriate number of calories (to avoid or lose excess body fat)
  • Move regularly
  • Reduce smoking and/or excessive alcohol consumption
  • Get adequate sleep
  • Manage stress

With all this in mind, we’ve created this immunity-focused infographic to give you (or your clients) a game plan for taking action.

Importantly, you don’t need to do everything we suggest in this infographic. 

Eating protein at every meal is hard enough on its own, and your grocery store might be sold out of the kind you like right now. (You might also have less money for groceries than before.)

Some people have way less time to work out than they used to, since they’re busy homeschooling or working double shifts. Others have MUCH higher stress levels than before.

So pick and choose the strategies that make the most sense and feel doable to you right now. You can always incorporate others later.

And remember: There’s nothing wrong with starting small. That’s where great progress often begins.

++++

Download the tablet or printer-friendly version of this infographic to share with family, friends, or clients looking for answers on how to stay healthy.

If you’re a coach, or you want to be…

Learning how to coach clients, patients, friends, or family members through healthy eating and lifestyle changes—in a way that’s rooted in nutrition science and helps people focus on what really matters—is both an art and a science.

If you’d like to learn more about both, consider the Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification. The next group kicks off shortly.

What’s it all about?

The Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification is the world’s most respected nutrition education program. It gives you the knowledge, systems, and tools you need to really understand how food influences a person’s health and fitness. Plus the ability to turn that knowledge into a thriving coaching practice.

Developed over 15 years, and proven with over 100,000 clients and patients, the Level 1 curriculum stands alone as the authority on the science of nutrition and the art of coaching.

Whether you’re already mid-career, or just starting out, the Level 1 Certification is your springboard to a deeper understanding of nutrition, the authority to coach it, and the ability to turn what you know into results.

[Of course, if you’re already a student or graduate of the Level 1 Certification, check out our Level 2 Certification Master Class. It’s an exclusive, year-long mentorship designed for elite professionals looking to master the art of coaching and be part of the top 1% of health and fitness coaches in the world.]

Interested? Add your name to the presale list. You’ll save up to 30% and secure your spot 24 hours before everyone else.

We’ll be opening up spots in our next Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification on Monday, March 30th, 2020.

If you want to find out more, we’ve set up the following presale list, which gives you two advantages.

  • Pay less than everyone else. We like to reward people who are eager to boost their credentials and are ready to commit to getting the education they need. So we’re offering a discount of up to 30% off the general price when you sign up for the presale list.
  • Sign up 24 hours before the general public and increase your chances of getting a spot. We only open the certification program twice per year. Due to high demand, spots in the program are limited and have historically sold out in a matter of hours. But when you sign up for the presale list, we’ll give you the opportunity to register a full 24 hours before anyone else.

If you’re ready for a deeper understanding of nutrition, the authority to coach it, and the ability to turn what you know into results… this is your chance to see what the world’s top professional nutrition coaching system can do for you.

jQuery(document).ready(function(){
jQuery(“#references_link”).click(function(){
jQuery(“#references_holder”).show();
jQuery(“#references_link”).parent().hide();
});
});

References

Click here to view the information sources referenced in this article.

1. Simon AK, Hollander GA, McMichael A. Evolution of the immune system in humans from infancy to old age. Proc Biol Sci. 2015 Dec 22;282(1821):20143085.

2. Kanneganti T-D, Dixit VD. Immunological complications of obesity. Nat Immunol. 2012 Jul 19;13(8):707–12.

3. Travel to Mass Gatherings | Travelers’ Health | CDC [Internet]. [cited 2020 Apr 14]. Available from: https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/page/travel-to-mass-gatherings

4. Bermon S, Castell LM, Calder PC, Bishop NC, Blomstrand E, Mooren FC, et al. Consensus Statement Immunonutrition and Exercise. Exerc Immunol Rev. 2017;23:8–50.

5. Nieman DC, Wentz LM. The compelling link between physical activity and the body’s defense system. J Sport Health Sci. 2019 May;8(3):201–17.

6. França TGD, Ishikawa LLW, Zorzella-Pezavento SFG, Chiuso-Minicucci F, da Cunha M, Sartori A. Impact of malnutrition on immunity and infection. J Venom Anim Toxins Incl Trop Dis. 2009;15(3):374–90.

7. Kahn E. Prognostic criteria of severe protein malnutrition. Am J Clin Nutr. 1959 Mar;7(2):161–5.

8. de Onis MBM. Malnutrition: Quantifying the health impact at national and local levels. Available from: https://www.who.int/quantifying_ehimpacts/publications/MalnutritionEBD12.pdf

9. Carr AC, Maggini S. Vitamin C and Immune Function. Nutrients [Internet]. 2017 Nov 3;9(11). Available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/nu9111211

10. Martineau AR, Jolliffe DA, Hooper RL, Greenberg L, Aloia JF, Bergman P, et al. Vitamin D supplementation to prevent acute respiratory tract infections: systematic review and meta-analysis of individual participant data. BMJ. 2017 Feb 15;356:i6583.

11. Prasad AS. Zinc in human health: effect of zinc on immune cells. Mol Med. 2008 May;14(5-6):353–7.

12. Li K, Huang T, Zheng J, Wu K, Li D. Effect of marine-derived n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids on C-reactive protein, interleukin 6 and tumor necrosis factor α: a meta-analysis. PLoS One. 2014 Feb 5;9(2):e88103.

13. Shahidi F, Ambigaipalan P. Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids and Their Health Benefits. Annu Rev Food Sci Technol. 2018 Mar 25;9:345–81.

14. Calder PC. n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, inflammation, and inflammatory diseases. Am J Clin Nutr. 2006 Jun;83(6 Suppl):1505S – 1519S.

15. Kampf G, Todt D, Pfaender S, Steinmann E. Persistence of coronaviruses on inanimate surfaces and their inactivation with biocidal agents. J Hosp Infect. 2020 Mar;104(3):246–51.

16. CDC. Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) – Transmission [Internet]. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2020 [cited 2020 Apr 14]. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/how-covid-spreads.html

17. CDC. Four Simple Steps to Food Safety [Internet]. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2020 [cited 2020 Apr 14]. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/keep-food-safe.html

The post 8 ways to optimize your immunity and protect your health. appeared first on Precision Nutrition.

Source: Health1