How to Stay Healthy During Cold & Flu Season

3 easy ways to help your immune system.

In the midst of cold and flu season, what can you do to stay healthy—besides washing your hands nonstop and sprinting away from people who can’t stop sneezing? Answer: Focus on your diet. These three strategies can give your immune system a boost:

1. Get enough vitamin D.

Your body naturally makes vitamin D from sunlight and it’s also found in fatty fish (e.g., salmon) and fortified milk. But most Americans don’t get enough D, so experts recommend a supplement—and taking one may help boost your immune system, suggests a 2010 study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. In that Japanese study, children who took vitamin D supplements were 40 percent less likely to get a common flu virus. The nutrient may help immune cells identify and destroy bacteria and viruses that make us sick, says Adit Ginde, M.D., M.P.H., a public health researcher at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Denver. Aim for 1,000 IU of vitamin D daily (check with your doctor before taking more).

2. Trim calories.

Healthfully cutting calories may reduce levels of compounds in the body that drag your immune system down. But remember: when you eat less food, you need to be even more careful that what you’re choosing is nutritious. Go for more fruits and vegetables—and choose lean protein sources, such as fish, chicken and low-fat dairy.

3. Reach for oranges and oats.

They’re rich in soluble fiber (so are carrots, beans and okra). Mice that ate a diet rich in soluble fiber for six weeks recovered from a bacterial infection in half the time it took mice that chowed on meals containing mixed fiber, according to research from the University of Michigan. Soluble fiber helps fight inflammation, say the study’s authors. Insoluble fiber—in whole grains and green leafy vegetables—is important for health, too, but it doesn’t seem to have the same impact on immunity. Strive for 25 to 38 grams of total fiber a day, paying extra attention to getting the soluble kind.

—Adapted from “3 Everyday Strategies to Boost Your Immunity,”
by Emily Sohn for EatingWell Magazine