3 Fail-Proof Steps to Boost Your Immune System Naturally

Are you or someone in your family prone to getting sick all the time?

Do news reports about new and evolving viruses keep you alert and frightened, leaving you sleepless at night?

Do you frantically run to get a flu shot every year, even though the CDC itself admits it may not prevent the flu?

What if I told you that you have more control over “catching” a sickness or disease than you’ve been led to believe? Well, the great news is there is a simple 3 fail-proof step system anyone can implement to keep sick germs away.

If you’re tired of getting sick and fearing an illness, today’s post is for you.

We have been led to believe that illness and disease are out of our control. Well-meaning doctors, the media, and other scare-tactic experts (ahem, big pharma) would have us believe that we are just sitting ducks for germs, viruses, and bacteria. They tell us our only defense is vigilant hand washing, vaccinations, and steering clear of sick people six months out of the year.

The truth is nine times out of ten, protecting yourself from disease has more to do with cultivating your internal ecology than dodging external factors.

Yes, nearly everyone gets sick now and then, and the occasional bout of illness is actually beneficial for building immunity. However, most of the time viruses and infections are preventable if we have nourished and cared for our terrain.

19^th Century physiologist Claude Bernard postulated that, “The terrain is everything, the germ is nothing.”

That’s a relief, isn’t it?

Let’s get started rebuilding our terrain and keeping the sick germs away!

3 Tips to Keeping Sick Germs Away Naturally

Step #1: Balance your Nervous System

This is perhaps the easiest step of the three. Many people don’t realize that the nervous system and the immune system are intimately connected; the health of one depends upon the health of the other.

So how do you balance your nervous system?

Schedule regular chiropractic adjustments and follow doctor’s orders…that’s it!

If you take good care of yourself and are still getting sick all the time, this is an area to consider

To find a holistically-minded family chiropractor in your area, visit: ICPA4kids.org.

Another way to balance your central nervous system is by Craniosacral Therapy:  (aka craniosacral system) the membranes and fluid that surround, protect, and nourish the brain and spinal cord. Craniosacral therapy is a gentle, hands-on approach that releases tensions deep in the body to relieve pain, dysfunction, and improve whole-body health and performance. To find a trained professional locally you can visit https://www.upledger.com/

Step #2: Look at the Foods you Eat

Our modern diet contributes to weakened immunity and compromised terrain more than we can imagine.

Just a few short decades ago, most food was procured from local farms and home- grown gardens. Milk was consumed raw. Animals raised for meat and dairy ate grass that was not genetically modified, and not antibiotic-laced grain. Meats were consumed moderately, and not processed.

Refined flour and sugar were eaten as a rare commodity and treat, not consumed on a daily basis. If food was preserved, it was through pickling or fermentation, not with artificial preservatives.

All these seemingly small factors helped people cultivate a healthy microbiome.

What is the microbiome? Put simply, our microbiome is our individual makeup of germs on our skin and inside of our body such as inside of our intestinal tract that keeps our terrain balanced and strong.

The more we expose ourselves to beneficial microbes, such as those found in homegrown vegetables, cultured and raw foods, and other elements in nature (such as soil and fresh air), the healthier and stronger our microbiome becomes.

Enter the ultra-sterile, highly-processed, irradiated, homogenized world of 21^st century food, and you lose the majority of the factors that nourish a healthy terrain.

Add in the countless new chemicals, pesticides, sweeteners, dyes, preservatives, and highly refined fats and sugars that make up the average American meal plate, and you’ve got a microbiome overrun with unhealthy microbes.

So, if you don’t live on a farm or have a green thumb what’s a person to do?

• Become familiar with the dirty dozen.
  • This list from the Environmental Working Group is published annually, and lists the most highly-sprayed, pesticide-laden crops to AVOID.
• Eat more alkalizing foods.
  • Most of us consume too many acid-forming foods, such as sugar, white flour, refined grains, alcohol, and meats. An acidic terrain depletes essential minerals, and offers the perfect environment for unhealthy germs to thrive.
  • By increasing alkalizing foods such as fruits, vegetables, sea vegetables, seeds (except sesame), soaked nuts, specific grains such as amaranth, millet, quinoa and cultured foods, we help create a balanced acid/alkaline environment that germs and viruses won’t touch.
• Eat liberally of “feel good” cultured foods.
  • Yogurt, kefir, kombucha, cultured vegetables, natural pickles, raw cheese…all these foods introduce beneficial bacteria that keep our digestive immunity teeming with happy microbes. A happy digestive tract makes for a happy person!
• Fear NOT thy healthy fats.
  • Healthy, stable fats such as coconut oil support healthy metabolism, reduce sugar-cravings, AND keep pathogens at bay.
  • To learn more about the amazing benefits of coconut oil, visit the Coconut Research Center.
• Try a different kind of vegetable…sea vegetables.
  • Highly alkalizing and rich in natural iodine and other essential minerals, sea vegetables are a best friend to a healthy terrain. Here are some to try:
    • Agar (a tasteless seaweed, use as a gelatin to thicken desserts—perfect for kids and picky eaters)
    • Arame (soak add to salads or vegetables)
    • Dulse (add to salads and dishes)
    • Kelp (nice addition to soups)
    • Nori (often used in sushi but can added to foods, it’s great in Caesar salad dressing to replace anchovies)
    • Kombu (a hearty sea vegetable often added to miso soup)
• Arm your defenses with herbs and spices traditionally used to support normal, healthy immunity.
  • Susun Weed (master herbalist) recommends these common herbs:
    • Calendula
    • Goldenseal
    • Myrrh
    • Poke
    • Usnea
    • Yarrow
    • Echinacea
    • FYI: Echinacea is a favorite! To administer, divide your body weight by 2; and take that many drops of tincture per dose (if acute take every 2-3 hours)
    • Onions and garlic (raw, or mashed up with a bit of local honey or in olive oil)

Elderberry Syrup is the newest addition to our family’s ‘crunchy kid wellness kit’! If you are interested in learning more about the powerful benefits elderberry syrup and want to make it yourself which is super easy and cost-effective watch it HERE!

Step #3: Monitor your Emotional Stress

It’s no mystery, stress significantly weakens your immunity, leaving you open to contracting viruses.

Lack of energy, skin eruptions, cold sores, anxiety, insomnia, chronic pain, emotional outbursts, sugar cravings, weight-gain, or frequent bouts of illness: these are all signs of stress and negative emotions suppressing your immunity and wearing away your terrain.

The good news is there is plenty you can do to manage your reactions to stress.

The body is designed to heal and protect itself from invaders, but it is up to us to provide it with the right tools.

Remember, life is a gift…health is a choice.

I hope these 3 Steps to Boost Your Immune System Naturally has provided you with some helpful choices today.

I’d like to end with this quote from the well-known and loved Deepak Chopra:

“Inside your body is a wonderful pharmacy. You name it, the human body can make it…tranquilizers, sleeping pills, anti-cancer drugs; the right dose at the right time for the right organ with no side effects. And all the instructions you need come with the packaging which is your innate intelligence.”

What do you do to boost your immune system naturally? Do you have a favorite home remedy or go-to ritual when you feel the sick germs creeping in? Please share in the comments below!

I know you want to learn more about how you can positively improve your family’s health, so download my FREE guide ‘12 Simple Steps to BIOHACK Your Family’s Health’ here.

Cheers to your innate healing intelligence and I am wishing you well!

-Dr. Jessica