The immune system is like a protective shield. It protects us from disease. Our immune system fights viruses, like corona virus. We can strengthen our immune system by eating nutritious foods, drinking healthy drinks, exercising, sleeping, managing stress levels and exposing our skin to sunlight. Sunlight allows us to make our own vitamin D. Vitamin D is a crucial component for a healthy immune system. Here are 2 links with more information.
Berries, Spinach, Red Bell Peppers, Broccoli, Garlic, Ginger, Citrus Fruits, Almonds, Sunflower Seeds, Yogurt, Green Tea, Kiwi, mushrooms, watermelon, Sweet Potatoes, and Pomegranates are some foods that help boost the immune system.
Many junk foods are disguised as health foods. Yogurt is a perfect example. Read the label on most store-bought yogurts. Chances are, they are loaded with sugar, additives, preservatives and other harmful chemicals. Granola is a great example of this also. Oats, nuts and seeds may be healthy, but most store-bought granola is closer to junk food status than health food status. Get in the habit of eating foods with just 1 ingredient. An apple is just an apple. There isn't a label with a long list of ingredients on an apple. Same is true for most produce. When purchasing packaged foods, read the labels. How many ingredients are in the food? Do you recognize the ingredients as being healthy foods? How many grams of sugar is in the food? People are looking for sugar on labels now, so many companies are using other names for sugar (fructose, glucose, sucrose, barley malt, beet sugar, cane juice crystals, corn sweetener, ethyl maltol, maltodextrin, evaporated cane juice...). Click here to learn more.
Make your own snacks, like apple sauce and granola. This allows you to control the ingredients. You can reduce or eliminate unhealthy ingredients like sugar to enhance the real taste of the natural ingredients and to make the snack healthier.
Unsweetened Applesauce | Kitchen Time with Neha
Healthy Granola | 3 Delicious Recipes
Bob Wright Tawanka Elementary School PE Teacher - rwright@neshaminy.org
