15 Fitness Foods that Boost your Immunity

So that you can be always ready to smash your fitness, diet and life goals!

Hitting the gym, eating a well-balanced diet is cruical for achieving your fitness goals, but if you aren't healthy in first place, that would be mission impossible. Especially in the winter season, when flu and colds are common, it's really important your immune system is on top level. Here I suggest you 15 delicious foods, that will not only help you get in the shape of your life, but also in building a strong immunity. These foods are also a part of my personalised meal plan

1. Garlic

For hundreds and thousands of years, garlic has been pronounced as the Ultimate health elixir.
The secret ingredient that gives garlic its super powers is one of its sulfur-containing compounds called allicin.
One garlic clove contains over 100 sulfuric compounds , which have immune boosting abilities And all that just for 4 calories per clove! 4! So feel free to add garlic to spice up your meals!

2. Chicken Soup

Ever wondered why the warm chicken soup is so common cold remedy? It's thanks one amino acid ‒ cysteine. Cysteine is being released during cooking of the chicken. Cysteine chemically resembles the bronchitis drug acetylcysteine, which may explain the results. Chicken broth is also rich in collagen which supports gut health. Recent studies link the gut and the immune system.

3. Ginger

Here we could go all day long ‒ ginger has so many benefits for your health and your body, that I can write like, I don’t know, 4 articles just about ginger, but let’s concentrate on its effects on boosting the immune system.
Ginger contains 2 natural antibiotics in it. It has anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory properties. It’s also rich in Manganese, which builds resistance to diseases.
As a fitness lover, you probably know that ginger improves digestion, circulation and it’s not only an immune system booster, but it’s a great fat burning tool ‒ it helps you burn more fat and speeds up your metabolism.

4. Cabbage

Cabbage is packed with glutamine. Aside from the muscle building properties, Glutamine has an immune-strengthening abilities. Cabbage also contains immunity-boosting antioxidants.

5. Citrus fruits

Citrus fruits are a must in the cold winter, and not only. They are great for immunity because of the vitamin C content, of course. Also, they are rich in calcium and potassium.

6. Red Bell Peppers

You maybe don’t know, but red bell peppers actually contain three times as much vitamin C as an orange does.

7. Yogurt

We’ve learned from the previous article that probiotics (live active cultures) found in yogurt are good for improving insulin sensitivity. But probiotics are best known for their action on the gut, keeping it healthy and free from disease-causing germs. Recent studies link gut health with the immune system, so healthy gut ‒ strong immunity.

8. Broccoli

We can all agree that broccoli is a Superstar food known for its many priceless qualities.
As for the immunity ‒ Broccoli is packed with vitamin A, vitamin C and the antioxidant Glutathione. They boost the immune system and Glutathione helps eliminating the free radicals from the body. New studies suggest that 1 compound found in broccoli, Sulforaphane, may help restoring the immunity function, which declines as we age. Broccoli is a must in every well structured healthy diet meal plan!

9. Spinach

Spinach is rich in vitamin C, antioxidants, beta carotene which strengthens the immune system. The vitamin A content is a key component in maintaining healthy lymphocytes.

10. Tea

There is a good reason why is tea so popular flu fighting beverage. Its immune-boosting abilities are thanks to the amino acid L-theanine. Green and black tea have the highest concentration of it. You see, green tea helps not only for burning fat and boosting metabolism.

11. Mushrooms

Studies show that mushrooms increase the production and activity of white blood cells. You know that the white blood cells are the cells of the immune system that are involved in protecting the body against both infectious disease and foreign invaders. Shiitake, maitake, and reishi mushrooms have the greatest impact on the immunity.

12. Dark chocolate

Dark chocolate is well known for its health benefits. What makes it good for the immunity is the content of Zinc. Zink has immune-boosting properties ‒ it activates T-lymphocytes. T -cells control and regulate immune responses and remove infected or cancerous cells.

13. Oats

Oats contain Beta-glucan ‒ a fiber found also in yeast, mushrooms and barley. Beta-glucan “eases” the white blood cells (leucocytes) locate the infection in the body quicker and improves their ability to kill bacteria. Oats are mandatory breakfast in my personal meal plan!

14. Honey

Honey is the elixir of health and life, for sure, and it's famous with its numerous benefits that science is only beginning to uncover.
The immune boosting properties of honey are thanks to the polyphenols and other phytochemicals found in flower nectars.
New studies found that one probiotic bacteria ‒ Lactobacillus kunkeei, found among honeybees, may add value in honey`s immune boosting abilities. The probiotic bacteria is also contained in the honey, bee pollen and royal jelly.

15. Sweet potatoes

It may be surprise for you that sweet potatoes are in our list, but they are not only a building muscle food. Sweet potatoes are packed with beta carotene — a carotenoid that converts into vitamin A. Vitamin A helps in strengthening the immune system. Also it’s important for skin health. Skin is an immune organ, as you may not know. So, healthy skin ‒ better immunity. Sweet potatoes are also included in my personalised meal plan, see in which meal here.