Vitamins that boost your immune system

Keeping your immune system working its best requires a holistic approach, and the most effective way to feel your best is to prevent illness, rather than treat it.

So, before you get sick, you want to do whatever you can to bolster your immune system, starting by eating right, avoiding tobacco and alcohol, exercising, managing your stress, and getting enough sleep.

If you're not feeling well, or you know you're not taking care of yourself as best you could, supplementing your diet with multivitamins can help fortify your immune system. The most common vitamins that may help prevent illness are vitamins A, C, E, and D.

Vitamins A and E support your immune system in a few different ways. Your body needs vitamin A for the normal function of immune cells, and it also acts as an antioxidant. You can find vitamin A in things like spinach, dairy products, and liver, and generally you only need to take this as a supplement if you have a poor or limited diet. Vitamin E is another antioxidant that also boosts your immune system function. It can help reduce how often you get a common cold, although it won't necessarily decrease how long the cold lasts.

Unlike what you may have heard, vitamin C has not been proven to treat the common cold, but regularly taking vitamin C could potentially reduce the severity of cold symptoms, while it may also help slow the progression of age-related macular degeneration in people at high risk.

And finally, vitamin D deficiencies have been linked to several autoimmune diseases, so it's important to make sure you're getting enough of it. Vitamin D may also reduce the risk for upper respiratory infection in children.

Sometimes, no matter what you do, you'll fall ill. When that happens, it can be worth trying zinc, elderberry, or echinacea. Zinc may reduce the duration of common cold symptoms up to a day if you start taking it within the first 48 hours of your first cold symptoms. (We recommend avoiding zinc nasal products, which may cause a permanent loss of smell). Elderberry may reduce the number of times you get a cold and can also shorten your flu if you take it within 24 hours of your first symptoms. Echinacea can also help prevent colds and may shorten flu symptoms.

Whatever supplements you take, don't forget to hydrate and get plenty of rest. Sick or not, your body will thank you for it.

Clinically approved April 2021.

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