Immunity Myths & What Actually Works

Transcript:

Kara: Hi, and welcome to Dishing Up Nutrition. If you're tuning in today, you're probably thinking about how to keep yourself and your family healthy, not just during cold and flu season, but really all year long. And you've probably heard advice over the span of your life, how to keep colds and flus away. You might be wondering what's true, what might be an old wives’ tale.

And if today you were to go on Facebook or Instagram or any social media app and you have searched in immune hacks, you could probably spend the whole day just scrolling through videos that are giving you a bunch of advice. So today we're going to share what really does work for keeping your immune system strong this season.

I'm Kara Carper. I'm a Licensed Nutritionist and Certified Nutrition Specialist. I'm here today with Brandy Buro, who is a Registered Dietitian with Nutritional Weight & Wellness, and it's a really timely topic. The title of our podcast is Immunity Myths and What Actually Works. So great to be here with you, Brandy.

Brandy: Thank you, Kara. Good to be here with you. And this is such a timely topic. I know I've encountered some clients that are already kind of coming down with some colds as kids are getting back to school. So I think now more than ever, we're all thinking about how to stay well. And I think so often when people first feel the symptoms of getting a cold, maybe it's like a little tickle in the back of their throat, or they're just feeling like their energy is zapped.

The first thing they think of is, well, I need to load up on my supplements. I got to get my immunity teas, and things like that. Those things can definitely help. But today we're going to talk about building a resilient immune system. You know, because that does not happen overnight. A strong immune system is really about the choices that we make every single day with our food, with our sleep, and, you know, our whole lifestyle can really have an impact on this. So today we are going to be sharing some practical ways to keep your immune defenses strong this season and the whole year.

Gut health is correlated with immune health

Kara: Okay, so Brandy, let's start with what we, at Nutritional Weight & Wellness often consider a foundational piece of the immune system. And that is what are we eating and how is that affecting our gut health, otherwise known as intestinal health.

Now, if you're a regular Dishing Up Nutrition listener, chances are you've heard us talk about most of our immune system stemming in our intestinal tract. So 70 to 80% of our body's immune system resides in the gut. So think about everything that our gut comes into contact with on a daily basis, whether it's the food we're eating, the beverages we're drinking, the germs we're exposed to, so we really need our intestinal tract working in our favor so that it can act as our natural defense against bacteria, viruses, other foreign toxins that we're exposed to. That's just one of the many reasons that we often will talk about maintaining good gut health and the importance of that.

A balanced diet is supportive for immune health

While no one food or one supplement can prevent you from catching what's going around, eating a balanced diet with plant nutrients, you know, that's really going to help improve your odds of not catching that cold or the flu. Think of it as you're giving your body the tools that it needs so that it can be strong and fight off germs.

Also, maybe recover quicker if you do happen to catch something. If you think about your, what is your immune system built of? Well, it starts with white blood cells. Their job is to fight infections and they make antibodies that protect us.

And that really is dependent on what we're putting in our mouths. What are we eating? What are we drinking? Are we getting adequate vitamins, minerals? We're going to talk about the importance of protein. So these are all things that are just going to really keep that immune system strong.

Protein is critical for the immune system

Brandy: Absolutely. And I do want to talk a little bit more about protein because it's gotten so much more attention lately. You know, if you've paid any attention to the world of nutrition, especially on social media, protein has been given a lot of time in the spotlight. And, you know, I, I can't argue with that. Protein is so crucial for your immune system, but I don't, I don't think a lot of people necessarily know what the connection is there.

So here at Nutritional Weight & Wellness, we've kind of emphasized the importance of protein for, you know, decades. You know, we're going on 20 years here; encouraging that you eat protein with every single meal and enough protein, not just because it's trendy, because we know what it does for your immune system and your overall health.

And it's not just a couple eggs with breakfast or a little piece of cheese on a salad. We're talking like four to six ounces of cooked meat with every meal and maybe two ounces with a snack. So Kara, maybe you can now just explain a little bit more about what the connection is between protein and how it helps our immune system.

Kara: Yeah, definitely. I, I think you're right Brandy. People hear this phrase eat more protein, but we really want to get down to like the little bit of the biochemistry as to why that's important for our immune system.

Brandy: Yeah.

Kara: And you know, our immune system is made up of cells, and those cells require building blocks. And so when we eat protein, there are building blocks in protein. They're called amino acids. And you know this is true whether you're eating chicken, eggs, fish, beef, maybe it's a high quality protein powder. They all contain essential amino acids that help to repair tissue and keep our immune system functioning, keep those cells functioning. There is a specific amino acid, and this is very important for gut health and for immune system. And it's called L-glutamine.

Brandy: Oh yeah, definitely.

Kara: And you know, Brandy, you and I know we can get a certain amount of L-glutamine, this amino acid when we're eating protein on a regular basis. Some people can benefit from taking it as a supplement, especially if they're immune compromised. Maybe they have some leaky gut, which is also called intestinal permeability. You know, that can sometimes send our immune system into overdrive. And so that can be really stressful on the body.

Brandy: Like l-glutamine specifically is, it's kind of like fuel for your intestinal cells. So l-glutamine is what's going to help repair any intestinal cell that's maybe a little damaged and help strengthen the connections between each and every intestinal cell. So that's kind of how it helps repair that leaky gut and eventually boost your immune system.

Kara: That's a great way to describe it. And I imagine you may have clients occasionally who talk about symptoms of leaky gut or low immune function, and you can sit down and determine are they getting enough L-glutamine from the proteins they're eating? Or perhaps as an option they would add in a powder or a capsule supplement in some scenarios.

Brandy: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Just to get more of a therapeutic amount of that L-glutamine. So another thing that animal proteins are going to provide is the mineral, zinc. So if you've ever picked up any of those immune boosting supplements or powders, you've probably noticed that it's advertising that it has a high amount of zinc in it. And I think for that reason, a lot of us do associate zinc as an immune boosting mineral.

And maybe you've even heard that it's good to take zinc when you first feel the first signs and symptoms of a cold, that it could maybe reduce the duration, reduce the intensity. And there's a lot of truth to that and that is why we always include zinc as part of our immune boosting product of the month collection in September because we recognize that people tend to need it more this time of year as we're heading into the cold and flu season.

And that's because zinc actually does help speed up the healing process and it helps the immune system fight infections. So it is a great thing to add just to give your immune system a little more support during this time. But of course it's always important to incorporate foods that naturally have zinc in them so that you're getting the benefits of zinc all the time.

So really great food sources of zinc would be meat, hamburger, pork, even shellfish has a good amount of zinc. But also beans, pumpkin seeds and nuts all have a good amount of zinc in them. So if you are eating the Weight and Wellness way where you're incorporating meat, you have healthy fats from nuts and seeds several times a day, you are naturally getting a good amount of zinc from the foods that you eat.

But if perhaps you are somebody that's eating a more processed food diet or maybe you're more prone to getting sick frequently, especially in the fall and winter, you could benefit from taking a supplement, maybe even just temporarily to get you through the most challenging part of the year.

Kara: Sure. I remember growing up Brandy, my mom was very health forward with vitamins and herbs and chiropractic care from the time I was born.

Brandy: Yeah.

Kara: But I just remember, even as a kid, if it was cold and flu season, our family felt like we were coming down with something in the house, she would bring out the zinc lozenges.

Brandy: Oh yeah, I remember those too.

Kara: So there are a lot of forms. I think you were going to talk about a couple different forms of like the possibility of supplementing with the zinc.

Brandy: Oh, yep, yep. So we do have something kind of similar to a lozenge, but we've got a little zinc chewable, like a chewable tablet that's got 10 milligrams of zinc. So that, would be great for kids, but also it's something that you could have a few of those throughout the day when you're first maybe recognizing the signs of a cold or this time of year. But we also have a capsule that has about 54 milligrams of zinc.

Kara: Mm-hmm.

Brandy: And so one of those a day would be sufficient for like an adult dose during cold and flu season.

Kara: Yeah. That's great. And I, you know, what I've seen with our zinc that we carry, obviously they're very high quality supplements, pharmaceutical grade, and they're in the correct forms that are absorbable. What I like about our zinc, the options that we carry, is people don't talk about getting nauseous from them.

There are some forms out there where people say, oh, I feel like I'm going to throw up, or I would still recommend if you are going to supplement, even with our high quality zinc, maybe just take it with a meal, take it with some food.

Brandy: Yeah, definitely take it with a meal, because even though it's a high quality form that's well absorbed, it may still cause some nausea if you take it on a completely empty stomach.

Kara: Yeah. It's usually recommended with food. And so let's move on. You know, we talked about the importance of protein, gut health, and you know, the amino acids coming from protein, the importance of the zinc, a mineral that 75% of Americans are deficient in. So we want to be eating, you know, enough protein sources that can contain zinc.

Food & recipe examples

Some foods and just recipe examples might be making a large batch of chili. I really like to do that around this time of year when we're, you know, leading into fall. The chili recipe on our website, you know, it's got the meat, so you're getting zinc.

It also has the beans or the legumes, and you're getting more zinc from that. And then the recipe calls for just a variety of vegetables, canned tomatoes, bell peppers, even carrots, celery, you could add some spinach. So it's a great way to kind of use up vegetables in your fridge.

Brandy: Yeah, definitely.

Kara: I know some people will even add pumpkin into their chili and that can give a nice texture and flavor. And then you're getting added vitamin C and vitamin A, which are, you know, other vitamins that are very important for the immune system.

Brandy: Excellent.

Kara: And then just kind of tagging on to that when we, I mentioned pumpkin because we have Halloween coming up and so pumpkins are going to be available everywhere. When our pumpkins are done after Halloween, I like to take the pumpkin seeds, which are also high in zinc. And you could just clean those up, bake them in the oven. I like to put a little bit of oil and sea salt and that's a delicious, crunchy snack that's just going to give you, you know, zinc and fiber and lots of good nutrients.

Brandy: Yeah, some healthy fats. Yeah. Love pumpkin seeds on a, on a salad or even sprinkled on like a pumpkin soup, you know, just to get a little more texture in that.

Kara: Oh, that's a great idea. Love that.

Brandy: Yeah, so I love that you mentioned vitamin C and zinc and as we talked about earlier, to truly build a resilient immune system, it's like taking these vitamins and minerals as supplements can be really helpful, but as a reaction to being sick, it's not really going to save you.

What's going to help build that resiliency and help you fight these infections or viruses more effectively are the food choices that you make each and every day. So, real food every day is going to provide a good amount of all of these nutrients that you talked about, Kara; the vitamin C, vitamin A, zinc, and that is going to help build your immune system over time.

Eat colorful fruits & vegetables for vitamin C

Vitamin C, for example, most fruits and vegetables are packed with vitamin C, and vitamin C is helping your immune system build more white blood cells and those white blood cells are more effective at doing their job when vitamin C is on board. So just by eating a variety of colorful vegetables and fruit every day, that's going to help build your immune system over time. And you know, it's an antioxidant so it helps protect you from oxidative stress too.

Kara: You know, it often surprises people when they learn that there are a lot of vegetables containing more vitamin C compared to fruit. You know, I think like people grow up hearing about citrus, oranges, maybe lemons and limes. Yes. Those do contain vitamin C, but did you know that red bell peppers have even more vitamin C than citrus fruits?

Just a half cup of sliced up bell pepper would give you a hundred percent of the daily recommended intake of vitamin C. And other vegetables that tend to be high in vitamin C are broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, tomatoes. I mean, if you're eating a variety of vegetables, you don't even necessarily need to be eating fruit to get vitamin C. So I always think that's a little bit of a shock when people learn that.

Brandy: Yeah. Yeah. I think like oranges have always kind of been the poster child for vitamin C but really like the vegetables can kind of cover your bases on that. And you know, just thinking more about juice, you know, I think juice is kind of thought of as an immune boosting food when you're sick. So that might be something that comes into the house when you're not feeling well.

But you know, actually it's a lot better to eat a whole orange than it is to have an eight ounce glass of juice, because with the orange, you're still getting the vitamin C, but you're also getting all the fiber and the phytonutrients that naturally get packaged along with that fruit. And the thing is, with fruit juice, even if it's 100% juice, it's still got a lot of sugar in it.

It's natural sugar, but your body still is registering all of that sugar. It could be too much at once, like a glass of juice. Or, actually, one of my favorite examples that I share with clients are those green juices you see at the store in the grocery store.

Kara: They're, they're pre-made, right?

Brandy: Yep. The pre, yeah, like the pre-made green juices. Yep. So, you know, it's green, you think it's healthy, but I calculate the amount of sugar in one of those 15 ounce bottles of juices. There's 52 grams of sugar in one of those green juices.

Kara: Can you break that down for people? Like what, what does that mean? 52 grams? What does that look like?

Brandy: Yeah. So 52 grams of sugar would be the same as 13 teaspoons of sugar. So it's, you know, a little over a quarter of a cup. And I just can't imagine just sitting down and pouring a quarter of a cup of sugar right down the throat.

Kara: Right. Exactly.

Brandy: And what I find so crazy is to compare that to like a soda, 52 grams of sugar is exactly the same amount of sugar in a 16 ounce Coke.

Kara: Wow.

Brandy: You know, and people. People might think, well, but it's natural sugar. So that's, that's fine. Right? But really like your body doesn't recognize the difference. You know, sugar is sugar. It's still going to impact your blood sugar the same and still cause you know, some of the inflammation that comes along with those blood sugar spikes. So I guess takeaway here is you're probably better off just doing like the whole fruit than a big old glass of juice.

Kara: Wow. So I think to summarize what you were just talking about the juice and the green drinks that contains sugar and soda, ounce for ounce, it sounds to me like they have about the same amount of sugar, juice and soda.

Brandy: That’s true. Yeah. Yeah. That's a good way of thinking about it.  

Kara: That's really interesting. Well, on that note, we have to take a brief break, so stay with us and we will be right back.

-----

Welcome back. You're listening to Dishing Up Nutrition. I'm Kara Carper, Licensed Nutritionist. I'm here with Brandy Buro, Licensed and Registered Dietitian. Our topic today is immunity myths and what actually works. So we're not giving you trendy hacks on how to support your immune system and ward off cold and flu season.

We are giving you some foundational nutrition and lifestyle practices that you can incorporate into your life to naturally keep your immune system strong. Before break, Brandy shared some really interesting information. I'll just summarize it, that juice, almost all juice, whether it’s store-bought vegetable green juice or fruit juice, contains the same amount of sugar as a soda if you look at it, ounce per ounce. So I thought that was really interesting for our listeners to learn.

Sugar weakens immunity

Brandy: Yeah. And even if it's natural sugar, it's still not doing us any favors for our immune system. So maybe we should talk a little bit more about why are we even concerned about sugar and its impact on our immunity. So we already know that too much sugar can lead to weight gain and it can trigger inflammation in the body, but there is a connection with our immune system beyond that.

Sugar competes with vitamin C at a cellular level. And I thought this was so interesting. When there is a high concentration of sugar in the bloodstream, the transporters in the cells that help get sugar from the blood and into the cells becomes saturated and sugar is going to be preferentially transported into the cells over vitamin C.

So basically if there's sugar and vitamin C in the bloodstream, vitamin C is not getting a fair chance at working its magic because sugar is kind of pushing it out of the doorway and getting in the cell first. So I think that's so interesting to think about just having that visual, that sugar is competing with vitamin C and that can have an impact for, you know, several hours after you consume sugar.

So if you are somebody that maybe has sugar in their coffee with breakfast and then maybe you have doughnut at midday and then a sweet treat after lunch, maybe a candy, little piece of candy in the afternoon, maybe a dessert after dinner. You know, you're kind of suppressing your immune system the whole day.

Kara: Yeah.

Brandy: And especially if you're sick, that's just kind of a double whammy on your immune system.

Kara: That’s such a great point, Brandy, and I will never forget and this goes way back, probably like 25 years ago when I was reading Nutrition Made Simple by Robert Crayon, Licensed Nutritionist. And there was a chapter where he talked about sugar in the immune system. And in his book he said, you know, sugar can paralyze the immune system for several hours. That's exactly what you just said. But the way that he phrased it in his book stuck with me.

Brandy: Paralyze your immune system. I mean, that's quite the image. Yeah.  

Kara: It’s true. So we really want to be watching what we're eating, minimizing, even eliminating sugar, especially if you're feeling immune compromised.  

Ideas of what to eat & drink when feeling sick

Brandy: Absolutely. So when we are feeling sick, we know sugar is not the best choice, but what are some ideas for what we should be eating?

Kara: I mean, some people are just not hungry when they're sick, and others might be craving sugar, so it can be a little bit tricky, but some things that, you know, we could be sipping on instead of juice or high sugar beverages could be, you know, some nice bone broth or maybe an herbal tea.

I mean, I do like to stop my cabinet with immune boosting teas if and when needed. And that would be in lieu of other sweetened beverages. Another option too, like if I'm feeling sick and weak and I don't have much of an appetite, but I know that I'm going to need some nutrients to keep me from getting too weak, I want to stay as strong as possible, I'll make a protein shake.

And again, this is not a high sugar, it's not like a Jamba Juice. It's something I make at home with a high quality protein powder. And I usually use water as my liquid and some ice just to give it a nice, thick, cold texture. Frozen berries or fresh berries are another option.

Half of an avocado makes it nice and smooth and creamy and gives it some healthy fat. And sometimes I'll add in a product that we carry called Key Greens. And that just gives it a little bit of extra flavor, but it also contains a lot of plant nutrients and antioxidants. So it's kind of an extra immune boosting punch.

Brandy: Yeah.

Kara: So those are just some tips that I use if I don't feel like eating food and I'm also trying to avoid sugar.

Brandy: Right. Yeah. I love the idea of a smoothie when you're not feeling the best. It's just kind of easy on the stomach. It could even be very soothing if you have a sore throat just to sip on something nice and cool. Yeah. So, and you're still getting a good amount of nutrition so you're not kind of compromising your health at the same time.

Vitamin D boosts immune function

Mm-hmm. Yeah. I love that. Yeah, we've kind of been talking about nutrients that are beneficial for your immune system kind of on a daily basis. Already talked about zinc, vitamin C. One that I want to make sure that we don't gloss over is vitamin D. Vitamin D is just one of my favorite vitamins for boosting your immune function. And I think you would agree, right?

Kara: Yeah. And especially here, you know, Brandy and I are recording from Minnesota, so anyone that lives in the northern latitude, you know, it's more difficult to obtain vitamin D, which we would naturally get from sunlight, you know, especially into these fall and winter months.

And we're not getting the sun exposure that we may be receiving in the summer months. And so low vitamin D levels have been linked to more frequent infections. And you may have even seen or heard during the height of the COVID pandemic. There was research showing that those with low levels of vitamin D had worse outcomes when they contracted the virus.

Brandy: Right.

Kara: So I think once people were hearing about vitamin D, they started, you know, making supplementation more of a priority. And so what we recommend is to get your vitamin D blood levels checked, and the number that you're striving for is at least 50.

Brandy: Right. Right. 50. 50. I think 50 to 80 is kind of considered the optimal range.

Kara: Right. For optimal health. And so anything under that, you know, you're just more likely to be immune compromised and catch whatever's going around.

Brandy: Exactly.

Kara: And so it's not just about taking vitamin D when you start having a tickle in your throat, okay? This is something that you want to really get a handle on like year-round ideally. It's a fat soluble vitamin, which means it's stored in your fat cells and so it builds up over time. And so I'm not saying like if you feel like you're getting sick, it's not bad to start taking vitamin D, but it doesn't work quickly. You need to build those levels up in, in fact, if you test low, it could take several months to increase your blood level. So it's more of a long term preventative approach.

Brandy: Exactly. Yeah. And you know, as I'm working one-on-one with clients, vitamin D is often something that we just have in their, their kind of foundational daily supplement routine that they take all year round just to maintain optimal vitamin D levels.

Immunity benefits of bone broth

And something that I like to use, kind of like a supplement, but in food form, is bone broth. And we've talked about bone broth many times here on the show. We love it because it is rich in minerals, it's rich in collagen, and it does have some of that l-glutamine, that amino acid that can help heal the gut lining and support digestion.

So I love thinking about bone broth as something to use in your everyday cooking, but also if you are feeling sick, it can be really nice to sip on a mug of bone broth; can help soothe the sore throat, help you stay hydrated. It can just be really comforting. I also really love to make soup with it, you know, use bone broth as your stock in a soup so that you're getting kind of the extra health benefits of all the goodness that's in bone broth.

So yeah, thinking again about like an immunity myth, like we all know, like chicken soup, it's what you eat when you're sick. So as long as it's homemade and made with, you know, a homemade stock, homemade bone broth, like yes, I would agree that can absolutely give you some healing benefits.

So I would opt for homemade versus canned because canned, you're kind of missing out on the good stuff and there's usually a lot of, processed ingredients, pasta, not a lot of protein, so homemade soup with bone broth to save the day.

Kara: Great tip Brandy. And yeah, I agree with you. Those canned soups typically have MSG, which is monosodium glutamate and just other unnatural ingredients and chemicals that are not going to support immune system.

Brandy: Exactly.

Kara: Definitely homemade is best. And we have a simple how to video on our website if you're interested in making your own bone broth at home. And that would be ideal. I mean, if you really want to get the maximized nutrient benefits you would be making your own. But I'll be honest, I tend to go to a natural foods co-op and instead of making it, I'll look for a high quality one at the store. And there are some good ones that are frozen and that's going to be a higher quality compared to a shelf stable bone broth. So if you can get it from a co-op and get it frozen, that would kind of be second best to making your own.

Brandy: Definitely. Yeah. And no shame in the game if somebody's going to do the work for you. Take advantage of that. And I don't think a lot of people think of looking in the freezer section for that. So that's a good tip that it's probably a good place to start. Yeah, so we've talked a little bit about protein already and how amino acids can support your gut health.

Probiotics support gut health

But another thing I want to touch on when it comes to gut health is probiotics. So this is a topic that does come up a lot on our podcast, so you're probably somewhat familiar if you've been listening to any of our shows. But probiotics are basically, you know, the beneficial bacteria that live in our digestive tract.

And we have trillions of bacteria that live in our gut and they each kind of have a different role in our overall health. And of course we want to have more of the good bugs, the beneficial bugs compared to the potentially harmful bugs. And that is when we start talking about probiotics. So the probiotics or good bacteria play a role in protecting our intestinal cells from damage. They can help strengthen that gut barrier, which can prevent leaky gut or that intestinal permeability that you talked about earlier, Kara.

And you know, one of my favorite ways to get some of these probiotics would be naturally fermented foods. You know, they're naturally rich in those probiotics. So think of things like sauerkraut, kimchi, or whole milk yogurt. Those would all contain naturally occurring probiotics. So incorporating those foods into your diet on a regular basis is just one way to introduce some of those beneficial bugs into your digestive system.

Kara: Yeah. If we can be getting, you know, things like fermented foods and the good bacteria naturally from food sources, that's even better. So we do always say that: food first. There are some circumstances where additional support is recommended, especially like we've talked about, if you're immune compromised.

If you have an autoimmune condition, if you just tend to be catching things several times per year, and this goes for your family too. And just a couple options that we have, you know, you can go to our website and check out our vitamins and supplements. Two that Brandy and I really like are the Biotic 7 by Nutrikey and the Biotic Duo, which is also by Nutrikey.

You know, these are going to contain more than one strain. And so some of the strains that listeners may have heard of are the bifidobacteria strain, which makes up most of the good bacteria in our gut. So if we're low on good bacteria, we want to replenish that bifidobacteria. And then also lactobacillus acidophilus, which is another one our savvy listeners have probably heard of.

And so the Biotic Duo contains both of those. The Biotic 7 also contains both of those and an additional five other beneficial bacterial strains. So those are just a couple of very small supplements that can be taken first thing in the morning.

Brandy: Yeah. And I would say like, oftentimes a probiotic is maybe necessary for some people that have a history of taking antibiotics or, you know, pain medication because those are, there's a lot of things that we encounter through our life that can kill off the good bacteria. So often a supplement is kind of what we need for that more therapeutic dose.

Lifestyle habits for immunity (#1: get enough quality sleep)

So we have gone over so much about how foundational food is to building a resilient immune system, and we've mentioned a couple of supplements that can help, but I want to make sure we talk a little bit more about lifestyle, because lifestyle matters a lot.

And you know, sure there are some immunity hacks or tricks that you can try out when you're feeling sick, but it's truly the habits that you have every day that are going to build that resiliency. And a good foundation for a strong immune system involves food and lifestyle. And I consider one of the biggest foundations of a healthy lifestyle is good sleep habits, getting enough sleep, getting quality sleep.

So I want to talk a little bit more about that. I'm sure most of us can relate that when you're feeling sick, your body kind of lets you know, like you need sleep. You almost can't fight it most of the time. And you know, this goes for basically the months leading up to getting sick. Like you really want to be getting good sleep, not just when you're sick, but all the time.

Because if you are shorting yourself on sleep, your immune system is the first thing that's going to take a hit. In recent history when I've gotten sick, it's been a result of just being sleep deprived, you know, after like a week of, you know, just not getting great sleep or traveling a lot and not getting good quality sleep.

And there's studies that show this, that even one night of poor sleep can reduce your immune response. So when I'm working with a client one-on-one, I'm always asking about how their sleep is going. Especially if they're working on reducing, you know, frequency of illness or just trying to build a strong immune system because it is one of those foundational pieces that's going to help everything else in your body function properly.

And sort of like the gold standard for what's considered optimal sleep is somewhere between seven and a half to  nine hours of sleep. So, you know, if you're hovering around six hours and you think you're good, you're actually like clinically, I think they would define that as sleep deprivation.

Kara: Well, and you and Britni, another licensed and registered dietitian, you just recently recorded a podcast on the topic of sleep in August. Is that correct?

Brandy: That's right. So if you are struggling with sleep and you need a few pointers on how to get up to that seven and a half, nine hours, or even just improve the quality of the sleep that you're getting now, Britni and I do go over quite a few tips and tricks. I think that episode was aired on August 8th, 2025. So it's pretty recent.

Kara: Okay, great. And so people can, you can go to iTunes, you can go to wherever you like to listen to your podcast. You can go to our website, weightandwellness.com and you can also find it there.

Chronic stress can lead to suppression of the immune system

Something else besides lack of sleep that can lead to suppressing immune system is just being chronically stressed.

Brandy: Yes.

Kara: And you can all probably relate to that. You know, if you're sleep deprived and stressed, chances are you're more likely to catch whatever's going around. Now, whatever the circumstances are in your life, I mean, many of our listeners have external stressors that maybe they can't control.

Stress management technique: keep blood sugar balanced

Maybe they’re caregiving, maybe there was a death of a loved one, a divorce, a job change. These are, these things can be very stressful and sometimes they're not fixable, you know? And so we have to manage them as best we can. And so what Brandy and I wanted to talk about is the importance of keeping our glucose levels or our blood sugar levels balanced throughout the day, because this can reduce physical stress. Okay. It doesn't change any of the external things going on, but it allows us to handle them better.

And, you know, maintain more resiliency, both physically and mentally. It can help with moods. And so a diet that's going to be high in sugar or skipping meals, not eating enough protein, that's going to keep you on a blood sugar roller coaster throughout the day. And that's very stressful on the body.

Brandy: Right.

Kara: And so, you know, in a couple minutes, we will talk about examples of what does it look like to eat balanced in a day, eating protein regularly with vegetable carbohydrates, maybe some fruit carbohydrates, healthy fats, and eating every few hours, that can really reduce physical stress quite a bit and improve our immune system.

Brandy: A hundred percent. You know, eating in balance, as we like to say, I think of that as a stress management tool, because we can only control so much in our life, right?

Kara: Mm-hmm.

Brandy: I like to think of eating in balance as one thing that we have some say in and one thing that can sort of lower the net stress that your body is experiencing. And speaking of stress, I think this time of year, you know, we're kind of the beginning of a new school season; I think a lot of us are experiencing a little more stress because our schedules are starting to change. We're maybe a little busier with activities. And this is what I'm talking about with my clients.

You know, turn back to your foundation of eating and balance, because that's one thing that can help you just stay a little more level. And a nice side effect is it's going to help keep your immune system running strong, because coincidentally, you know, back to school is also kind of the beginning of cold and flu season.

So we really need to do all that we can to stay vigilant and stay as healthy as possible. And it's not just the stress, you know, we're also just spending more time indoors and close quarters with people. And I think that's how some of this illness can get spread. And then shortly after that we've got the holidays, which I think can be quite stressful for so many.

And more, more sugary treats, maybe more cocktail hours, things like that. So, you know, the takeaway here is with all that is going on, it's so important to try to stay focused and be so intentional about your food choices, so that you have a little more control over that internal stress.

Kara: Right. And so really, like you said, focusing on the foundation when it comes to real food and getting adequate sleep, you know, and incorporating the foods that are containing some of the important vitamins that we talked about: vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin A. And the mineral, zinc. And also good bacteria, whether that's coming from fermented foods or probiotics. Those are foundational during cold and flu season. There are other supplements that are kind of extras. I actually like to keep these in my supplement cabinet. We'll just, I have an entire cabinet, I will be honest.

Brandy: Yep.

Supplements to consider having on hand at onset of feeling sick

Kara: And I like to have these on hand because it always seems to happen where myself or someone in my house gets a tickle in the throat or a little bit of an elevated low fever, start feeling achy all, you know, runny nose. It always seems to be on like a Friday night or you know, like a Saturday night or we're out of town.

And so I stock up on a supplement called Viracid, and I really do not like to run out of it Brandy, because the offices are always closed when somebody gets sick or we're in Chicago or you know, and so I travel with these as well and I've never regretted it.

Brandy: It's always good thinking.

Kara: It's always benefited myself and my family and it's, they're just like this Viracid, it's very comprehensive. It actually contains all the minerals and vitamins that we've been talking about in a little bit higher doses. And with the Viracid, I like to take that at the very first sign of like a sore throat or a little bit of a fever. Very first sign.

Brandy: Yep.

Kara: Two capsules every hour. It sounds overkill, but if I catch it early for myself, my daughter, my husband almost guaranteed that by the next day after a good night's sleep, you know, we're like, okay, I'm so glad I didn't catch that.

Brandy: Wow, that's amazing.

Kara: Just waiting a little bit too long, waiting until that next morning thinking it might just go away, I have not had good results. I mean, maybe the severity or the duration is lowered by taking Viracid, you know, after a couple days of symptoms, but catching it at the early sign is key.

Brandy: Yeah. Almost at that point where you're like, am I sick? Is there something here?  

Kara: Is it allergies? Yeah. If I question it, you know, nine out of 10 times, I'm sick the next day. But yeah, there's also Wellness Formula, another very similar comprehensive immune support supplement. And there's Advantage Liquid Concentrate, which is citrus seed extract, and that is antiviral, antibacterial, kills parasites. These are just kind of three extra tools in the toolbox. Especially for those more stressful times of year, when people tend to catch things.

Brandy: Oh, I'm glad you mentioned that. And you have personal experience with at least the Viracid. So tried and true. And it's, yeah, great to maybe just have some of that on hand so that it isn't too late before you can actually use some of these tools.

Kara: Right. I just kind of learned the hard way that running out of it and then catching something and not having it available is not helpful.

Immune boosting meal examples

Brandy: Yeah, right. Well, so now that we've covered all of this, this is a lot of really great information. I, it may feel a little overwhelming. How do we put this all together? So I do want to go back to food of course. You know, the food choices that we make every day play a big role in building that resiliency. So let's talk about immune boosting breakfast, lunch, dinner, just so we kind of have like a day's worth of examples. So for breakfast, you know, I'll just share what I had today that I think was fantastic.

I had three eggs as my protein and then I sauteed a bunch of kale with some onion and a little bit of garlic and had a side of blueberries. And then for my healthy fat, I used grass fed butter to cook my eggs and my kale. So that was a good amount of protein, some healthy fat and lots of antioxidants from those vegetables.

Kara: I love that you added the garlic because that actually is also a natural immune booster.

Brandy: Yeah, how about that? And so, so what did, what did you have for lunch today? I bet it was immune boosting.

Kara: It actually was. We actually recently made one of our Nutritional Weight & Wellness recipes called the Spicy Coconut Stew.

Brandy: Ooh, yum.

Kara: I'm really into like a one pot meal, just because it's so easy and it's a good way to get protein, vegetables, healthy fat, and not have to, you know, monkey with different sides of things. So that's actually what I had for lunch and it's, you can find that on our website, that recipe, but it's loaded with veggies, peppers, spinach, sweet potato. It's delicious and it has a lot of immune boosting nutrients.

Brandy: Yeah, that is actually one of my favorite recipes on the website. Thanks for reminding me of that. It's soup season again, so I can start making it again. And then for dinner, what I have planned, pretty, pretty basic, but we're having taco salads, so I'm going to have like my ground beef with, you know, some tomato sauce in there and some beans on a bed of romaine.

Maybe I'll throw some of that kale in there. Get a little avocado in there for the healthy fat. So I'm getting a good amount of vitamin C from the veggies, some zinc in the beans and the beef. And you know, who doesn't love avocado? So, yeah, I'm happy about my dinner tonight.

Kara: That sounds delicious. I might copy that since we don't have ours planned.

Brandy: Perfect.

Recap

Kara: Well, to wrap up about immunity and building a strong immune system, it's not about one food, one magic food, or one magic supplement or one hack, it's really about consistent daily habits, eating real food in balance, sleeping well, balancing your blood sugar to help manage stress and there may also be a need to support your body with additional supplements.

Brandy: That's right. And remember, it is not about being perfect. It's about progress. It's about the choices that you make every day. They add up, and the real food choices that you make will build resilience in your body. And over time, those habits are going to help you build a stronger immune system.

Kara: Thanks for joining up today on Dishing Up Nutrition. And if you found this episode helpful, please do share it with a friend or family member who's also looking for natural ways to support their immune system. As always, we are here to guide you with real food, real solutions that give real results. And if you want to learn more about how to keep your immune system strong, visit our website, it's weightandwellness.com. We have podcasts, articles, and recipes. Thanks for listening and have a great day.

Check Out Our Website for More Information!