What Everybody Ought To Know...To Activate Their Immune System's Full Potential

Are you suffering with the cold or a flu? You might be dreading the idea of getting sick or wondering how strong your immune system is to weather the various side effects that often appear during the winter months.

What you may fail to realise however is that it can be easier than you realise to “bulletproof” your immune system to stay healthy throughout the changing seasons.

While your doctor may recommend a flu shot to avoid getting sick, it’s wise to consider your options and to be aware of the various side effects associated with it. It’s much better and more safe, effective and affordable to ensure you are proactively taking care of your immune system so that you can stay both healthy and strong throughout the year.

There are many natural health solutions that can help to ease the symptoms of a cold. But did you know that getting enough of this one important nutrient can be the most effective way to avoid getting sick in the long term? What is the answer…? It’s Vitamin D.

There is actually a Vitamin D deficiency amongst the general populus and this has been shown to worsen during the autumn and winter months. Evidence also suggests that Vitamin D levels could be an overlooked trigger for seasonal sickness. One study from 2008 published in the Journal of Virology concluded that Vitamin D may also have a “profound effect on prevention”.

But why is this? The answer is that Vitamin D Activates Your Full Immune Potential.

New research is showing that Vitamin D is critical for the innate immune system. This is different from the resistance that is built when exposed to particular pathogens – otherwise known as acquired immunity. Innate immunity is the body’s natural defense system that comes into action by protecting mucous membranes from pathogenic invaders. When blood levels of Vitamin D decrease as they often do during the winter months, the innate immunity suffers as a result and sometimes the impact is catastrophic.

Vitamin D has also been discovered to trigger the killer cells (T-cells) of the immune system and these naturally fight off any invaders. When there is a lack of Vitamin D in the bloodstream, the killer T cells remain dormant and this leaves your immune system wide open for pathogenic invaders to enter the body and cause havoc.

Vitamin D May Improve Longevity and Reduce Cancer Risk

New research has also indicated that higher vitamin D levels have been linked to longer telomeres, indicating that this has been a reported marker of biological aging. The findings published in the Journal of Nutrition show the correlation and not causation, but that this could also have implications in terms of our understanding around healthy aging and potentially reducing cancer risk.

Warning Signs of Vitamin D Deficiency

Many people believe that a Vitamin D deficiency is something that affects other people and not them. Yet the truth is that 75% of adults in the USA alone have low vitamin D levels. As a result, many people suffer with the following symptoms:

Aches and pains
Low energy
Mood imbalances
Weak immune system
Cognitive problems
Fragile bones
Heart problems
Vision loss

The best two ways to protect yourself from Vitamin D deficiency is to take a Vitamin D supplement. Optimal immunity and good health can be achieved either through several hours of direct daily sun exposure (without the use of any sunscreen that can block Vitamin D production) and supplementing with Vitamin D.

While you can get tested for a deficiency from your doctor, Vitamin D is safe to take and doesn’t interact with most medications, along with being one of the least toxic substances on earth. It’s nearly impossible to overdo it however and it doesn’t have any kind of interactions with medications. Therefore taking a Vitamin D supplement is highly recommended.

The key is to ensure that you don’t take fake Vitamin D. Many doctors write prescriptions for synthetic Vitamin D and this is because the pharmaceutical companies can’t patent the natural compounds to make money. As a result they create a synthetic version that’s often poorly absorbed and less effective.

The better option is to take a natural form of Vitamin D3 (otherwise called cholecalciferol), and this is used in most dietary supplements. Generally this option is cheaper, more accessible, while providing more powerful benefits that have been proven by hundreds of scientific studies.

Here are three of the best tips to consider when choosing a Vitamin D supplement…

Choose Vitamin D3 and make sure it’s 100% natural as this is the safest, most absorbable and effective form to take.
Take an optimal dose of around 5000IU of Vitamin D3 daily. Many supplements actually provide much less than this.
A safflower oil. Choose supplements with a low quality soy base, as this has toxins and GMOs. Instead, it’s better to choose a healthier safflower oil base.

The Vitamin D3 Supplement I Recommend

Many Vitamin D supplements are unfortunately low quality products. Relatively few contain the ideal dosage and form and many are also filled with potentially toxic fillers. Some of the high quality supplements available are relatively expensive. For this reason it’s good to look around and find your own research to ensure it has optimal potency, purity, is convenient, along with being safe and effective.

For this reason, I’m a firm believer in taking Vitamin D3 5000IU. This is an essential combination of Vitamin D3 and Coral Calcium. This helps to support normal cell differentiation and proliferation, while regulating over 200 genes in the body. It can also benefit the body’s overall health when sunlight is scarce.

Take good care of your health.