Help Your Body Combat Infections with These Herbs

Our immune system is a crucial part of our survival. The absence of a healthy immune system makes you vulnerable and susceptible to viral, bacterial, and parasites attack.  In other words, the immune system is the engineer of our healthy living.

The immune system acts as a watchdog on the cells and tissues in the body and launches an attack when an enemy is sighted. It involves various cells, organs, tissues, and proteins. It differentiates the body-friendly agents from harmful foreign agents and eradicates dead cells from the body. In other words, your immune system is your body-built defense against harmful properties that find their ways into your body.

A healthy immune system is equal to a healthy life. It helps your body successfully fight off infections as you waggle yourself through numerous infectious agents daily. When the immune system gets weak, your body and your vital organs become exposed to illnesses.

This article elaborates on herbs that are effective in boosting the immune system and how easy these herbs are to include in your diet. Also, the article explains the signs and symptoms the body manifests when the immune system is too weak to fight off pathogens. If you seek to know what these healthy herbal immune system boosters are, then you have come to the right blog.

Signs of A Weak Immune System

• Frequent illness and infection episodes: Constant infections such as cough, cold, and influenza that require you to take antibiotics more than once a year is a sign of a weak immune system. Most people develop cold and flu every 20 days. When your body easily contracts infections, then you should start an immune system medication immediately to prevent worse infections.
• Slow healing of wounds: The body depends on the immune system for the healing of wounds. When the immune system is down, wounds take longer than normal to get healed. In other words, the skin finds it difficult to regenerate after a wound. The wound lingers for a longer period of time and causes you pain while it heals sluggishly. When you notice this sign, it is important to begin medications that would help boost your immune system.
• Fatigue: When your immune system is low, your body’s ability to conserve the energy that would power your body drops. When your stress level skyrockets and you fall sick after every big project, you should check your immune system and boost it. According to research, long term stress weakens the immune system, and when it does this, recovering from stress becomes slow and difficult.
• Stomach upset: Constipation and diarrhea are two illnesses that occur mostly when your immune system is down. According to research, 70% of the immune system is found in the guts. Hence maintaining a healthy gut is important for strong immunity.
• Frequent skin infections like eczema are also signs of a weak immune system.
• Frequent high fevers.
• Joints and muscles pain.

The most obvious sign of a healthy immune system is how successful the body is able to fight off pathogens even when your body is exposed to pathogens daily.

Herbs That Boost Immune System

Echinacea

Echinacea is an immune stimulant that is native to North Americans. The root of this plant is the herbal remedy for the treatment of the weakened immune system. The potency is characterized by a tingle on your tongue when you taste it. It is known to enhance the immune system and engulf bacteria in infected areas of the body. It also supports the quick healing of wounds and treatment of skin infections like eczema. It detoxifies the body and eliminates accumulated wastes. It is to incorporate into your diet and also easy to grow in your home. The whole plant, ranging from the leaves to the root, is medicinal. However, the root is the part that tackles the weak immune system the most. Ensure that the root is matured enough before you use it. That is, the root must have stayed 2 or more years in the ground before it is uprooted. Matured roots give more results than immature ones. Cut the roots into tiny pieces and dry them out, then boil them for about an hour and take one glass of it daily until your immune system gets back on track.

Astragalus

Astragalus is also known as ‘immune tonic.’ It treats general weakness, which is a sign of low immunity. It fights off bacteria that weaken the immune system and keeps the immune system healthy and working. The part of the herb that is best for boosting the immune system is the root; this is because the main activities are water-soluble. Natives of China cook the herbs into soups and stews. The taste may be awful. However, its benefits to the immune system rank higher and better than its taste. If you would boil it with water and not soup, it is best and safe to take 10 – 30g of the herb daily.

Medicinal Mushrooms

They are known as immune system modulators and serve as antivirus. These immune-boosting mushrooms include; reishi, cordyceps, Coriolus, maitake, and shiitake. These medicinal mushrooms contain healthy properties like polysaccharides that contain beta-glucans that stimulate macrophages, natural killer cells, production of cytokines, and T cells. These mushrooms can be consumed as food. Since polysaccharides are water-soluble, the medicinal mushrooms can be taken in the form of powder or liquid. They can also be cooked into soups, broths, and stew. Including any of these medicinal mushrooms into your meals would help you enjoy the immune-supportive benefits.

Elderberry

It serves as both an immune system modulator and an antivirus. They are berries that should not be eaten raw. Elderberries contain poisonous properties when they are raw. However, these poisonous properties disappear when the berry is exposed to heat. This makes it safe for use. Boil the berries before using.

Garlic

Though a food spice, garlic is known to be one of the most medicinal foods. It contains antioxidant properties that support both the immune and cardiovascular systems. It treats common cold and flu and reduces the chances of developing a cold by 63%. It also increases recovery time from heavy stress and enhanced quick regeneration and healing of wounded skin. It improves every symptom of a weak immune system and also strengthens the immune system to get back to work.

Fire Cider

This is a concentrated mixture of ginger, garlic, onions, turmeric, hot peppers, and horseradish, all combined in apple cider vinegar. Upon getting into the body, it wards off infections. It deals with flu and cold majorly and tackles these infections from the root. Try out this combination. Swallowing it may cause a little bit harsh feeling in your throat due to its peppery contents. However, upon getting to your stomach, it begins what it is good at – fighting infections and strengthening your immune system. It is important to avoid this mixture if you have any history of stomach ulcers.

Ginseng

Studies have shown that ginseng strengthens the hypothalamic, pituitary, and adrenal axis (also known as the HPA axis), all of which are responsible for the immune system’s response to stress. Severe stress is capable of weakening the immune system, and if, unfortunately, you engage yourself in a lot of stressful activities, it is important to ensure that your HPA axis is strong enough to help you manage the effect of the stress. By boosting the HPA axis, you are boosting the immune system, and by taking ginseng herb, you are both strengthening your HPA axis and boosting your immune system at the same time. Ginseng regulates all the immune system cells-B cells, T cells, macrophages, and natural killer cells. All of these cells identify threats to the body and combat them. You can also make your tea out of ginseng roots. However, it is essential to consult a herbalist first.

In conclusion,

The body is a country, and the immune system is the military of the body. It combats every form of threat that approaches to cause harm to the body. When the immune system is weak, foreign bodies easily gets introduced into the body. In order to keep the immune system cells up and running, it is important to adopt an immune system booster, one of which is herbs. These herbs are easy to make; they are natural and chemical-free medications. They have proven down the ages and across different continents to be effective in boosting the immune system. Before embarking on any immune system boost herb, it is important to consult a herbalist for advice.