Strengthen your defenses
Our immune cells in the blood destroy everything that is foreign to the body and thus save our lives every day.
Did you know that our intestinal bacteria really train our immune cells?
As unbelievable as it sounds, we have 2 kg of bacteria in our intestines, all of which are foreign to our body. But our immune cells know about the importance of the bacteria for our intestine and therefore do not attack them.
To boost your defenses, you need a healthy gut!
Therefore, pay attention to a balanced diet rich in fiber. Unfortunately, in our fast-paced times, people cook for themselves much less often. Rather, industrially produced and modified foods with chemical additives, and hastily ingested bread snacks, fast food, sugar and convenience products, are consumed. This poses a great challenge to our intestinal flora.
That's why I recommend you to eat more fresh food. If possible, choose seasonal and regional products in organic quality. The motto should be:
"Prepare it yourself and know what's in it".
Lactic fermented foods are also very good for the intestinal flora. The intestine is more pleased about hot water in the morning, and also in between, than about sugared drinks such as cola and Sprite.
To keep the intestine healthy helps relaxation and rest, but also regular exercise.
Influences by which our immune system is weakened
- When you take antibiotics or have diarrhea, your intestinal bacteria are radically decimated. For the repopulation of the intestine you can take probiotics together with prebiotics. These are bacteria in dried form, which you can buy at the pharmacy.
- Cortisone and other anti-inflammatory drugs, taken over a long period of time, tend to weaken our immune system rather than strengthen it.
- Stress contributes to the fact that our immune system loses strength and inflammations arise in the body. But a weakened immune system can hardly prevent these from becoming chronic. Doctors speak of so-called secondary chronic inflammations.
What foods increase the defense?
Spicy foods and drinks strengthen the defense, mental clarity and they lift our mood. Through them, our life fire is directed upward to the heart, the brain and outward to the surface of the body, where it repels invading wetness and cold. They also have a libido-strengthening effect, which I do not want to deprive you of!
I recommend you the following foods:
- Root vegetables like carrots and parsnips
- Cabbage and squash, leek, onion, radish, cabbage, kohlrabi
- Whole grain rice
- Legumes
- Meat soups from beef and chicken, which are cooked for a long time
- Vegetable soups with ginger
- Game dishes
- Vegetable dishes from the oven and stews of all kinds; always also the vegetarian version with beans and co.
- For dessert I recommend baked apples and compotes cooked with cloves and cinnamon bark and refined with nuts.
This protects against coughs, colds and hoarseness.
- Legumes (beans, lentils, peas), especially in combination with cereals, are high-quality sources of protein.
- When preparing beans or meat soups, cook a piece of seaweed. Seaweed is highly recommended because of its high mineral content and helps balance the acid-base balance. They also have a cleansing and detoxifying effect.
- In winter, avoid cold foods such as citrus fruits, bananas, yogurt, curd, milk, tomatoes and cucumbers. The strong cooling effect of citrus fruits reduces the immune system and you become more susceptible to colds. You may even gain weight. If you eat bananas and yogurt in winter, chronic "snot nose" will be a logical consequence.
Remember grandma's kitchen!
Food prepared from local food, in the best quality and cooked with love, works wonders and makes you happy! Use less, but healthy fat and also less animal protein. Remember soups, stews and roast venison with red cabbage and cranberry pears.
The 5EE will inspire you after just a few weeks! You can do so much good for your family and yourself!
Always orientate the 5EE to the current season and live in harmony with it! Buy seasonal and regional products and season with all the dynamic elements. Eat heartier in winter and choose lighter and more refreshing foods in spring and summer.
If you listen to your body you'll find that when it's cold you crave warming foods more and when it's warm, you crave refreshing foods more.
Sincerely
Yours Li Auer, TCM Expert
If we could give everyone the right amount of nutrition and exercise, we would have found the surest path to health.
Hippocrates of Kos
