Supporting your Immunity in Autumn and Winter

Change of seasons is upon us, and as the air grows colder and the amount of light we get diminishes, we begin to feel more fragile and more vulnerable to the elements. This is the time of year when nature tells us to slow down, wrap up warm and take better care of ourselves. And traditionally this is also the season when we turn to supporting our immune system and our respiratory health. 

So here are five simple tips you could start implementing today to keep yourself healthy, calm and more resilient in the autumn and winter months.

Recharge your batteries with natural light and follow a circadian clock

Needing to slow down is a difficult message to receive, especially in the last calendar months of the year when things at work and at home seem to accelerate and require your constant attention. We want to keep powering through, but as the days grow shorter and there is less light this quickly becomes a losing battle and we begin to feel under the weather.

According to many scientific studies people who get less sun exposure are twice as likely to get a cough and three times as likely to get a runny nose compared to those who spend more time in the sun. Without proper sunlight and the vitamin D3 that it generates for us (crucial for strong immunity), the immune system is pretty much dormant and not as good at regulating its defenses against seasonal coughs and colds. And even though winter sunlight is brief, exposing your eyes and your skin to it as much as possible will help you stay recharged.

Start your day with stepping out into natural daylight, ideally within an hour after waking up, look at the soft colours of the rising sun, absorb it through your eyes and expose your skin to the direct sunlight as much as you can. Doing this daily will start synching your circadian clock and you will have more energy during the day and a better quality of sleep (another foundational block of strong immunity).  

Go to bed early and keep your bedroom device free. 

There is nothing more important for good mental and physical wellbeing than plenty of restful sleep. If that pillar is missing or unstable everything else will be a struggle. 

The longer nights and shorter days of winter are a clear hint from nature that we should also shift our bedtime an hour or two earlier and rest more. Living in harmony with the seasons can provide immeasurable support to our health. It’s the only way we will ever know how to be healthy and happy here on Earth and any efforts to go against this natural flow of life  will result in depletion and, eventually, burn out.

Giving ourselves permission to slow down, doing very little in those couple of hours before bed and keeping this time device free (or at least investing in a pair of blue light blocking glasses) will give your immune system an opportunity to rest and recharge.    

Support your digestive fire 

There are many kinds of digestive imbalances that contribute to poor functioning of the immune system. A lot of them become more prominent when we are stressed, eating on the go, skipping meals, eating late at night or eating highly processed food. 

Taking care of digestion by going back to basics is something worth revisiting this season. And working with your circadian clock is also crucial here. The human body likes rhythm -  so try to eat around the same time every day, even at weekends.  Although the science in this area is still evolving, human studies have already shown that scheduling an earlier evening meal or skipping it altogether may have some health promoting benefits. This appears to be because certain bodily functions shut down and don’t function optimally in the evening, when we feel tired and the body is preparing for sleep. Overloading it with food at this time will mean the food won’t be digested optimally and won’t nourish you as it should.  

Clever use of ingredients and spices will also support your digestion and therefore your immune system - did you know that more than 70% of it resides in your gut? In fact there are more immune reactions in your gut, over the course of one day, than in the rest of your body in your entire lifetime! Eating warm freshly cooked food loaded with healthy fats, simple unprocessed ingredients and warming spices (think ginger, black pepper and turmeric) will create the strong foundation you are looking for to keep your immune system in good shape. 

Move and stay hydrated 

Movement and hydration are the two most important areas to optimise this time of year as both of these provide support for the lymphatic system (a crucial part of the strong immunity) that creates and releases white blood cells to fight disease and infections. 

And while our blood circulation is powered by our heart even when we sleep, the lymphatic flow does not have an automatic pump and requires our daily activity and movement to ensure its optimal functioning. 

Fortunately this is something that doesn’t require any specific type of exercise and you can simply walk as much as possible, daily. Aim for at least 10 000 steps each day. While it might sound like an awful lot, a thousand steps is only about 10 minutes on your feet which makes the final number sound much more achievable. 

The lymphatic system is 96% water so improving hydration is also imperative while you are working on strengthening your immunity. Aim to have two full glasses of room temperature water first thing every morning and drink a glass of water 30 minutes before each meal and every time you have a cup of coffee. Drop a couple of slices of citrus fruits or some fresh cucumber slices in your water to make it more palatable.  A good intake of fresh fruits and veggies will also help with keeping your body well hydrated and nourished. 

And most importantly - smile and keep it simple! 

Follow your instinct, paying a bit more attention to what your body is asking you to do. Treat yourself with love and kindness. Trying too hard to do the right thing creates added stress and this is the very thing that makes us depleted and unwell. Make it fun, make it yours and your body will do the rest. We really don’t need much to stay healthy, and while all the cutting edge and complicated interventions have their time and place, it’s the basic foundational stuff, like feeling relaxed and not rushing your meal, chewing your food properly, drinking clean fresh water, not forgetting to breathe deeply every now and then, going for some fresh air and connecting with your friends and family that will make all the difference in the end. 

Written by Lisa Irving

Lisa Irving is a qualified Nutrition and Health Coach, working locally in Islington in London.