Winter season supplements part 2

Vitamin C
Vitamin C has anti-microbial and viracidal effects and has been shown to increase natural killer cell (immune cell) function by up to 200-400%.Take 1-4 gram of vitamin C a day.

Glutamine
Glutamine is the amino acid of the immune system and it is well known that blood levels of glutamine drop with infections. Take 1 scoop (10g) of glutamine every 1-2 hours in a glass of water if you feel yourself coming down with a cold.

Probiotics
Friendly bacteria in the gut set up a relationship with and boost the immune system. For example, a study from Pediatrics, July 2009, showed daily dietary probiotic supplementation for 6 months was a safe effective way to reduce incidence and duration of fever, rhinorrhea, cough and antibiotic use in children. If you have to take antibiotics this winter which kill bacteria – good or bad – take at least a 1 week course of high strength probiotics to re-establish friendly bacteria levels.

Echinacea
Research has shown the use of echinacea reduced the duration of colds by a day-and-a-half. Echinacea taken alongside vitamin C reduced getting a cold by 86%. When echinacea was used alone it reduced getting a cold by 65%. Take a good quality echinacea supplement. E-mail me to find out a good quality brand.