Can eating the right foods boost your immune system?

As winter rolls around and the days get shorter, it can bring a wave of bugs that can leave us feeling run down.

Staying active, getting enough sleep, and good hygiene can help during this time – and so can the food you put in your bodies.

To find out more about the connection between diet and immunity, we spoke to Dr Caroline Childs RNutr, Associate Professor in Nutritional Sciences, who explained how everyday foods can help.

“Food plays a big role in supporting our immune system,” says Caroline. “Most people are aware that eating healthy is good for you – but perhaps in body shape and size. Actually, our immune health is important as well.”

The science-y bit: the 3 ways our diet can help our immune system

1. Your immune system needs energy to work properly

Those who are malnourished are more likely to get infections, so getting the right energy from whole foods will help the proper functioning of your immune system, says Caroline.

2. Vitamins and minerals help our immune cells to work

There are important building blocks we need to eat, says Caroline. “Vitamins and minerals are part of the mechanism that your immune system uses to work. If you don’t eat them, they won’t work in the way they’re supposed to.”

3. What we eat affects our gut microbiome – which links to our immune system

You might have heard about the importance of gut health recently. “What you eat changes the bacteria you have in your gut – and we are just starting to understand foods that are associated with positive gut health, which can help your immune system.”

So what should I be eating during winter?

It probably comes as no surprise that foods such as fruit and vegetables are key to helping support our immune systems in the winter. “They have vitamins and minerals in them that are important,” says Caroline. “Fibre is also very useful for our gut bacteria, which will help support our immune system.”

While it might be wishful thinking, Caroline says you can’t prevent all colds and flus by what you eat – you can’t stop yourself being exposed to things. “The best thing you can do for yourself is give yourself a traditional healthy diet that we all understand,” she says.

Ready meals and processed foods might have things like emulsifiers and artificial sweeteners in them, which can have a negative impact on our gut health. “We need enough energy in our foods for our immune systems to work. It’s about balance – we want our immune system to react strongly in the right time and right place.”

Caroline does recommend taking a vitamin D supplement, which is recommended to everyone during winter.

What about when I’m sick?

A common effect of being unwell is losing our appetite, says Caroline, which can make things worse. “Think about what are the most energy dense foods you can have – chicken soup is a good one!”

Different things will appeal to different people when they’re sick, but try to focus on foods that are simple, quick, nutritious and give you energy. “Soups are easy to eat and offer a degree of comfort and offer you the nutrients you need when you’re ill,” she adds. “And they are warming and soothing which can help.”

Download The Body Coach's FREE Simple Soup Recipe Pack – 8 warming soup recipes, all packed with tasty ingredients to fuel your body.

This article was written by the Body Coach content team.

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