In Spain we can already tell that autumn is here: the days are shorter, summer vacations are over and the sidewalks will soon be filled with dry leaves.
And with these seasonal changes come the flu, colds, and other respiratory illnesses... so nutrition, rest, stress management, and exercise are essential to avoid becoming easy prey for viruses and weather changes.
To face autumn in good health (and spirits), I recommend the following:
- Pick up your spoon again: it's time to rediscover broths, soups, creams, and purées... they help us warm up and drink more fluids now that we're feeling less thirsty. I highly recommend making bone broth; it's very easy to digest and very nutritious for our gut microbiota due to its high mineral, glutamine, and collagen content.
- Eat seasonal and local produce: nature is wise, and gives us what we need at every moment, and it does so through its seasonal fruits and vegetables: Choose fruits such as persimmon, cherimoya, pomegranate, fig, mandarin, mango, apple, quince, pear and grape.
- Choose vegetables like chard, artichoke, celery, zucchini, pumpkin, lamb's lettuce, mushrooms, parsnips, red cabbage, cauliflower, lettuce, leeks, and beets. It's also the season for avocados, sweet potatoes, and chestnuts, so feel free to include them in your menus.
- Consume prebiotics and probiotics: we know how important they are and that we can include them in our diet in many ways: Prebiotics are found in any plant-based food that is a source of fiber, such as fruits, vegetables, legumes... although fructooligosaccharides such as garlic, onion, leek, artichokes, asparagus or chicory inulin are particularly noteworthy.
- We obtain probiotics from live foods, such as yogurt, kefir, kombucha, sauerkraut, and unpasteurized vinegar...
In addition, it is also very interesting to take them in supplement form to give a boost to our immune system, especially useful for dealing with flu and colds (1, 2).
- Boost your defenses with supplements: In addition to the aforementioned prebiotics and probiotics, there are many supplements that can help us cope with our daily routine and avoid catching a cold: Vitamin D : essential for our immune system and bone health. Its impact is such that a greater vitamin D deficiency was observed in the most severe cases of COVID-19 compared to mild cases (3). It also plays an important role in modulating our gut microbiota, which is linked to our defenses (4).
- Vitamin C and zinc : two other essential micronutrients for our health. It has been observed that both 1-2g of vitamin C and 50mg of elemental zinc daily reduce markers of inflammation (5). Let's not forget that chronic low-grade inflammation is both a cause and consequence of many diseases.
- Reishi: also known as “the mushroom of eternal youth”, is a mushroom widely used in Eastern medicine. It supports antitumor activity, making its supplementation interesting as a complementary treatment to conventional cancer treatment (6).
- Colostrum: Colostrum is the first milk produced by the cow, and therefore, it is a food highly concentrated in protein and nutrients. Its effectiveness in preventing colds and improving intestinal permeability has been observed (7).
- Garlic oil : a staple in our kitchen, it is also antiviral, antibacterial, and antifungal. Supplementation with garlic oil after 6 weeks has been shown to improve inflammation and prevent related diseases (8).
I hope you enjoyed this article, and that it helps boost your immune system!
Coral Martín, Dietitian and Psychologist
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Coral Martín is a dietitian and psychologist. Every Tuesday she offers nutritional counseling at Salud Mediterránea Manuel Becerra: C/Ortega y Gasset 77.
Click here for more information and pricing for this service.
Bibliographic references:
1. Lehtoranta, L., Latvala, S., & Lehtinen, M.J. (2020). Role of Probiotics in Stimulating the Immune System in Viral Respiratory Tract Infections: A Narrative Review. Nutrients , 12 (10), E3163. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12103163
2. Lei, W.-T., Shih, P.-C., Liu, S.-J., Lin, C.-Y., & Yeh, T.-L. (2017). Effect of Probiotics and Prebiotics on Immune Response to Influenza Vaccination in Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Nutrients , 9 (11), E1175. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu9111175/nu13103378
3. Pereira, M., Dantas Damascena, A., Galvão Azevedo, LM, de Almeida Oliveira, T., & da Mota Santana, J. (2022). Vitamin D deficiency aggravates COVID-19: Systematic review and meta-analysis. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition , 62 (5), 1308-1316. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398.2020.1841090
4. Bellerba, F., Muzio, V., Gnagnarella, P., Facciotti, F., Chiocca, S., Bossi, P., Cortinovis, D., Chiaradonna, F., Serrano, D., Raimondi, S., Zerbato, B., Palorini, R., Canova, S., Gaeta, A., & Gandini, S. (2021). The Association between Vitamin D and Gut Microbiota: A Systematic Review of Human Studies. Nutrients , 13 (10), 3378. https://doi.org/10.3390
5. Corrao, S., Mallaci Bocchio, R., Lo Monaco, M., Natoli, G., Cavezzi, A., Troiani, E., & Argano, C. (2021). Does Evidence Exist to Blunt Inflammatory Response by Nutraceutical Supplementation During COVID-19 Pandemic? An Overview of Systematic Reviews of Vitamin D, Vitamin C, Melatonin, and Zinc. Nutrients , 13 (4), 1261. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13041261
6. Jin, X., Ruiz Beguerie, J., Sze, DM-Y., & Chan, GCF (2016). Ganoderma lucidum (Reishi mushroom) for cancer treatment. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews , 4 , CD007731. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD007731.pub3
7. Guberti, M., Botti, S., Capuzzo, MT, Nardozi, S., Fusco, A., Cera, A., Dugo, L., Piredda, M., & De Marinis, MG (2021). Bovine Colostrum Applications in Sick and Healthy People: A Systematic Review. Nutrients , 13 (7), 2194. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13072194
8. Xu, C., Mathews, A.E., Rodrigues, C., Eudy, B.J., Rowe, CA, O'Donoughue, A., & Percival, SS (2018). Aged garlic extract supplementation modifies inflammation and immunity of adults with obesity: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial. Clinical Nutrition ESPEN , 24 , 148-155. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnesp.2017.11.010