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Winter Health with Avocados
Winter's in full swing, and so is the flu and the common cold. The healthy and natural way to avoid getting sick is to make sure you're eating a balanced diet high in a variety of foods including avocado.
Avocado has been found to contain a healthy amount of the mineral Zinc, which is perfect for stimulating the immune system.
Why Zinc is essential for the overall good health of your immune system:
Your immune system is vital in maintaining your health. It's responsible for fighting off all illness and keeping the internal balance within your body. There are necessary nutrients needed to help keep this vital system running smoothly.
Zinc may be the most critical micronutrient for the immune system. People who are deficient or have low levels of zinc will often get sick more easily. Low levels of zinc have also been associated with low white blood cell activity, abnormally low antibody response and weaker immune system response.
Your body and zinc in avocados:
Your body has a highly effective system of immune cells called the T-Helper cells. The correct balance of these cell helps maintain a strong and healthy immune system.
- T Helper 1 cell (TH1) helps regulate our defence against bacteria, virus, fungi and parasites. They are also largely responsible for attacking and killing tumour cells.
- T Helper 2 cell (TH2) promotes the production of antibodies against foreign matter in the blood stream.
- T Helper 3 cells (Th3) provides immune control through, regulating excess TH1/TH2 activity. Th3 dysfunction is often cause by overgrowth of unhealthy bacteria in your gut leading to imbalance of Th1 and Th2.
Why its important to boost your zinc levels with avocados:
When one of the T-helper cells is more dominate, it will unbalance the other T Helper cells. For example, when T Helper 1 cell is higher it can lower T Helper 2 cell, it could affect your ability to produce antibodies for fighting foreign matter in the blood stream.
It is even thought that lowered TH1 Helper T-Cells production may occur as a result of Zinc deficiency. Or increased TH2 Helper T-Cells production may occur as a result of Zinc deficiency.
How to detect low zinc level:
There are a number of ways to test your zinc levels. You could always take a blood test, but a less invasive way is the zinc tally test. Buy liquid zinc and swish approximately a teaspoon of the liquid around your mouth. If it has a bitter or furry taste it means your zinc levels are fine. But if you can't taste anything, you may have low zinc levels.
How to get Avocado and zinc in your diet:
So now that you know why it is so important to have a healthy amount of zinc in your diet, let's talk about how you can get it into your diet.
A fantastic and easy way to get zinc into your diet is by adding one to two servings (a serving = ½ an avocado) of avocados per day in addition to a balanced diet. It is great to know you really can eat your way to good health!
Eat your way with avocados to a healthy immune system:
Avocado Immune
Booster Shake:
Ingredients:
½ an avocado
1 tbsp of raw honey
1 lemon juiced
1 orange juiced
2 tbsp of fresh mint
½ a cup of ice cubes
Method:
Place all the ingredients into a food process or blend until smooth. Drinking the Avocado Immune Booster Shake as a healthy addition to your breakfast or even as a yummy snack will help keep you in a great fighting position this winter. Or any season for that matter.
