12 Surprise Ways To Boost Your Immune System
Health & Fitness|November 2016

It’s not all about healthy eating and regular exercise, you know! Try these fun, unusual ways to stay well all winter long...

Jane Murphy
12 Surprise Ways To Boost Your Immune System

The nights are drawing in, the supermarkets are selling mince pies – and the man sitting next to you on the bus has been sniffing and coughing all journey long. Yes, it’s cold and ’flu season again. We’re all well versed in tried-and-tested protective strategies: eating a healthy, vitamin-rich diet, cutting down on alcohol, using hand sanitiser and keeping stress to a minimum all do their bit to help you keep firing on all cylinders. But there are also some more surprising strategies to add to your immunity-boosting arsenal...

SMILE MORE!

Worried about catching a cold? Cheer up! People who are happy and relaxed are less likely to come down with the sniffles, according to a study at Carnegie Mellon University in the US. Researchers found positive emotions were associated with a greater resistance to the cold bug. And if you’re not feeling particularly cheery, try watching your favourite comedy: laughter can boost the immune system by up to 40 per cent, say scientists at Indiana State University. Having a chuckle reduces the body’s level of stress hormones and boosts the effect of disease-fighting ‘killer cells’.

LET IT GO

This story is from the November 2016 edition of Health & Fitness.

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This story is from the November 2016 edition of Health & Fitness.

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