Spring is not upon us yet, so staying vigilant in our defense against maladies is still a priority weighing on all of our minds.

Here are six more simple ways to keep your defense system operating at peak performance.

Avoid Sugar

Sugar decreases the function of your immune system almost immediately. If you feel like you are on the verge of getting sick, then avoid sugar like it's a disease all by itself! Of course, avoiding sugar long term will do your body good and make it stronger. Caution: sugar can be in stuff like fruit juice from concentrate.

Get Enough Rest

I'm not talking about sleep. Sleep and rest are two different things. You all know what I mean. If you don't get enough rest, you can't do your normal daily tasks effectively. Neither physically nor mentally.

Same thing happens with your immune system. It will be harder for your body to defend itself if you don't make an effort to rest. Think of sleep and or rest as recreation time. I do now and it's working for me.

Eat Garlic Regularly

Garlic is a triple-whammy: it’s antibacterial, antiviral and anti-fungal. Garlic is one food that you should be eating every day. It is important to note that fresh garlic is the way to go in order to get the optimal health benefit. The active ingredient is destroyed within one hour of smashing the garlic, so garlic pills are worthless — you're just wasting your money. When you use the garlic, compress it with a spoon prior to swallowing it, or for you hard core people, put it through a juicer when you're making a veggie smoothie. If you swallow the clove intact it will pass through your colon undigested. (sorry for that visual)

Don’t Let Stress Become Overwhelming

Learn to allow decompression breaks during stressful times. Try a meditation class. Maybe Yoga?

Speaking of yoga. . .

Exercise

When you exercise you increase your circulation and your blood flow throughout your body. The components of your immune system are also better circulated, which means your immune system has a better chance of finding an illness before it has a chance to spread.

Wash Your Hands

Should be a no-brainer, right? Well guess what — we wash our hands with antibacterial soap. This allows bacteria to adapt and become resistant. The truth is, the only thing that bacteria and viruses cannot build immunity to is essential oils like Lavender, Oregano and Garlic. So when you wash your hands, use regular soap and warm water and do it often.

Here's to your healthy immune system!

Chuck.

6 steps to strengthening your immune system