Are you often ill? Do you wish you could quickly return to health? Do you wish you could have prevented the illness in the first place? Most healthcare professionals agree that a healthy lifestyle promotes a healthy immune system—and keeps infections at bay. Here are a few ways to keep your immune system healthier: 

1. Be careful when handling and preparing food. Cross contamination of food is a major source of food-related illness. Cut on clean surfaces, and bleach cutting surfaces regularly. Consider a food safety course that teaches healthy food handling techniques.

2. Eat a healthy and well-balanced diet. Recognize that what you’re eating may be contributing to the problem. Research indicates that poor nutrition can actually increase your chances for viral infections. A well-balanced diet with healthy proteins, complex carbohydrates, and good fats can effectively boost your immune system.

3. Build up healthy intestinal bacteria. For a healthy immune system, ample amounts of good bacteria help keep bad bacteria at bay. Drink raw, unpasteurized milk and eating plenty of organic, unpasteurized yogurt and kefir with live, active cultures. Supplement your diet with high-quality probiotics to make sure you get all the good bacteria you need for a healthy intestinal flora.

4. Exercise regularly. Some theories suggest that physical activity can help excrete infectious organisms through urine and sweat while others suggest that increasing blood circulation helps “warn off” threats to the immune system. Exercise decreases your chance of infection by slowing the release of the stress hormone cortisol.

5. Wash your hands regularly. Proper hand washing is the most effective barrier against the spread of infectious diseases. Use warm water and lather your hands with soap. Wash for at least 20 seconds and rinse, letting the water run down from the wrist to the fingers. Don’t overuse antibacterial soaps as it can lead to drug-resistant superbugs.

6. Get plenty of restful sleep. While you’re dreaming of paradise, your immune system is busy rebuilding and repairing itself. However, if you have trouble with sleep, don’t start counting sheep.

7. Protect yourself from mold. Household mold is a hidden invader that can weaken the immune system and cause respiratory illness, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, and other diseases. If you suspect mold, have a professional evaluate your home. Wash or replace pillows and mattresses to remove any hidden mold that you may be inhaling during sleep.

As a bottom line, building up your immune system and protecting it should be a daily priority. With a healthy, multi-faceted approach, you can learn to strengthen your immune system and feel a lot better.