Thursday 30th July 2009

Swine Flu Health Tips

This advice has come from our resident herbalist, Julie Osbourne.

Swine Flu is a virus that is expected to infect 1 in 3 of us. As with all flu’s they spread more readily in autumn and winter. There are things you can do to help prevent the severity of this Flu if you catch it.

One of the ways to boost your immune system by improving your antioxidant potential. Antioxidants are made up of vitamins A, C and E plus beta carotene which are the precursor of vitamin A. This can be done by the following:

• Eating lots of fresh fruit in particular mangos, citrus fruit, kiwi fruit, melon, and berries.
• Eating lots of fresh vegetables, especially sweet potatoes, carrots, peas , broccoli, pumpkin, cabbage.
• Eating meat and oily fish (tuna, mackerel, salmon) twice a week and increasing your intake of nuts and seeds.

It is also important to make sure you drink plenty of water, get enough sleep and exercise.

The Herbs for Swine Flu are Echinachea, Garlic, and Thyme, which all have an antiviral action. You can take these herbs in the form of a herbal tincture or tea, or even adding garlic and thyme to your cooking.

www.herbalista.co.uk