Top priority! Children, teens, college students and teachers all need an immunity boost. Building Our Kids Immunity focuses on food, additional immune boosters & daily habits!
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Do you have a pre-teen or teenager in the house? They can take ownership of their health with Clean Eating Tips for Teens.
As we approach this coming school year; parents are very conscious of their child’s ability to fight illness. In United States right now, we’re still in the midst of an epidemic, making it extremely important to build up our immunity.
Building my kids immunity has been my goal since my children were diagnosed with severe asthma. The road to learning how to build their immunity wasn’t easy. We went through back to back breathing treatments, prednisone and hospital stays. Through the years, they learned how to care for their bodies and I learned a lot about prioritizing immunity.
Immunity as a Priority
Building up our kids immunity is as simple (and hard) as being; intentional, consistent, and mindful. It will not be perfect! As parents, students, and teachers we must encourage each other.
Intentional. It takes planning to be intentional long term. Decide early on when you’ll make time for meal planning, ordering supplements, preparing homemade food, etc.
Consistent. When building up our immunity we need to be consistent. Every day we need to feed our bodies nutrients in order for our immune system to function properly. We need exercise and fresh air to detox our bodies and make us stronger. Commit to being consistent.
Mindful. We need to teach our kids to be mindful of taking care of their bodies. Kids need to know how they can fight sickness and stay healthy.
Lastly, with lots of encouragement and support you & I can be successful. Family units, friends, teachers and roommates can all encourage each other this year.
6 Ways to Building Our Kids Immunity
Serve immune boosting food. (Every. Single. Day.)
- Vegetables of all color. Broccoli, spinach, bok choy, sweet potatoes, Brussel sprouts, pumpkin, green peas, parsnips, and beets.
- Seeds. Chia seeds, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, sunflower seeds.
- Oats. Serve as a breakfast cereal or replace flour with oats in baked goods.
- Eggs. Free range, organic eggs are going to have the most nutrients. When possible, buy eggs from backyard chicken raisers.
- Berries. Fresh or frozen strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, cherries, and raspberries.
- Chicken. Organic free-range chicken and chicken bone broth.
Quality Sleep.
Chose a bedtime and create a bedtime routine. Our bodies love routine and work hard for us while we sleep. As a general rule, kids ages 3-6 need between 10-12 hours of sleep. Kids ages 7-11 need between 10-11 hours of sleep. Kids ages 12-18 need 8-10 hours of sleep. Reference: Healthy Sleep Habits.
Stress relieving techniques.
Be intentional about incorporating this into their routine. Go for a bike ride, play a game, allow for quiet time, practice deep breathing for 2 minutes and/or listen to uplifting music.
Exercise. Limit Sugar. Probiotics.
Exercise.
Find indoor and outdoor ways to exercise. Walking, running, playing tag games, lifting kettlebells, body weight routines (check Youtube), swimming, biking, chores that require walking/lifting, and yoga strength training. Be consistent and committed to exercise between 4-5x’s a week.
Limit Sugar.
All sugars; including fruit juices. Find solutions of how to limit sugar for the whole family. Consider having one cookie at one meal a day. Or saving all sweets for Saturday or Sundays. Serve food that doesn’t contain added sugars. Stock your fridge and pantry with healthy snacks to have during the week (veggie sticks, hummus, pretzels, meat sticks, homemade granola, nut & seed mixtures, and whole fruit.)
Probiotic Rich Food.
Sauerkraut, kimchi, fermented pickles/carrots, kefir and kombucha. Limit yogurt due to the high sugar content and it triggers inflammation. One easy solution is to take a daily (quality) probiotic in either capsule or powdered form. Successfully Brew Kombucha at home.
Building Our Kids Immunity – Extra Boosters
Elderberry
Elderberry syrup. Elderberries contain an anti-viral agent which prevents viruses from invading our cells. Take as a preventative and increase dose if you have cold/flu symptoms. How to Make Elderberry Syrup here. Take 1-2 tablespoons daily for prevention. When exposed to cold/flu symptoms take between 2-4 tablespoons.
- Purchase Gummies Here: Garden of Life mykind Organics Elderberry Plant Based Immune Gummy – 120 Real Fruit Gummies for Kids & Adults – Echinacea, Zinc & Vitamin C, No Added Sugar Herbal Supplements
Vitamin C
Vitamin C. This vital nutrient needs to come from both our diet and supplements. It supports our immune system, reduces inflammation, works to heal wounds, and aids with blood iron levels. Vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin that can’t be stored by our body. Take between 1000-5000 mg daily for prevention and twice that much at the first onset of cold/flu symptoms.
- Purchase Vitamin C here: Garden of Life – mykind Organics Kids Gummy Vitamins – Fruit – Certified Organic, Non-GMO & Vegan Complete Children’s Multi – B12, C & D3 – Gluten, Soy & Dairy Free – 120 Real Fruit Chew Gummies
Vitamin D-3
Vitamin D3. This vitamin plays a crucial role in disease prevention and building up our immunity. Your best source of this vitamin is safe exposure to sunshine. It can also be taken as a supplement during the fall and winter months. On average most kids need 2500 units and adults can vary from 5,000 -10,000 units. Ask your doctor to run a test on your D levels.
- Purchase Vitamin D here: Garden of Life Raw D3 Supplement – Vitamin Code Whole Food Vitamin D3 5000 IU, Dairy and Gluten Free, Vegetarian, 60 Count Capsules | Color May Vary – Now with Organic Green Cracked Wall Chlorella
- Vitamin D3 & Vitamin K2: Dr. Mercola, Vitamins D3 & K2, 30 Servings (30 Capsules), non GMO, Soy-Free, Gluten Free
- Purchase Liquid Drops here: Biotics Research Bio D Mulsion Forte Vitamin D3 Liquid Drops 50 for Best Absorption, Strengthens Bones, Supports The Immune System, Cardiovascular System
Bone Broth
Bone Broth. Broth reduces inflammation and is excellent for our gut lining! Read more on the benefits and how to make homemade broth at home here: Homemade Chicken Broth.
Purchase from Amazon: Organic Chicken Broth – 6 pack
Herbal Tea
Herbal Tea. Ideally, drink herbal teas warm several times a day. Herbal teas that build immunity and soothe cold/flu symptoms include; peppermint tea, echinacea, elderberry, licorice mint, ginger, hibiscus and chamomile.
- Throat Coat with Lemon & Echinacea Tea
- Organic Peppermint Tea -100 tea bags
- Echinacea Plus with Elderberry Herbal Tea
- Stress Relief – Honey Lavender Soothing Tea
- Organic Chamomile Lavender Herbal Tea
- Tulsi (Holy Basil) Lemon Ginger Tea
Building Our Kids Immunity
Be consistent . Intentional . Mindful.
Apply the 6 ways to build immunity; serve immune boosting food, quality sleep, exercise, limit sugar, take probiotics, and practice stress relieving techniques.
Lastly, plan to add extra boosters such as elderberry gummies, daily vitamin c, vitamin d3, and drinking bone broth & herbal teas.
Pursing Better Health Together,