It’s not news that Vitamin C is an immune booster. It helps your body repair itself. I’ve had visions of hooking my whole family up to a vat of Vitamin C for the next few months, but that doesn’t seem a practical way to prevent swine (or any other) flu. We could take supplements, and we do, but that’s still not the best way to build immunity.
Thank goodness for real food. God created foods to keep us healthy, and for that I am grateful. He made all fruits and vegetables to have some vitamin C, and a few are powerhouses. Here’s a Top 10 to put on your grocery list in the next few weeks.
- strawberries
- citrus fruits (lemons, oranges, grapefruit, etc.)
- peppers (red bells are super high)
- leafy greens
- tomatoes
- broccoli
- sweet and white potatoes
- cauliflower
- cranberries
- cabbage
Yay for natural Vitamin C (and other vitamins) that can be found in real food! What foods do you eat to boost your immunity?
This post is linked to Frugal Friday. Spending a little money on vitamin-rich food now could prevent spending a lot more money on doctor bills and medicine later!
Right now we are eating lots of smoothies that are blended with spinach and coconut. I have also been experimenting with making lacto fermented foods (I’ll be sharing on that soon
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Oranges – my favorite source of Vitamin C!
Good to know—my 1yo son doesn’t do oranges too much but broccoli and sweet potatoes? YEAH!
Coconut oil has anti-viral properties and can be added to smoothies or even eaten plain as a “suplement” of sorts.
Also, anything cultured or lacto-fermented is great to build up the immune system because it supplies your gut with good bacteria to fight off bugs, and most of your body’s immune system is located in the digestive tract. Yogurt, kefir, lacto-fermented sauerkraut (or other veggies), kombucha, and water kefir are all great ways to add probiotics into your diet.
@Emily, I’ve heard wonderful things about coconut oil. Should definitely look into that.
Lacto-fermenting is also new to me. I’ve read a little about it on blogs, but haven’t taken the plunge.
Great post! I recently did a post on staying healthy and eating foods high in Vitamin C was definitely on my list. I’m so glad that my toddler is a good eater. She loves broccoli and spinach!
Thanks for sharing!
@Heather @ Not a DIY Life, It helps so much when the kids aren’t picky!
Vitamin C:-)
Thanks for sharing!!! Good info:)
garlic’s also great! add lots of minced cloves to pasta dishes, chicken, etc. It’s a super immune booster.
Last weekend I felt like we all needed a Vitamin C boost, so I made your strawberry lime slushies for snack. Yum! My kids get so excited when I make those, thanks for sharing that recipe.
@Jennifer, Yum! I haven’t made those for quite awhile. Will be on the lookout for Manager’s Special limes again.
Awesome post!! You inspired me to make a trip to Walmart. I now have plenty of citrus fruits and tomatoes
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I’m new at this so I’m not sure if what I did is (il)legal but I wrote a post on how your post inspired me to incorporate some of those foods into my menu plan for the weekend and I linked it back to this post:
http://haleywynn.blogspot.com/2009/10/friday-wednesday_28.html
Love your blog! I read it ALL the time
Thanks you helped with my school project!