15 immune boosters you need to know about Q: Several recent eTips have talked about building a healthy immune system to help prevent and fight off infections like pneumonia. Can you tell me what supplements are best for immune-boosting purposes? Dr. Wright: It's been quite a few years since I've gone down the list of simple and effective immune boosters (since April 2001, actually), so here are some of the highlights. - Sugar. Eliminate it from your diet!
- Allergies. Since infections often have an allergic "trigger," you should consider allergy elimination or desensitization.
- Mushrooms. The principal active ingredients in maitake and shiitake mushrooms are polysaccharides that are known to improve the body's germ-fighting abilities.
- Aloe vera. This plant's active ingredients also contain immune- stimulating polysaccharides. Try taking 50 to 100 mg daily of aloe-leaf concentrate containing 1 percent or more acemannan.
- Beta-glucan. Adults should take 50 to 100 mg daily.
- Garlic. Fresh, raw garlic has a broad spectrum of antifungal, antibacterial, and antiviral effects. Eat one garlic clove daily (about 4 grams), or take a garlic supplement that contains at least 10 mg of alliin.
- Multivitamin-mineral. Use everyday as research has shown that it can reduce overall illness, including infection-especially once you're over 60.
- Vitamin A. Adults can take 15,000 to 25,000 IU daily. Children can take 5,000 to 10,000 IU daily. (And pregnant women should always check with their doctors first.)
- Zinc. Adults and teens can take 30 mg of zinc (picolinate or citrate) daily. Children 2 years old and up can take 15 mg daily.
- Vitamin E. Take 400 IU as mixed tocopherols daily for adults, and 50 to 400 IU daily for children.
- Vitamin C. Adults should take 1 gram (1,000 mg) two or three times a day, and children should take a minimum of 20 mg per pound of body weight.
- Echinacea. Take 300 to 600 mg daily of an Echinacea preparation containing 3.5 percent echinacoside.
- Astragalus, Andrographus, and Picrorrhiza. Take 2 to 6 g of dried Astragalus root or dried Andrographus daily. Take 500 mg to 2 g daily of Picrorrhiza.
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