An autoimmune disease is a condition during which the body immune system by mistake attacks good cells in the
Eminent Dietician and Nutritionist Avni Kaul says, that there are several ways to counter your autoimmune disease like making some lifestyle changes such as daily exercising, practicing deep relaxation techniques, implementing supplements and by eating proper nutrients.
In this article, eminent nutritionist, dietician, and wellness coach Avni Kaul talk about top nutrients that will help you to counter autoimmune disease.
1 .Vitamin D
Vitamin D is undoubtedly one of the most potent nutrients responsible for modulating and coordinating the immune system. In autoimmune disease, the immune system has a difficult time differentiating self from non-self (foreign invaders). Vitamin D assists the immune system to make this important distinction, which decreases autoimmune disease formation.
Vitamin D deficiency is hugely common in our society due to sunscreen use and low amounts of exposure to the sun. On top of this, the usual diet is severely lacking dietary sources of Vitamin D. The best source for vitamin D is sunlight but if because of any reason you are unable to get enough sunlight then you can also get vitamin D from egg yolk, soy milk, fatty fish and cereals.
2 .Zinc
Zinc is another essential nutrient for the healthy functioning of the immune system. Proper zinc levels support the thymus gland and the formation of T helper cells, which are important for coordination of the immune system.
It has been seen that chronically low zinc levels can result in atrophy of the thymus gland which leads to poor T helper cell maturation and an imbalance in the Th1 and Th2 branches of the immune system. It is this immune imbalance that contributes to autoimmune disease and chronic inflammation. You can avail zinc from mushroom, spinach, kale, and garlic.
3. Omega 3 Fatty Acids
Omega 3 fatty acids contribute a very important role in decreasing autoimmune disease. In most cases of autoimmune disease, there is a serious imbalance of fatty acids in the body.
It has been seen that there is high consumption of omega 6 fats from processed oils while omega 3 fatty acids virtually remain absent. Though all omega 6 fatty acids are not necessarily harmful from the right sources but are essential to increase the consumption of omega 3 to create a balanced proportion in the body.
An increase omega 6 level relative to omega 3 is highly linked with the kind of systemic inflammation that is visible in most autoimmune disorders. The few sources of omega 3 fatty acids are olive oil, cauliflower, eggs, and blackberries.
4. Glutathione
The most powerful antioxidant in the human body is glutathione. It acts as an antioxidant on its own while also administers other antioxidants in the body. Apart from antioxidant benefits, glutathione supports healthy detoxification. These actions will help reduce inflammation drastically, which is a large factor in autoimmune conditions.
Glutathione has also been recognized as playing an important role in white blood cell function and immune system regulation. For these reasons, glutathione has been identified as a key nutrient countering against autoimmune disease.
Glutathione support must be a part of every autoimmune support program. Few examples of glutathione-based foods are spinach, avocados, and asparagus.
5. Probiotics
Another big common denominator which is found in autoimmune patients is that they almost always have some kind of bacterial imbalance in the gut. Maintaining a healthy bacterial balance is important to have a healthy digestive tract and proper immune functioning. Dysbiosis is also linked with inflammation that can directly promote autoimmunity.
Sadly, in today’s era, we have various things that really destroy the good bacteria in our gut. These are things such as municipal tap water, artificial sweeteners, pesticides in crops, antibiotics, processed foods, alcohol, and few more. So, the first priority is to really act on getting this microbiome destroying toxins out of your lives, then to refill the gut with healthy bacteria. Yogurt, raw cheese(moderation), apple cider vinegar and coconut kefir are few rich sources of probiotics
In Buenos Aires, 2018 Summer Youth Olympic Games Nutritionist Avni Kaul was the Advisor (Nutrition) from India. She is a Gold-medallist master’s science graduate from the University of Delhi in the subject of Food and Nutrition. Avni Kaul is a diet and nutrition columnist in some of India's leading newspapers and magazines like -
Columnist at TimesNow
Columnist at NDTV Food
Columnist at Grazia
Columnist at Deccan Herald
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