Find the truth about boosting your immunity

The coronavirus pandemic has pushed our immune system centre-stage.

It’s never been more important to us – but how much do we all really know about how to keep it strong?

In this programme, Dr Ronx Ikharia, an emergency medicine doctor, delves into the latest science to find out what we can all do to make our immune system as healthy as possible.

Ronx, was recently seen on Channel 4 documentary, Is Covid Racist?, teams up with Professor Sheena Cruickshank, an immunologist at the University of Manchester, to run a unique experiment.

They recruit a group of volunteers and give them an ‘immune makeover’ – changing their diet, exercise and sleep habits for six weeks to test the impact on their immune health and discover how we might all benefit.

Diet has a massive effect on our bodies – there are claims that you can boost your immunity by eating particular foods, while a healthy, balanced diet is seen as important for supporting your system.

We should all aim to eat a wide range of fruit and veg to ensure we get all the vitamins, minerals and chemical compounds our immune systems need.

In fact, the wider the variety of different coloured plants you eat, the more types of phytochemicals, associated with boosting immunity, you’ll consume.

Research also suggests there is a connection between the bacteria in your gut and the functioning of your immune system.

But there are additional ways to support your gut bacteria by consuming prebiotics including wholegrain foods, such as brown bread, rice and pasta, beans and pulses, as well as live yoghurt, quality cheese and fermented foods.

In the month running up to the first UK lockdown, supplement sales went through the roof.

Vitamin C supplements are extremely popular, and although this is very important for the immune system, in reality, few people in the UK are deficient in it, and it may be more important to increase our intake in vitamins A, B6, B12, D, folate, selenium and zinc.

But it’s not just our diets that affect our immune systems – the amount of exercise we do can also make a difference.

Physical activity improves cardiovascular health, lowers blood pressure, helps control body weight, and protects against a variety of diseases.

It also promotes good circulation, which allows the cells and substances of the immune system to move through the body freely and do their job efficiently.

Finally, it has become increasingly clear that sleep and the immune system are closely connected.

Consistent sleep strengthens the immune system, allowing for balanced and effective immune function.

Lack of sleep, on the other hand, can throw it off, and sleep deprivation can make you sick, in the short and long term.

As well as looking at the latest research into diet, exercise and sleep, Ronx puts their own body to the test, to discover just how easily our immune system can be damaged; and the surprising ways it can be strengthened, from a relaxing massage to getting a fright.

Together with leading scientists, Ronx uncovers the latest research on so-called ‘immune boosters’ to see what works and what doesn’t – and reveals the one key vitamin that can make a difference.

And finally, they discover a surprising truth – for many of us, ‘boosting’ our immune system is the last thing we should be doing…

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