Foods and Herbs to Boost Your Immune System and help Heal your Body Naturally by Dr. King, in San Marino, CA

Tuesday, May 31st, 2011, 12:36 am

Onions and Garlic boosting your immune system WOW!:
Close relatives and both contain antibacterial properties. Great foods to add as flavor in salads, with your mixed vegetables and to any prepared meat. Onions and garlic have been used to treat everything from minor illness to major disease and inflammation, both internally and externally. The sulfur compounds in onions and garlic are the key elements for use as an antibiotic. In one study, garlic was tested on mice against an antibiotic-resistant strain of Staphylococci. The results showed the garlic had protected the mice against the pathogen and significantly reduced any inflammation. Both have been used to help fight off the residual effects of colds and flu, while garlic’s antifungal properties help prevent yeast infections and combat viral conditions, onion’s high phytonutrient content are known to “mop up” free radicals that can lead to cancer in the body. I personally add onions to my salads and fresh garlic in small amounts, I don’t want to smell like garlic so I use Kyolic’s orderless garlic to increase my garlic intake and get all the medicinal properties of garlic which is both anti-viral and anti-bacterial.

Honey helps with allergies and used as an antibiotic, who knew?
Honey was used as an antibacterial treatment long before synthetic antibiotics were developed, in cultures all over the world, for wounds and illness. Honey contains an enzyme, antimicrobial in nature, which releases hydrogen peroxide and prohibits the growth of certain bacteria. In Chinese medicine honey is thought to harmonize the liver, neutralize toxins, and relieve pain; and its antibacterial properties are effective in the treatment of the bacterium Heliobacter pylori or stomach ulcer. Anytime I had a sore throat hot water, lemon and honey was the remedy and who knew I was killing bacteria. Honey also helps to reduce allergies especially when you purchase local honey from your area. Organic raw Canadian honey is great for boosting immune system as those bees are some of the oldest honey bees and have strong healing properties.

Cabbage — makes for a great addition to my Green Smoothies:
A member of the cruciferous vegetable family, along with broccoli, kale, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts, cabbage has long been recognized for its healing powers. One reason is the cancer fighting sulfur compounds. Another is that fruits and vegetables high in vitamin C are considered a natural antibiotic and a one-cup serving of cabbage provides about 75% of your daily adult allowance. Cabbage juice is highly recommended in the treatment of stomach ulcers. Drink half a cup of fresh cabbage juice 2-3 times a day, between meals for two weeks. Add half a teaspoon of raw, unfiltered honey and sip slowly, even chewing a bit to get the enzymes going. Topically, raw cabbage leaves applied to tender breasts can relieve inflammation from mastitis, fibro cysts and menstrual breast tenderness. I personally make Green Smoothies daily with my Vita Mix blender which makes them taste the best blending them down perfectly. Alternating greens is important and cabbage is one of my tops along with kale, chard and spinach add a little fruit and you don’t even know it’s a green smoothie.

Fermented Foods
Today more and more doctors recommend you take a probiotic in conjunction with antibiotic treatment to replace the good bacteria, microflora, that is also being destroyed in the digestive system. Fermented vegetables loaded with microorganisms are a great way to getting high amounts of good flora. Raw, unpasturized sauerkraut (there’s that cabbage again), raw pickles, cultured vegetables, and kim chi are all excellent ways to introduce probiotics back into your intestines. Begin with a few teaspoons and increase as desired.

Herbs
There are many herbs with antibiotic properties, so listed here are the culinary herbs you might use to cook with on a daily or weekly basis. Continue to enjoy them for their taste knowing they are supporting your immune functions as well. I add all kinds of fresh herbs to my salads, to my Green Smoothies, to my slow cooker when cooking my meats. This is a great way to get healing properties every day.