how to boost immunity

Following on from this article, here are practical and effective methods for improving your immunity (wei qi). This will put you in a much more favourable position to ward off any viral invasion.

The main focus should be on building and conserving Kidney Yang and Stomach Fluids.
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Kidney Yang

Do

• Go to bed before 10pm. This allows the body to explore and the Channels to relax enough to move Wei Qi.
• Have a deep, restful and long sleep. This restores Kidney Yang.
• Sleep in a darkened room to ensure sound sleep.
• Eat adequate and nutritious meals and don’t skip them. Doing so forces your body to draw upon Kidney Yang - not a good idea - instead of readily available energy from food.
•  Meditating daily so that Kidney Yang is not activated when it doesn’t need to be.
• Spend time in nature 

Don’t

• Consume foods, raw, or sticky foods (gluten, sugar, milk and cheese). We may crave these comfort foods but our digestive system is easily compromised by their overconsumption. This will in turn deplete Kidney Yang since the gut will require more warming qi to move and activate it.
• Spend too much time on electronic screens as this activates and eventually depletes wei qi.
• Consume too many stimulants that artificially stimulate Kidney Yang such as coffee, chocolate, hot spices, garlic, onion, sugar and alcohol. All these foods deplete Kidney Yang by activating it. This in turn prevents the storage of Kidney Yang for when it is really needed. Kidney yang is like your energy savings account, only to be used when necessary. Most of the energy should be derived from the digestion of foods and drinks.

 

Stomach Fluids

Do
• Ensure deep hydration. This comes from wet-cooked foods, not just water and definitely not from juices or caffeinated products.
• Eat wet breakfasts, like congee and porridges
• Eat soups, stews, casseroles, broths.
• Include saturated fat in the diet (eggs, butter, fish, animal fat).
• Go to bed early. Conserves Kidney Yang which fuels digestion.
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Don’t
• Consume dehydrating foods such as - coffee, chocolate, hot spices, garlic, onion, sugar and alcohol and all carbonated (fizzy) fluids.
• Consume foods that cause inflammation (GM modified foods, pesticides and known allergens).
• Distract yourself whilst eating such as reading the news, being preoccupied with stressful thoughts. "Rest to digest".

Next article is about foods for boosting immunity (wei qi), here