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Immune System Boosters: These Are The Must-Have Food Supplements For The Cold Season

Especially in winter, the immune system has to defend itself against many viruses and bacteria. You can support it by taking certain vitamins and nutrients. We explain which ones are important.

Boost your immune system: These supplements can help

Even if many people believe that they eat a balanced diet, deficiency symptoms occur again and again.
The stresses of everyday life can make it difficult to get all the nutrients you need.

In order to still provide the body with the most important nutrients, supplements can be used, i.e. food supplements that can be bought in the form of tablets, drops or powders, for example.

The 5 must-have supplements for the winter

Here we present 5 must-have supplements that everyone should have on their screens, especially in winter.
Please consider: However, supplements cannot replace a healthy and balanced diet.

Vitamin D

As the days get shorter and darker, many people become vitamin D deficient. Vitamin D is mainly absorbed from the sun. Only a few foods contain vitamin D. These include, for example, oily fish or liver. Therefore, vitamin D supplementation is highly recommended.

The German Society for Nutrition (DGE) recommends a dose of 800 IU (= International Unit) per day, which corresponds to 20 micrograms of vitamin D. Studies show that adults should even better consume 1500 to 2000 IU daily.
Studies from 2020 show that dosages of 10,000 IU per day are even recommended for risk patients to prevent influenza and corona infections.

Omega 3

The most important omega-3 fatty acids for the body are ALA, EPA and DHA. EPA and DHA in particular have a health-promoting effect. In our diet, however, there is always an undersupply of omega-3.

A study shows that EPA and DHA help the body fight inflammation. The study authors recommend supplementing with 250 milligrams of EPA and DHA per day.

Cardiovascular diseases are still the number one cause of death in Germany. Omega-3 supplements can lower blood pressure and prevent heart disease. The DGE recommends eating fish once or twice a week – once fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel or herring. For example, 100 grams of herring already provide 3000 milligrams of EPA and DHA.

magnesium

In addition to muscle cramps, a magnesium deficiency can lead to nausea, loss of appetite and exhaustion and even cardiovascular problems.

The reason for this is not only the lack of consumption of magnesium suppliers such as nuts and leafy vegetables, but also regular alcohol consumption.

Above all, it is important that the magnesium is taken in the correct form – for example as magnesium citrate or aspartate, since these compounds have a higher availability for the body than magnesium oxide, which can usually be found in discount stores or in drugstores.

zinc

Probably the best-known function of zinc is to improve the immune system. Zinc acts as a cofactor in enzyme and protein formation and is therefore an important part of the immune system.

According to a 2017 study, zinc deficiency plays a role in 16 percent of lower respiratory tract infections.

Zinc is mainly found in meat, fish, grains, oatmeal and grain germ, with animal zinc being more readily available than vegetable zinc. The DGE recommends a dosage of 15 milligrams per day.

vitamin C

Vitamin C is found in apples, citrus fruits such as lemons or grapefruits, cabbage vegetables, peppers and potatoes, among other things. A lack of vitamin C quickly leads to a weakened immune system, so you should definitely prevent a deficiency.

A study from 2020 shows that supplementing two to eight grams of vitamin C per day has advantages in the treatment of respiratory infections such as COVID-19 and can, for example, slow down critical courses.
The DGE recommends 100 milligrams of vitamin C per day. An apple and a kiwi already provide 150 milligrams. So the saying “An apple a day keeps the doctor away” isn’t all that wrong.

Conclusion: A balanced diet and supplementary supplements are crucial

In order to stay healthy, it is particularly important to eat a balanced and healthy diet. Nevertheless, in the current time it can only be advantageous to supplement your diet with individual supplements and to support your immune system. So you are well prepared even in times of cold waves.

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Dietary Supplements – Useful, Unnecessary or Even Questionable?

The number of dietary supplements available in the drugstore is almost unmanageable – but what exactly is a dietary supplement supposed to do? And can she even do that?

When you look at the shelves of a drugstore or at the advertising of the manufacturers of dietary supplements, you might think that we are all completely undersupplied. According to a survey by consumer advice centers, every third person questioned actually takes food supplements: a little vitamin C for a cold, magnesium for the muscles after exercise, cranberry pills for bladder infections…

It is particularly common for young adults under the age of 29 to use dietary supplements. And around half of those surveyed believe in the health-promoting effects. But does this belief have any basis at all, do dietary supplements really make sense?

What are dietary supplements?

Dietary supplements (NEM) are mostly artificial (food) products that are intended to supplement normal nutrition and that can be bought as tablets, capsules, drops or powders. They contain concentrated nutrients or other substances with a nutritional or physiological effect. These can be vitamins, minerals, trace elements, amino acids, roughage, but also plants or herbal extracts – such as cranberry or aronia extract.

Dietary supplement products are legally classified as “food”, but manufacturers must label them as “nutritional supplements”. You must also provide a recommended daily dose and provide the product with a warning not to exceed this amount.

While dietary supplements used to be advertised mainly on coffee trips, they can now be bought almost everywhere: in supermarkets, drugstores, pharmacies or on the Internet, whether they make sense or not.

Subtle advertising promises for dietary supplements

Since the so-called Health Claims Ordinance (BMEL), manufacturers of dietary supplements are not allowed to simply advertise with health-related claims. With the exception of herbal ingredients, the advertising promises must first be submitted to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and scientifically examined.

So far, about 250 such statements for food supplements have been classified as scientifically verifiable. The majority are statements about vitamins and minerals: For example, manufacturers who add a certain amount are allowed to advertise that vitamin C contributes to the normal functioning of the immune system or that calcium is necessary for the maintenance of normal bones (see consumer advice center).

However, you may not advertise that you want to eliminate, alleviate or prevent diseases. Only statements like “reduces the risk of…” are allowed. And statements for which no evidence could be provided are forbidden.

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