Dr. Fauci Says Sleep, a Good Diet, and Less Stress Are the Best Ways to Improve Your Immune System

Chances are your searches for “How to boost my immune system?” have increased over the recent months and weeks as we continue to navigate the coronavirus pandemic and enter cold and flu season, and rightfully so. Good thing Anthony Fauci, MD, director of the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases, shared tips you can implement into your daily routine to strengthen your immune system and hopefully ward off the coronavirus.

In an interview with Business Insider, Dr. Fauci said, “Sometimes people, when they don’t get out in the sun a lot, they’re deficient in vitamin D.” He went on to explain that research has shown that those with low levels of vitamin D “have more of a propensity to get infected when there are infections around.” Dr. Fauci also made one thing clear: taking numerous multivitamins and herbs “really doesn’t boost immunity.”

To get your immune system to functional optimally, Dr. Fauci instead recommends getting enough sleep — most adults need at least seven hours of sleep each night — following a good diet (choose one you enjoy!), and trying to avoid and alleviate stress as it can negatively impact your immune system. “That is much more healthy living than giving yourself supplements of anything,” he said.

You can start implementing these three tips today by getting into bed a little earlier than normal, making sure your meals contain nutritious foods, and using tools like meditation, journaling, yoga, exercise, and talking to loved ones or a professional mental health expert to reduce any stress you may be experiencing.