I wanted to talk with you about strategies to help yourself be healthy right now using common foods, nutrition and vitamins.

I don’t sell any of these, and you can get them from your local health food store.

Getting plentiful vitamin D3 is important for great health. It is linked to 400 health things in the body, so no matter what your health issue may be, it could be helpful. I noticed the standard milk now has vitamin D3 instead of D2, which was less usable. It is found naturally in tiny salad shrimp (wild, not farmed), grass-fed pork lard, grass-fed and standard grain-fed milk, cod liver oil, and sardines. (Here is the government list of high Vitamin D food sources.)

Why not sunshine for vitamin D, you ask? The rays are so low that our bodies can’t make it between November and March, so we have to eat it! This is true in most northern states in the US.

Did you know that your digestive tract’s good bacteria directs immunity? It may direct immunity as much as 70-90%. Eating daily and regular fermented foods can raise good bacteria in the digestive tract, which may directly impact your health.

You could also use probiotic supplements, but they could be too high at first. Starting out with “billions” could cause toxin release with something called “die off”, as the bad bacteria is replaced with good bacteria.
It would be better to start with several different fermented foods slowly, raise up to daily or use at most meals, and then maybe use a probiotic at a low level, and work up to higher quantity. Good bacteria does not stay in the digestive tract with adults, so we need to use these daily.

Vitamins A, C and E, Zinc, and Selenium are also very important for mounting a strong immune response. (The acronym to remember this is “ZACES.”)
Vitamin A is found in butter and dairy (higher in grass-fed sources), many orange fruits and vegetables (squashes, apricots, pumpkin and sweet potato), pickled herring, tuna, chicken, beef liver (super high)!), tomato juice, black eyed peas*, baked beans*, eggs, cooked and raw spinach, peppers, summer squash (zucchini and yellow crookneck), . (Here is the government’s Vitamin A online list– see 2 pages down)

Vitamin C is found in uncooked fruits and vegetables, sauerkraut and cabbage-based fermented foods (even the water), raw sunflower seeds (soaked preferred), citrus, mild peppers, chilies, brussel sprouts, raw cauliflower, raw broccoli, spinach, peas, raw tomato and juice (you have to make), and strawberries. Vitamin C does not survive heat, so use these foods uncooked. (Here is the government’s Vitamin C online list– see 2 pages down)

Vitamin E is a natural oil found in avocado, sunflower seeds, nuts (dry roasted almonds, peanuts and its butter, hazelnuts) Safflower oil (not recommended), boiled spinach, cooked broccoli, kiwifruit, mango, raw tomato, raw spinach.

Vitamin E is also found in wheat and its germ, however a lot of these are indigestible without being soaked 9 hours before cooking due to something on the outside of the grain called phytic acid. This binds with our minerals and can wash them out of the body (leaving you with negative vitamins and minerals.) (Here is the government’s online Vitamin E list– see 2 pages down)

Don’t get any of these from vegetable oils – they are bad news! They are full of chemicals and already carcinogenic when you buy them, and then you try to eat and cook them further. (Olive oil (if its real) is the exception here.

The mineral Zinc is found in oysters (highest- off the chart), beef chuck roast & patties, pork loin, turkey, lima beans*, baked beans*, swiss cheese, yogurt, lobster, crab, cashews*, garbanzo beans*, pumpkin seeds* and other foods. Note that most of these are meat and dairy foods. (Here is the government’s online list of high Zinc foods.) Interestingly, zinc is one of the minerals used in super dilute doses in homeopathy.

Add to that moderate exercise, daily light exposure, and good quality sleep, and your immune system may thank you!

I hope this article helps you be at ease during this crazy time. All the best,

~ Diana Sproul

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And if you would like help on your own health journey, please contact me at ContactUs or 970-988-5413.

*Beans have to be soaked for then hours in plain water before cooking to make them digestible and allow the vitamins and minerals to be used by our bodies.Rinse after soaking then cook in new water.

*Nuts have to be soaked for 9-12 hours to make them digestible and allow the vitamins and minerals to be used by our bodies. Instructions: Add 2Tb salt per 4 cups nuts, with water to cover them. Wait 8-10 hours. Drain and eat them raw then, or toast them below 150F to keep enzymes alive, or lay them out in dry Colorado weather for 1-2 days until they crisp up again. (Don’t do this outside, where you announce “salad bar” to the squirrels!!)