Immune Support: A Basic Approach

Immune Support: A Basic Approach
Well, it is officially November! Is anyone else trying to be more on top of vitamin intake, cleanliness, and all the extra Thieves?
 Immune support has been on everyone's radar more this year than ever. Now that we are in the middle of fall and approaching winter, we are definitely on high alert. As busy as life is, we want to make sure we are keeping our routine simple, yet highly effective. Consistent use of high quality products and oils is key. 
I say this every year, and I am going to say it again. Just because you are using essential oils, doesn't mean you will not get sick. Essential oils and high quality supplements are tools that can be incorporated into your immune system support. My family has notice that if we do get sick,  we don't get hit has hard, symptoms don't linger, and in the cases that we do require medication, our oils come in handy to help our overt symptoms while the medication does it's work! 

We want a strong immune system to help prevent frequent illness and to make sure our body is strong and ready to fight when we do encounter a bug. Today, I am going to break some simple routines down for you. You will see a routine for the adults, the kiddos, and the babes! You can most definitely do more than what I list, but these are tools you may want to take a peek at if you are looking at simple routines. 

THE ADULTS
A healthy gut does a lot for someone's immune system. This time of year, our gut needs all the help it can get as we overindulge and probably consume more sugar that we usually do. Life 9 Probiotic is the PERFECT addition to your bedtime routine. It contains 17 billion live cultures for 9 beneficial bacteria strains. Replenishing the good bacteria after a long day is critical in your daily immune boosting routine. 


I could tell you to beef up on Vitamin C, and D...and so on...OR I can tell you to save your money on the individual supplements and support your body with a FANTASTIC full-spectrum multi-vitamin such as MASTER FORMULA. Initially, I turned my head at the price BUT after adding up the individual bottles of vitamins I was purchasing, this was saving me money and I was get so much more! Master formula contains your prebiotics, 100 % of your daily Vitamin C and D3. Vitamin K, Vitamin E, Vitamin A, Thiamin from B1, Niacin ( B3), Vitamin B6, Vitamin B12, Biotin, Panthothenic Acid (B5), Iron, Magnesium, Zinc (100%) , Manganese, Copper, Selenium, Molybdenum, Kelp....I could go ON and ON but it would be easier for you to check out the ingredients and daily values, here. 

Master Formula with Life 9 is gold! I forgot to mention that Master Formula contains prebiotics. Those are a perfect match for Life 9. That routine can get delivered to your doorstep at the same time every month for free now! Use rewards points to cash in for some oils :) 

Inner Defense is pretty much your immunity roller in a capsule! If you aren't one to roll oils on your feet and down your spine, this is for you! You can take this as a daily immune boosting supplement OR take as needed when you are feeling under the weather. If you are not well, you can take up to five in a day but please make sure you are taking your probiotic at night to replenish all that good bacteria. We always go into the season with a bottle or two of Inner Defense on hand.

So, what do you think? Is that basic enough for ya? I also recommend Ningxia Red for an extra shot of antioxidants. We all could use an extra dose of that these days. 

Below, you will find a simple routine you can incorporate into your routine for the kiddos! Some of my favorite recipes are included. 
Ningxia Red and MightyPro Pre+Probiotic are key in my kid's routine. I like to make sure they are getting all the vitamins and minerals they could be missing in their diet and maintain a healthy gut with MightyPro at night. 

While we use caution with babies and essential oils, when the appropriate dilution ratios and safety is taken into consideration, they can gradually be worked into a routine for our little ones. 

Keeping the routines basic and simple, make it easier on yourself to be consistent in supporting your family's immunity. I hope you found the above information helpful! 

Do supplements make your head spin?

Do supplements make your head spin?

Supplements, Supplement, Supplements….

We post about all these phenomenal supplements and they all sound fabulous, but do you need all of them? How do I take them? Can I take too much? These are some common questions asked when wanting to start a supplement routine. However, with all the options, it can be so overwhelming!

Everything I am about to write is based on personal experience and my own research. I AM NOT A DOCTOR!

I am always going to tell you that you want a plant-based or whole food-based supplement. This allows your body to absorb the nutrients the way it was supposed to. I like to use our supplement Illumineyes as an example. Rather than an isolate or synthetic form of Vitamin A, this supplement contains purple carrot. These carrots contain beta carotene which convert to Vitamin A as we consume the supplement. This Vitamin A helps with the eyes ability to adjust to various light and help the eye to process it. (just one of the ingredients in that supplement).  I saw the difference with a food-based supplement vs. prescription iron meds. I had much better luck with the whole food-based supplement and less side effects.

Moving on…

You do not want to take a supplement just because it looks good! You want to do your research and take what your body needs. For instance, if I am not deficient in B vitamins, I am not going to take Super B. One, because I have B a multi vitamin (Master Formula) that contains these vitamins, and two, since I am not deficient, I do not need to load up on them. As you start to develop a supplement plan, you need to ask yourself some questions.

  1. What are you trying to target?
  2. Are you aware of any deficiencies?
  3. What does your family history tell you?
  4. Do you have any targeted areas of support that need addressing now? 

I heard Dr. Lindsey Elmore speak and she enforced a Core 4. Consider a CORE 4 based on your needs. Keep in mind, you may not take some of our supplements every day. For instance, I use Alkalime as needed, when I have an unsettled stomach, heartburn, or indigestion. Someone who suffers from chronic GI issues may take this as a daily supplement.

For example, here is what my plan looks like:

Foundational Support: Master Formula. If you want to remove multiple bottles of supplements from your countertop, go with this guy. I could write an entire blog post on how fabulous this supplement is but today, we will stick with foundational support.

Gut: Life9 Probiotic

Targeted Support: Olive Essentials (family history or cardiovascular and neurological issues.)

Those three are my constants! My fourth tends to change based on my current needs. If I feel like I need hormonal support, I will choose a supplement to support those issues. If I am doing the Whole 30 or looking to support a diet change, I reach for Juvatone. Right now, I am switching my fourth item to AgilEase. I have been running consistently and this is just what my body needs.

You may only have 2 or 3 Core supplements that you stick to. You know your body and you need to listen to it. Please look at the ingredients on your supplements. Often times, ingredients can overlap.

If someone was looking to support the immune system, their core routine may look like:

Ningxia, Life 9, and Inner Defense, Vitamin D or C

If someone was looking for hormonal support their core routine may look like:

PD 80/20, Ningxia, Master Formula, and Life 9

If someone is struggling with inflammation, their core routine may look like:

Sulfurzyme, AgilEase, and CBD oil

(All of the above are just examples!)

When to take your supplements? 

Your dosage and timing should be on the bottle. Life9, should always be taken at night, an hour after eating. If you are taking an enzyme, you will take that an hour before your meal. Depending on why you are taking your enzyme, this may be a once a day thing, before a couple of meals a day, or an as needed when you indulge thing. Everything else can be worked into your day based on the directions on the bottle.

I hope this write up helped to guide you and was not too overwhelming. Please let me know if you have any questions!!

I also HIGHLY recommend The Supplement Desk Reference by Jen O’Sullivan.