Have you ever experienced the very frustrating phenomenon of getting sick when you finally slow down? Kids have that too! When the rush of the school term stops and suddenly their schedules relax, their immunity is more important than ever.
Plus, when kids are off school and spending more time in the ‘real world’; visiting family, coming into the office, and going on school holiday programmes, they’re spending less time in their school bubble and are exposed to different bugs and viruses (which they then bring home to us).
So, to make life easier and healthier, we’ve rounded up three ways to boost the whole family’s immunity and keep the kids busy with healthy recipes that are fun to make, and even more fun to eat!
A major, but lesser known, avenue that works to boost and strengthen our immune system is our gut health. We’ve written a whole blog on Gut Health and Immunity, you can read it here or jump straight into the recipes below.
All of these recipes have short preparation times so the kids won’t lose patience and it’s a great time to teach them about how our bodies work and why it’s so important to eat and drink healthy food and drink!
3 Immune-Boosting Recipes For The Whole Family
Gut-loving berry gummies
Supports:
Gelatin strengthens our gut lining and can prevent 'leaky gut'. Leaky gut triggers our immune reactions, causes inflammation, and leads to our immune system going into 'fight' mode which we want to avoid.
Ingredients:
3/4 cup of frozen berries
1/2 cup of coconut water
1.5 Tablespoon of gelatin we love the great lakes brand - the red container.
Sweetener if preferred. Maple syrup or raw honey work well.
Method:
Heat your frozen berries until defrosted but still cold.
Puree them in a blender then strain through a sieve to remove any seeds. This should leave you with 1/2 cup of berry juice.
Top tip: You can save the berry seeds to stir through coconut or greek yoghurt as a snack.
Heat the berry juice, coconut water, gelatin and sweetener in a saucepan over a low heat, whisking until fully combined.
Cook for another 5 minutes until simmering at the edges and slightly thickened. Do not boil!
Pour into moulds or a glass/ceramic or plastic container and pop in the freezer to set for 15-30 minutes depending on the size of your container or molds.
Top tip: If you don’t have a mold, use a plain glass container and cut into squares once set.
Homemade bone broth
Supports:
Bone broth is easily digested which makes it gentle on our digestive system. In addition to being soothing, it is great for bone health, skin and helps support the immune system by giving us much-needed minerals like calcium and magnesium.
Ingredients:
2 kg of bones e.g. organic chicken frames, beef or lamb bones (As a guide one chicken frame weighs about 1 kg)
1 large onion, chopped into quarters
1 bulb of garlic, split into cloves (skin on or off)
2 carrots, chopped into chunks
3 celery stalks and leaves, roughly chopped
1 fennel bulb or leek, roughly chopped (or add an extra onion)
Any other vegetable off-cuts you have
1 cup fresh parsley, chopped
2 Tbsp of apple cider vinegar (which helps the minerals leach from the bones)
2 bay leaves (optional)
1 tsp peppercorns (optional)
Salt and pepper
Method:
Put the bone and all other ingredients (except parsley) in a large pot.
Fill the pot with water so it just covers all ingredients.
Let the mixture sit for 30 minutes and then turn on the heat and bring to the boil.
Once boiling, skim off the film that rises to the top, and then reduce to a simmer.
Leave simmering for 4-8 hours. The longer you cook, the more flavour and nutrients will be released from the bones.
10 minutes before you turn the heat off, stir through the parsley and season to taste.
Time-saving tip: Put everything in a crockpot and cook slowly overnight.
Once the mixture has cooled, remove the vegetables and bones (squeezing out any extra liquid) and then strain through a sieve.
Pour into small containers (preferably glass) and store in the fridge or freezer to use as needed!
Kids might not get as excited about drinking bone broth as adults are so it can be added into soups or used instead of water to cook grains and rice!
Super-Immune Orangey Lemonade
Supports:
Essential vitamins (meaning we need it but we can't produce or hold onto it) vitamin C and D support aches and pains, cellular health, and immunity by boosting the production of antibody production.
Ingredients:
1 C water—room temperature or cold, still or sparkling
1 tsp BePure Super Boost C
0.5ml BePure Vit D Restore
Slice and a squeeze of fresh lemon and/or orange
Method:
Add Super Boost C and Vit D Restore to the cup of water. Stir until well mixed.
Add a squeeze and slice of lemon and orange (if you only have one, that’s fine!)
For best absorption, drink this on an empty stomach, around 30 minutes before eating.
For additional, year-round support we recommend taking:
- SuperBoost C, Immune Action, BePure Two: Suitable for ages 6 and up
- Zinc: Suitable for ages 9 and up; and
- Vitamin D: Suitable for ages 12 and up
What’s next?
- BePure's immunity range includes key nutrients that play a crucial role in our immunity along with gut nurturing nutritional support. Shop your Immunity products here.
- We've compiled 7 key tools to boost a strong immune system for you and your family. These include key nutrients that support a strong immune system, along with some easy lifestyle tips you can add into your daily routine to keep well and stay well year round.
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