I Asked 2 Doctors How To 'Boost' Your Immune System, And They Both Said The Same Thing

<div><img src="https://img.huffingtonpost.com/asset/68e3e25714000033f45c6fb0.jpg?ops=scalefit_630_noupscale" alt="Person running" data-caption="Person running" data-credit-link-back="" data-credit="Jenny Hill via Unsplash" />Person running</div><div class="content-list-component text"><p>Though the NHS recommends most adults consider <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/nhs-vitamin-advice-winter_uk_66deb37ce4b05e7aac7c431a">taking vitamin D until around March</a> as daylight hours shrink, <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/do-supplements-work-immune-system-colds_uk_6718c9eae4b0ede6b2bfafe8">the service also noted</a>: “There’s little evidence that supplements such as vitamin C, echinacea or garlic prevent colds or help you get better more quickly.”</p><p>That’s not to say that eating a balanced diet, <a href="https://www.health.harvard.edu/nutrition/myths-and-truths-about-vitamin-c" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">including getting enough vitamin C</a>, isn’t key to <em>supporting</em> your immune system: it is.</p><p>It’s just <a href="https://www.livescience.com/coronavirus-vitamin-c-myth.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">unlikely to provide the short-term<em> “boost”</em></a> many people who begin taking the supplement in autumn hope it will.</p><p>So what does help to build a strong immune system? I asked two doctors whose answers had a surprising amount in common.</p><h2><strong>Ditch the idea of short-term immune “boosts” </strong></h2><p>Speaking to HuffPost UK,<a href="https://onlinedoctor.asda.com/uk/dr-crystal-wyllie.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">