It's not unusual to be scared of being in a train or plane crash. But is it unusual to be worried about being pulled from the wreckage in a state of undress, as you happened to be in the toilet at the time? I've had many a bad dream about this scenario, and whilst it seems that I have a high tolerance threshold for embarrassment in life, in death I'm much more conservative.

I once read a news story about a woman who was accidentally run over by a steam roller. As steam rollers move VERY slowly, perishing in this way is pretty embarrassing. You just have to check in with the Darwin awards – "honouring those who improve the species…by actually removing themselves from it" (www.darwinawards.com) – to see just how many people meet their maker as a result of unfathomable stupidity or in extremely embarrassing circumstances.

In fact, perusing the Darwin Awards has been a mistake. My fear of an embarrassing death has become a full-on phobia. Made worse recently by the prospect of dying of Swine Flu. I don't want to die (who does?) but when I do, I'd like to be blissfully unaware of the event and taken in my sleep aged 101, after over-exerting myself on the dance floor at a family wedding. Dying of Swine Flu is simply unromantic and tragic.

So, whilst of course I don't have any magic bullet remedies for the latest pandemic, let's take a look at what we can do from a nutritional perspective to help boost our immune systems. Having a strong immune system helps you to resist infection and respond better if you do succumb. Further, this is great general knowledge anyway – useful for battling everything from the common cold to more serious diseases, such as some cancers. In short, boosting your immune system actually has five major benefits:

1. Helps prevent premature aging (always a bonus!)

2. Fights off viruses and bacteria

3. Destroys many cancer cells as they are formed

4. Detoxifies your body, and

5. Protects you from exposure to chemicals and radiation

Before we move on to the top tips for boosting your immune system, bear in mind that there are a number of things that deplete the immune system. If several of these factor in your life, you need to either work out ways to eliminate them, or follow as many of the tips as possible to help off-set them.

Dietary and lifestyle factors that deplete the immune system include:

• Smoking

• Stress

• Exposure to pollution or radiation

• Exposure to carcinogenic chemicals (industrial or domestic)

• Drugs

• Food additives (e.g. colours/flavours/sweeteners)

• Excessive salt intake

• Excessive sugar intake

• High saturated fat intake

• Over or under eating

• Poor nutritional status (low vitamins, minerals or friendly bacteria)

• Existing infections (e.g. fungal infections such as Candida, or worms)

• Unhappiness

• Negativity

Moving on to the positive steps you can take, try and incorporate as many of these into your lifestyle as possible. Swine Flu or no Swine Flu, these steps will have far-reaching benefits both now and in the future.

Boost your immune system - top tips!

1. Exercise. It's well documented that exercise helps to boost the immune system, with both mental (stress relieving) and physical (lymph-draining) benefits. If you've previously been inactive, start out with some gentle walks, but ultimately aim to get some form of good physical activity every day. If you train athletically, have a look at last week's article online (Sports nutrition for Superheroes) and check out the importance of an antioxidant rich diet.

2. Eat antioxidant-rich foods

Antioxidants include vitamins A, C & E, the minerals selenium, zinc, iron, copper and manganese, and other nutrients such as lycopene, anthocyanidins, betacarotene and CoQ10. You'll get a good intake of all of these if you eat a wide variety of fruit and vegetables – aim for at least five servings a day. The darker the pigment of the fruit or vegetable, the higher the nutrient content tends to be – so for example berries, spinach and broccoli are more nutrient dense than iceberg lettuce or sweetcorn. Preferably eat them raw or lightly steamed as cooking tends to cause nutrient loss. Raw nuts/seeds, herbs, spices and rooibosch (Red Bush) tea are also extremely high in antioxidants.

3. Avoid nutrient robbers. Caffeine, alcohol, excess salt and artificial additives are all known as "nutrient robbers", depleting your body of nutrients rather than nurturing your system. When you eat or drink something, always have a think about what it's going to do to benefit your body. For example, drinking a diet soda may quench your thirst, but the artificial sweeteners and colourings will have to be detoxified by vitamins and minerals in your body, so ultimately you end up with a negative nutrient balance. In contrast, drinking water helps to flush toxins from your system, leaving a higher level of nutrients in your body able to do other jobs, such as boosting your immune system.

4. Consider supplementing friendly bacteria. Friendly bacteria in your digestive system (also known as "good bacteria" or "probiotics") pack a powerful immune-boosting punch! These are depleted by caffeine, alcohol, spicy food, refined sugar, infections, antibiotics, some other medications and the birth control pill. Friendly bacteria are found naturally in "live" yoghurts or cheeses, but a supplement is often more effective especially if you have taken antibiotics or are on the pill. Make sure you supplement a quality brand from a health food store and take them with food, but away from very hot food or drinks.

5. Replace bad fat with good fat. The bad, saturated, hydrogenated or trans fats found in many chips, baked goods, chocolate bars, full-fat dairy products, processed meats and fried foods directly deplete the immune system. On the other hand, good fats (omegas 3, 6 and 9) help to boost the immune system. These are found in fish (not fried!) especially oily fish, raw nuts (almonds, pecans, brazils, walnuts) seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, flax), avocado, olives and unheated oils such as olive/flax. Note that as nuts/avocados are calorie-dense, you need to keep portion sizes moderate. Also, when you cook with olive oil, don't heat it so high that it smokes (at which point the fat is now damaged) and never cook with flax/linseed oil over heat (fine for salad dressings.)

6. Detoxify your home. There's often not much you can do to avoid exhaust fumes and other environmental pollutants, but there's a huge amount you can do in your home. Switch cleaning product brands to a green brand such as Seventh Generation or Ecover. If you must use a chemical product (e.g. Clorox) then use wipes instead of sprays to prevent the chemicals becoming airborne. Avoid mainstream air-fresheners at all costs and use an environmentally friendly alternative such as AirScense (Down to Earth.)

7. Stay positive! Chronic high levels of stress are damaging so try and incorporate relaxing exercise and activities into your lifestyle. If you do find yourself going through an unavoidably stressful period, then make sure you ditch the "nutrient robbers" and cram your diet with immune-boosting fruit and veg.

The advice given in this article is not intended to replace medical advice, but to complement it. Always consult your GP if you have any health concerns. Catherine Burns is a fully qualified Nutritional Therapist. She can be contacted at clinicalnutrition@gmail.com