Seasonal Supplements | 5 Must-Have Supplements For Winter

Winter is coming! This means we need to stock up on the tissues and cough syrup as cold season is almost upon us.

Fear not, these top 5 winter supplements will aim to help you boost your immune system in order to prevent you from catching the sniffles this winter...as well as keeping off the extra pounds!

#1 Vitamin C

Vitamin C is another key supplement for the winter, as it protects your body’s cells, ensuring they remain healthy. It also is involved in the production of collagen, which is responsible for the health and wellbeing of tissues and organs such as the skin, bones and blood vessels.

Vitamin C has also been shown to help the symptoms of the common cold, which makes it a great winter supplement as it can both help to prevent you from getting a cold in the first place, and help towards getting rid of it if you do happen to get one! Some other benefits include clearer skin, lowering the risk of CVD and lowering cholesterol.

You can read more on vitamin C and its benefits here.

Vitamin C can be taken in a number of different forms, from tablets to powders. Vitamin C powder is one of the cheapest ways to up your vitamin C intake!

Dosage: 500mgCost: 1p per serving

#2 Vitamin D

Vitamin D is described by many as being the ultimate supplement. Whilst we generally get most of it from sunlight, in winter this can be an issue. Due to the cold weather, we won’t be spending much time outdoors and when we due, we will be wrapped up, covering our skin.

This means that our bodies cannot absorb as much as we require.

They key benefit of vitamin D is its ability to help boost your immune system. It aims to work by ensuring that all of your vital organs are working efficiently and effectively. This means it is great at fighting off, or preventing, a common cold. Studies have found that children who took 1,200 UI of vitamin D per day for 4 months during the winter had a reduced risk of influenza by 40%.

Find out more on vitamin D and its benefits.Vitamin D can be taken as a standalone supplement, such as vitamin D3 tablets, which give you an extra boost of vitamin D to really aid your immune system.Dosage: 1 tablet per dayCost: 3p per tablet

Vitamin D can also be taken in the form of multivitamins. These have lower quantities of vitamin D than the standalone tablets, but also contain lots of other vitamins to help you through the winter.

Dosage: 1 tablet per dayCost: 3p per tablet

#3 ZMA

ZMA tablets can be a brilliant winter supplement, consisting of zinc, magnesium and vitamin B6.

? Magnesium

:Works to help to maintain electrolyte balance and contribute to healthy bones and teeth, the normal functioning of the nervous system and muscle function, normal protein synthesis and psychological function - in addition to potentially reducing tiredness and fatigue.

? Zinc

: Works to help boost the immune system and make sure it is working properly as well as your macro nutrient metabolism. Zinc can contribute to the maintenance of normal skin/hair/nails and normal bones. Furthermore, it ensures you have normal cognitive function and could protect cells from oxidative stress.

? Vitamin B6

: Adds to the mix by contributing to normal protein and glycogen metabolism, normal psychological function normal function of the immune system, and to normal energy-yielding metabolism.

Dosage: 3 capsules for men, 2 for womenCost: 10p per capsule

#4 Green Tea Extract

Whilst this doesn’t particularly help to boost your immune system, it is great to take in the winter (or any time of year) for a number of reasons.

Green tea can help with fat loss/prevention of fat accumulation. We all like to over indulge a little over the festive period, so green tea’s fat burning properties are perfect for keeping off some of those extra pounds.

Green tea can also help to curb your appetite, which makes it great when you have cravings and can prevent you from going on a binge; something which we are more likely to do in the winter!

The extract can be taken in several forms, from tablets to powders. There are also more concentrated powers for those who want to take a higher daily dose.

Dosage: 1 tablet per dayCost: 3p per tablet

#5 Vitamin A

Vitamin A is another supplement which can help boost your immune system, making it great for the cold winter months; however it can often be ignored.

Vitamin A can be found in cod liver oil and plays a big part in preventing and fighting off infections. This is because it influences the activity of T and B lymphocytes (white blood cells) which help especially when fighting off illnesses.

It can be most commonly found in multivitamin supplements and is rarely found as a standalone product. Multivitamins are great, since they can help you to ensure that you reach your daily intake for a number of vitamins and minerals, rather than just one specific type. Our Daily Vitamins are an affordable way of ensuring you get in all the vitamins you require each day.

Dosage: 1 tablet per dayCost: 3p per table

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