[Editor’s Note: Staying healthy can start with what you put into your mouth. By fueling your body with vitamins, antioxidants, and nutrient-dense foods, you’ll be setting yourself up for both short-term (fending off a cold or the flu) and long-term (reducing risk of chronic illness) health.]

Try to eat three to five of these “Super Blue Foods” daily. You will likely discover that these foods go far to boost your energy and immunity, and you’ll be less likely to turn to the sugary, fatty, and processed stuff that gives you the immediate (and fast-fleeting) “fix.”

1. Beans—all kinds: black beans, pinto beans, garbanzo beans, blackeyed peas, lentils
2. Greens—spinach, kale, chards, beet tops, fennel tops
3. Sweet potatoes—don’t confuse with yams.
4. Nuts—all kinds: almonds, peanuts, walnuts, sunflower seeds, Brazil nuts, cashews
5. Olive oil—green, extra-virgin is usually the best. Note that olive oil decomposes quickly, so buy no more than a month’s supply at a time.
6. Oats—slow-cook or Irish steel-cut are best.
7. Barley—either in soups, as a hot cereal, or ground in bread
8. Fruits—all kinds
9. Green or herbal teas
10. Turmeric—as a spice or a tea
11. Garlic—sometimes eaten pickled on Okinawa, garlic is one of nature’s most powerful natural medicines
12. Shiitake mushrooms—in soups, sauces, or stir fries, they contain more than 100 different compounds with immune-protecting properties
13. Goat’s milk—consumed by Sardinian shepherds, used sparingly in pastas, soups, and grated over vegetables, it is rich in zinc and selenium, which are essential for optimal immune system activity

Credit to The Blue Zones Newsletter.