Orange juice “brings a sweet and tangy flavor to many recipes and provides a variety of nutrients to help maintain good health throughout the year,” says registered dietitian Kim Galeaz, coauthor of 4 Weeks to Maximum Immunity.

She developed today’s super-easy breakfast recipe to help readers maintain a healthy immune system.

All of the ingredients should be available at a well-stocked natural and organic food store. Enjoy!

I can’t go anywhere without seeing signs for flu shots—a reminder that it’s time to start boosting our immunity.

“Filling your grocery cart with nutritious foods and beverages from all the food groups will provide your body with essential vitamins and nutrients to help support a healthy immune system,” says registered dietitian Kim Galeaz, coauthor of 4 Weeks to Maximum Immunity.

Galeaz offers the following tips for maximizing nutrients when visiting your local natural and organic food store:

Fall may have arrived, but we’re going to endure triple-digit temperatures in Southern California next week.

While water is the best way to stay hydrated, blueberry juice provides a special antioxidant-rich treat.

Today’s recipe adds a blueberry twist to traditional limeade. All of the ingredients should be available at a well-stocked natural and organic food store.

Note: For cocktail hour, check out our previously posted recipe for Organic Blueberry Mojitos.

Kidney stones develop when urine becomes too concentrated, causing minerals and other chemicals to bind together. Over time, these crystals combine and form a stone.

If you’ve ever suffered from painful kidney stones, your doctor has undoubtedly recommended dietary and lifestyle changes, including a prescription for potassium citrate, which makes urine less acidic. Some people, however, simply cannot tolerate the drug because of its gastrointestinal side effects, notes Clarita Odvina, MD, an assistant professor of internal medicine and the study’s lead author. In these cases, dietary sources of citrate, such as orange juice, may be an effective alternative to drugs.

All citrus juices contain citrate, a form of citric acid that gives citrus fruits their sour taste. But when researchers compared orange juice and lemonade, which have comparable citrate contents, they found orange juice boosted the levels of citrate in the urine and reduced the crystallization of uric acid and calcium oxalate (the “main ingredient” in kidney stones). Lemonade failed to increase levels of citrate—an important acid neutralizer and inhibitor of kidney stone formation.

If you’re a biochemistry geek, here’s how it works: The citrate in orange and grapefruit juice is accompanied by a potassium ion. The citrate in lemonade and cranberry juice is accompanied by a hydrogen ion. Hydrogen ions—but not potassium ions—counteract the beneficial effects of high citrate content.

So, the next time you head to your local natural and organic food store, grab a carton of freshly squeezed organic orange juice—or juice some organic oranges. Your kidneys will thank you!