Archive: Around Town

Now that we all know about swine flu, is it time to start walking around with face masks and wiping every surface we touch? You may be worried but you should really consider if your immune system is worried. A strong immune system is essential at fighting off infection, disease, stress, etc. Now may be the time to strengthen your immune system which is all about going on the offense, defense, or both.

Go on the offense by giving your body what it needs nutritionally for a healthy immune system. Most people already know that antioxidants are necessary for a strong immune system: vitamins C, A, E, and beta-carotene. Antioxidants are your body's natural defense against free radicals. Free radicals are molecules that are missing or possess an extra electron and because of this they steal electrons from your tissues. They essentially scramble the structure of proteins, fats, and DNA/RNA. Get your antioxidants through a good variety of fruits and green vegetables.

In addition to making sure you are eating antioxidant-rich foods, your body needs cholesterol in order to maintain a healthy immune system. Dietary cholesterol is essential for a strong immune system. Healthy dietary cholesterol can be found in cage-free eggs, real butter, and antibiotic/hormone-free meats.

 

Thymosins are hormones that control the immune system. Research has shown that thymosins boosted the immune systems in a group of elderly people who could not fight off a case of vaccine-induced flu. Amino-acid building blocks for thymosin can be found in any good-quality protein: eggs, beef, fish, pork, and poultry.

 

The defensive approach is probably the more effective short-term approach, though. The first thing you can do right now is to eliminate sugar. Eliminating simple sugars from your diet is essential for having as strong an immune system as possible. One teaspoon of sugar has been shown to suppress the immune system for up to six hours.

 

The second defensive approach you need to make is to reduce stress. Chronic stressors can be emotional, relational, environmental, electromagnetic, nutritional, chemical, or physiological. The bottom line is that a stressor is any event, emotion, situation, or state that activates a sympathetic nervous system "fight or flight" response. Chronic stress suppresses the immune system by keeping cortisol levels elevated, otherwise known as the stress hormone. The immune system is specifically affected when cortisol decreases the intensity of the inflammatory response by decreasing both the number of white blood cells and the secretion of inflammatory chemicals from tissues. Antioxidant supplementation (vitamins) has shown success at managing cortisol levels. Also, the following vitamins are needed for white blood cell production: vitamin B12, folic acid, iron, and vitamin C for iron uptake.

 

Consider also that observations of the elderly have found that those with strong family and neighborhood support systems appeared to be able to fight off infections and recover from illness better than those who were socially isolated. It is now believed that people who are alone release more cortisol into their bodies. Now there's a good reason for adopting an SPCA pet.

 

In the end, it's all about lifestyle change. The most effective way of bolstering your immune system is to hydrate sufficiently, eat properly, and ensure adequate sleep. Stay healthy and may the swine flu not find you.

 

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