Boost your immune system with these natural immune system supplements
If you’ve ever spent any serious time investigating the mysterious world of anti aging you no doubt would have come across the theory that aging is itself just a disease. Admittedly, a very complicated and multi faceted disease but a disease never the less!

The theory goes that an overall improvement in health throughout the centuries has increased life expectancy from a very short lifespan of about 20 to 30  years (just long enough to allow for procreation) to roughly, at least in the Western hemisphere, approximately 70 years. Because, in terms of human development, most of the progress with regard to life expectancy has occurred over the last hundred years the argument goes that aging couldn’t have evolved genetically else how is it possible we can expect to live much longer today!

The fact is, vaccines, antibiotics, clean water and other major developments mean we can all live longer and much healthier lives than our ancestors. Imagine the possibilities of curing the cancers, diabetes and heart diseases of this world! Will we not see another leap in the average life expectancy?

Well the answer is probably yes but that doesn’t mean we won’t be challenged by a whole new breed of diseases. The point is, that if our longevity is a direct consequence of our ability (or not) to fight disease then shouldn’t we be doing all we can to prevent it?

One sure method is to boost your immune system, the supreme killer of infectious diseases and tumour cells. By building up the immune system we keep disease at bay and as a direct consequence increase our chances of living longer.

But what exactly is the immune system? Simply put, the immune system is a defense mechanism built from a complex set of organs, white blood cells and specialized molecules to hunt down and destroy viruses, bacteria, microbes and parasites that if left unchecked would do untold damage to the body. Capable of making more than 100 billion types of antibodies, you only have to consider what happens when an organism dies to appreciate the power of the immune system!

The immune system is obviously something we need to consistently build up if we don’t want to suffer the ravages of time!

How to Strengthen the Immune System

When considering how to strengthen the immune system, what better place to start than our diet? It is a known fact that in parts of the world where healthy, nutritious foods are in short supply, people frequently suffer poor immune systems. The lack of even one vital nutrient can cause problems with the immune system and many studies have shown this to be true. In one such study, researchers at Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts, showed that a lack of vitamin B6 caused the disease fighting white blood cell count to plummet. When the people involved in the study were allowed to eat foods rich in B6 their white blood cell count was soon restored.

In another study in Newfoundland, Canada, scientists found that people who consumed the most of a variety of nutrients including beta-carotene, Vitamin E and C produced greater numbers of immune cells. The increased levels of anti-oxidants found in these types of diet provide an an added advantage because all cells including those belonging to the immune system are protected from free radical attack.

Researchers from the University of Arizona in Tucson found that beta-carotene (good sources are carrots, sweet potatoes and spinach) is highly important for producing virus killing lymphocytes and helps significantly boost immunity.

Both vitamin C and vitamin E help boost the immune system in their own unique way. Vitamin C (good sources are citrus fruits, cantaloupe, brussel sprouts, broccoli and radishes) is used to produce interferon, a protein that helps destroy viruses and may help to increase levels of a compound shown to keep the immune system strong called glutathione (more on this later). The body uses Vitamin E (good sources are vegetable cooking oils, wheat germ and sunflower seeds) to produce an immune protein called interleukin-2. Interleukin-2 has been shown to fight everything from bacteria and viruses to cancer cells.

It should be clear that eating the right foods is important to maintaining a strong immune system. But, equally important is making sure we eat less of the wrong foods. A high fat diet, typical of a diet based on processed food contributes to aging the immune system. This may be because the production of cell damaging free radicals increases. There is scientific evidence to show that reduction of fat intake results in an increase of immune cell activity. In fact, for every percentage decrease in fat consumption there is a similar increase in immune cell activity.

How else can we help the immune System?

Even though the food you eat should probably be your main consideration when discussing how to boost your immune system, there are other factors we should be aware of. The immune system can actually be split into two parts, the non specific and the specific.

The Non Specific Immune System

The non specific part of the immune system attacks just about everything it comes into contact with. For example, your skin is a barrier against all sorts of bacteria. It secretes sweat and oil to prevents the growth of harmful bacteria. This gives us yet another reason why exercise is so good for us. Sweat and oil are acidic, so what better way to raise acidity levels than a vigorous workout!
Our modern inclination for processed foods is one reason we have forgotten how to chew. Saliva not only helps digestion but it also contains an important enzyme that destroys bacteria. Failing to chew properly makes more work for the stomach, another key component of the non specific immune system.

One vital component of the non specific immune system is our nose. It’s unfortunate but many people have forgotten how to breath and air is often taken in via the mouth. This spells trouble in a couple of ways. The nose ensures warm humidified air enters the lungs. It is the main organ for filtering out particles during inhalation and it provides a first line of defense for the immune system by bringing the inhaled air into contact with mucous-coated membranes containing immunoglobulin A (IgA). But, there is another important reason behind why we should be breathing through the nose. A key to anti aging is lies in the nasal pharynx. It is a rich source of nitric oxide and the flow of air through the nose allows it to pass into the body causing dilation of the arteries allowing blood to flow more freely. Good circulation is essential for young looking skin and a lack of nitric oxide causes premature aging.

The Specific Immune System

The specific part of the immune system is extremely selective in nature. Depending on the type of invader, it triggers specific antibodies designed to kill only that invader. Once it has defeated a germ it remembers how to kill it, should it experience it again.

A diet rich in plant foods with plenty of nutrients is the best way to make sure this part of the immune system does its work effectively. However, more recent discoveries regarding the immune system have shown how supplementation can help.

For example, getting enough Vitamin E in our diets to meet the recommended daily value is extremely difficult from foods alone. One reason some Doctors recommend taking Vitamin E supplements!

Clinical studies and complementary laboratory experiments have also shown that aging is associated with a progressive decrease in plasma cysteine and intracellular glutathione concentrations. This decrease leads to age-related oxidative stress.

Glutathione, is an important immune system compound and research over the past quarter century has shown that the limiting factor for our body’s ability to make glutathione, is the availability of cysteine in our diet. Although, you can eat cysteine in pill and powder form it does little to raise glutathione levels. This is because the cysteine is oxidised in the digestive system and never makes it to the cells that need it. Healthy sources of cysteine are red peppers, garlic, onions, broccoli, brussel sprouts, oats, granola and wheat germ.
 


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