Top nutrients that boost your immune
system
So you learned how a strong immune system is important in the management of sickle
cell disease. Well when it comes to diet & nutrition,it takes much more
than an apple a day to keep the doctor away. It turns out that eating some
pretty surprising nutrients will help keep your immune system on guard.
Hold on;
let’s go back to the beginning for a minute. On the whole, your immune system
does a remarkable job of defending you against disease-causing microorganisms.
But sometimes it fails very easily, especially when you have a condition such
as sickle cell disease: A germ invades successfully and makes you sick. The
idea of boosting your immunity is enticing, but the ability to do so has proved
elusive for several reasons. The immune system is precisely that — a system,
not a single entity. To function well, it requires balance and harmony. So is
it possible to intervene in this process and make your immune system stronger?
What if you improve your diet? Take certain vitamins or herbal preparations?
Make other lifestyle changes in the hope of producing a near-perfect immune
response?
Your first
line of defense is to choose a healthy lifestyle. Following general good-health
guidelines is the single best step you can take toward keeping your immune
system strong and healthy. Every part of your body, including your immune
system, functions better when protected from environmental assaults and
bolstered by healthy-living strategies such as these:
·
Don’t
smoke.
·
Eat
a diet high in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, and low in saturated fat.
·
Exercise
regularly.
·
Maintain
a healthy weight.
·
Control
your blood pressure.
·
Avoid
alcohol.
·
Get
adequate sleep.
·
Take
steps to avoid infection, such as washing your hands frequently and cooking
meats thoroughly.
·
Get
regular medical screening tests for people in your age group and risk category.
Like any
fighting force, the immune system army marches on its stomach. Immune system warriors
need good, regular nourishment –yeah, here’s where the diet part comes in. You
can ensure that your body and immunity run smoothly by rounding out your plate
with plenty of colorful servings of fruits and veggies, plus 8 to 10 glasses of
water a day, at the very least.There is some evidence that various
micronutrient deficiencies — for example, deficiencies of zinc, selenium, iron,
copper, folic acid, and vitamins A, B6, C, and E — alter immune responses in
animals.
So what can
you do? If you suspect your diet is not providing you with all your
micronutrient needs — maybe you don’t like vegetables or you choose white bread
over whole grains — taking a daily multivitamin and mineral supplement brings
health benefits of many types, beyond any possibly beneficial effects on the
immune system. Taking mega-doses of a single vitamin does not. More is not
necessarily better. Researchers are investigating the immune boosting potential
of a number of different nutrients, such as:
a) Vitamin
A
For
vitamin A, go colorful. Foods that are high in colorful compounds called
carotenoids — carrots, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, cantaloupe and squash — are all
great options. The body turns these carotenoids into vitamin A, and they have
an antioxidant effect to help strengthen the immune system against infection.Experts
have long known that vitamin A plays a role in infection and maintaining
mucosal surfaces. Vitamin A deficiency is associated with impaired immunity and
increased risk of infectious disease.
b) Vitamin
B2
There
is some evidence that vitamin B2 enhances resistance to bacterial infections in
mice, I wonder what that can do for us!
c) Vitamin
B6
This
important vitamin — part of nearly 200 biochemical reactions in your body — is
critical in how your immune system functions. Foods high in vitamin B6 include
bananas, lean chicken breast, cold-water fish such as tuna, baked potatoes and
chickpeas. Several studies have suggested that a vitamin B6 deficiency can
depress aspects of the immune response, such as lymphocytes’ ability to mature
and spin off into various types of T and B cells.
d) Vitamin
C
You
probably know about vitamin C’s connection to the immune system, but did you
know you can get it from much more than just citrus fruits? Leafy green
vegetables such as spinach and kale (sukuma
wiki), bell peppers (hoho),
Brussel sprouts, strawberries and pawpaw are also excellent sources. In fact,
vitamin C is in so many foods that most people may not need to take supplements
unless a doctor advises it.As much as itdoes this, it normally works with other
micronutrients in boosting immunity rather than providing benefits alone.
e) Vitamin
D
It’s
best to get most of your vitamins from food, but vitamin D may be the exception
to that rule. For many years doctors have known that people afflicted with
tuberculosis responded well to sunlight. An explanation may now be at hand.
Researchers have found that vitamin D, which is produced by the skin when
exposed to sunlight, signals an antimicrobial response to the bacterium
responsible for tuberculosis, Mycobacterium tuberculosis. So there’s another
disease crossed off the list!You can increase your intake through foods such as
fatty fish (salmon, mackerel, tuna and sardines) and fortified foods such as
milk, orange juice and cereals. Many people have a hard time absorbing vitamin
D from food, so if you have a vitamin D deficiency, talk to your doctor about
supplements.
f) Vitamin
E
Like
vitamin C, vitamin E can be a powerful antioxidant that helps your body fight
off infection. Almonds, peanuts, hazelnuts and sunflower seeds are all high in
vitamin E. So are spinach and broccoli if you prefer to increase your intake
through meals rather than snacks.
g) Zinc
Zinc
is a trace element essential for cells of the immune system, and zinc
deficiency affects the ability of T cells and other immune cells to function as
they should. You can find zinc in oysters, crab, lean meats and poultry, baked
beans (skip the kind with added sugar), yogurt and chickpeas. Zinc appears to
help slow down the immune response and control inflammation in your body; this
is why it’s probably the most talked about nutrient in the management of sickle
cell disease.Caution: While it’s important to have sufficient zinc in your diet
(15–25 mg per day), too much zinc can inhibit the function of the immune
system.
h) Folate/folic
acid
Folate
is the natural form, and folic acid is the synthetic form, often added to foods
because of its health benefits. To get more folate, add more beans and peas to
your plate on a regular basis, as well as leafy green vegetables. You can also
get folic acid in fortified foods (check the labels) such as enriched breads,
pastas, rice and other 100 percent whole-grain products.
i) Iron
Iron,
which helps your body carry oxygen to cells, comes in different forms. Your
body can more easily absorb “heme iron,” which is abundant in lean poultry such
as chicken and turkey, plus seafood; and “non-heme iron” in plant sources such
as beans, broccoli and kale.
j) Selenium
Selenium
seems to have a powerful effect on the immune system, including the potential
to slow the body’s over-active responses to certain aggressive forms of cancer.
You can find it in garlic, broccoli, sardines, tuna, brazil nuts and barley,
among other foods.
k) Herbs
and other supplements:
Walk
into a store, and you will find bottles of pills and herbal preparations that
claim to “support immunity” or otherwise boost the health of your immune
system. Although some preparations have been found to alter some components of
immune function, thus far there is no evidence that they actually bolster
immunity to the point where you are better protected against infection and
disease. Demonstrating whether an herb — or any substance, for that matter —
can enhance immunity is, as yet, a highly complicated matter. Scientists don’t
know, for example, whether an herb that seems to raise the levels of antibodies
in the blood is actually doing anything beneficial for overall immunity.
But
that doesn’t mean we should discount the benefits of all herbal preparations.
Everyone’s immune system is unique. Each person’s physiology responds to active
substances differently. So if your grandma says she’s been using an herbal
preparation for years that protects her from illness, who’s to say that it
doesn’t? The problem arises when scientists try to study such a preparation
among large numbers of people. The fact that it works for one person won’t show
up in the research data if it’s not doing the same for a larger group. Some of
the supplements that have drawn attention from researchers are these:
·
Garlic contains the active ingredient
allicin, which fights infection and bacteria. British researchers gave 146
people either a placebo or a garlic extract for 12 weeks; the garlic takers
were two-thirds less likely to catch a cold. Other studies suggest that garlic
lovers who chow more than six cloves a week have a 30 percent lower rate of
colorectal cancer and a 50 percent lower rate of stomach cancer. So eating two
raw cloves a day (or night, to avoid giving others a sniff of your garlic
breath) and adding crushed garlic to your cooking several times a week is a
brilliant idea.
·
Probiotics (good bacteria), or the "live
active cultures" found in yogurt, are healthy bacteria that keep the gut
and intestinal tract free of disease-causing germs. So as you shop for your
yogurt, make sure you pick a brand with a ‘Live and Active Cultures’ label
because it contains some beneficial “bugs”… I know it’s not as gross as it
sounds.
·
Ginseng.
·
Aloe vera.
·
Astragalus membranes from the
astragalus plant.
·
Echinacea.
·
Glycyrrhiza glabra (licorice root).
And that my
friends, brings me to a conclusion in today’s article. I know, I know, you’re
probably wondering how and where to get these nutrients and herbs from, how can
they possibly improve my health and most importantly, how can they manage
sickle cell disease. No worries, let’s hold onto this piece of info and take it
all in. We will begin a series of articles focusing on each nutrient and
supplement in the weeks to come. Until then, eat healthy and stay active!
Love life!
Sharlene
