Proper Nutrition, Diet, Exercise & Your Immune System

The immune system is a complex network of cells, structures and organs designed to fight off harmful bacteria, viruses, toxins, parasites and the like, that are constantly trying to attack the body.

The immune system can be viewed as an army that is always "on guard" to protect the body. It is your most important health ally and its job is to keep you healthy at all times. It works tirelessly, non-stop to ensure you stay and feel healthy.

As you are probably aware, our body has white blood cells and red blood cells, which are responsible for carrying oxygen and carbon dioxide.

The white blood cells are cells of the immune system and some of these cells are capable of maintaining in their memory, the millions of foreign organisms that have tried to invade the body in the past and are also capable of detecting a foreign organism early and easily.

Some of these cells 'tag' the organism, while others work at producing secretions to wipe the organism out. If we did not have an immune system, we would never get over the flu or even a minor cold and would end up dying due to the simplest of illnesses. So you can see the importance of the immune system and how vital it is to take care of it.

The immune system has a remarkable ability to be able to distinguish between what are your body's own cells and what is foreign. Each cell in your body has a marker to distinguish its own cells.

When a cell travels without this marker, or a foreign molecule is attached to the cell, the immune system immediately recognizes the invader as foreign and destroys the foreign organisms that have invaded your body.

When you itch from being bit by a mosquito, it is a sign that your immune system was at work and pushed out the poison that was trying to invade your body. Allergies are also a sign of the immune system at work. However, allergies occur when the immune system is over-reacting or over-compensating for a foreign organism. This is why some people suffer more than others.

Hopefully so far, you've got a pretty good understanding on how the immune system works. I tried not to get too technical, but you can probably see that the immune system is quite the work of art and science, of course! In a nutshell, your immune system is designed to keep your body in tip-top health!

So, you're probably wondering, why is it that we still get sick if our bodies are designed to fight the good fight? Well, in simple terms, the lack of the right nutrients and antioxidants in our regular diet will eventually lead to immunodeficiency.

No one can survive without a fully functional and robust immune system, so it's imperative that we get serious and take good care of ours. Here are 5 ways you can take care of your immune system and ultimately, yourself:

Antioxidants are molecules or compounds that act as free radical scavengers.

This means that antioxidants prevent and fight the cause of disease, as oxidants also cause a chain reaction, creating free radicals that damage tissue in different parts of the body.

Thus, antioxidants protect against oxidative stress and prevent damage to cells.

Some of the foods that are rich in antioxidants are:

- Whole grains;
- Fruits like blueberries, cranberries, and blackberries;
- Vegetables like beans, pumpkins, broccoli, russet potatoes and green peppers;
- Nuts like pecans, walnuts, and hazelnuts; and
- Spices like cinnamon, oregano, and ground cloves.

Avoid salty, fatty, overly sweet and greasy foods. Eating junk food not only deprives your body of essential nutrients, but also damages your body's immunity.

Fatty foods introduce fat to the body, which in turn suppresses the immune system, and causes confusion to white blood cells in recognizing foreign entities in your body that cause disease.

Oh, and stay hydrated by drinking plenty of clean water to flush out toxins and keep your body from functioning properly.

An article published in the British Journal of Nutrition summarizes the roles of select vitamins and trace elements in immune function. Adequate intakes of micronutrients are required for the immune system to function efficiently.

Micronutrient deficiency suppresses immunity by affecting antibody responses, leading to imbalances in the immune system. This situation increases susceptibility to infections, which increases disease and death risk.

In addition, infections aggravate micronutrient deficiencies by reducing nutrient intake, increasing losses, and interfering with utilization by altering metabolic pathways.

Inadequate intakes of micronutrients are common in people with eating disorders, smokers (active and passive), individuals with chronic alcohol abuse, certain diseases, during pregnancy and lactation, and in the elderly.

Micronutrients contribute to the body's natural defenses on three levels by:

- Supporting physical barriers (skin/mucosa);
- Cellular immunity; and
- Antibody production.

Vitamins A, C, E, and the mineral zinc assist in enhancing the skin barrier function. Vitamins A, B6, B12, C, D, E, and folic acid, and the minerals iron, zinc, copper and selenium work synergistically to support the protective activities of the immune cells. Finally, all these micronutrients, with the exception of vitamin C and iron, are essential for the production of antibodies.

Overall, inadequate intake and status of these vitamins and minerals may lead to a suppressed immune system, which increases the risk of infections and aggravates malnutrition. Therefore, supplementation with a multivitamin that includes these micronutrients can support the body's natural defense system by enhancing all three levels of immunity.

Source: Br J Nutr. 2007 Oct;98 Suppl 1:S29-35.

Many studies have shown that stress can suppress the immune system, but other studies have shown boosts in the immune system under stress.

Short-term stressors boost the immune system. Whereas, chronic, long-term stress suppresses the immune system. The most chronic stressors - stress that seems beyond a person's control or seems endless - resulted in the most global suppression of immunity. Almost all measures of immune system function dropped across the board.

There are many ways to de-stress, such as taking up yoga, Pilates, meditation, exercise or walking. Engaging in physical activities not only helps you get rid of stress, but also provides you with exercise.

It's is worth mentioning that another important aspect in de-stressing is that you get an adequate amount of sleep at night to give your body a chance to recover and repair itself. Sometimes, rest is the best medicine!

Source: Mental Health at About.com

Exercising regularly will not only help you burn unwanted fat from your body, but will also help build the body's own antioxidant system and help reduce stress. Moderate exercise 3 to 4 times a week should do the job to keep you healthy.

Be creative, for most people, when you use the term exercise, they want to run away. However, exercise can be fun and most people have said they felt great after exercising and feel the need to do it more often, but seldom do.

Some fun and practical exercise ideas are: walking, weeding out the garden, giving your car a good clean up, engaging in recreational sports, playing with the kids or your friends, dusting off that bike in the garage and going for a ride!

The bottom line is "some" exercise is better than "no exercise". So get your butt off that couch! ; )

Drugs, smoking and excess alcohol pollute your body and cause your cells to break down and degenerate, making you more prone to diseases such as cancer and stroke.

Cut back on coffee and alcohol. Excessive caffeine and alcohol consumption will send your immune system into the red zone. Drink green tea instead for a healthy energy and immune boost.

At the same time, try to expose yourself to clean air whenever possible by getting outside. Indoor air is notorious for harboring other people's germs and irritants - use a HEPA Air Purifier, if possible. Your body will surely appreciate a pollutant-free environment.

Gather your kids, if you have any - if not, revive the kid in you and let's watch an educational cartoon show - shall we?!

Ok, this is a cool animated video that explains how your immune system works. CLICK HERE to watch the video (courtesy Kids Health).

This is a good way to encourage your kids to take care of their immune system right from a young age. They'll be glad you did and they'll pass the favor on!

As someone wise once said, "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure". Prevention is always the better option and it comes when you make health a lifestyle choice. When you really get down to it, you will come to the realization that "Health is indeed Wealth"!

In conclusion, it is evident that even though the body has all the systems in place for your health, optimum nutrition is of paramount importance.

Your very best investment in your life and well-being is keeping your pH balance in check with the most potent antioxidants. They are the communicators between all the cells and ensure that your immunity is at peak performance.

In a separate article, I will discuss how to go about choosing the best nutritional supplements. It is key to understand this important aspect because there are so many types of nutritional supplements out there and most use deceptive marketing/advertising tactics to sell their products.

I guess I don't have to say too much on this since you've already heard of the recent recalls of nutritional products and athletes affected through banned substances in their supplements.

Invest in your health - it's never too late and it's worth it! ; )