Immune Support

 


Immune Support




GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS


The immune system is a complex integration of synergistic segments that are continuously barraged by stimuli from both internal and external sources. Supporting the immune system is critical to good health. Conversely, good health is critical to supporting the immune system. The best approach to supporting immune function is a comprehensive plan involving lifestyle, stress management, exercise, diet, nutritional supplementation, glandular therapy, and the use of plant-based medicines.


Psychoneuroimmunology is the term used to describe the interactions between the emotional state, nervous system function, and the immune system. The growing body of knowledge documenting the mind’s profound influence on physiology in health and disease necessitates stress management. Stress increases corticosteroid and catecholamine, which at high levels are immunosuppressive. Lymphocytes, monocytes, macrophages, and granulocytes have receptor sites for the many regulating hormones and neurotransmitters of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal and the sympathetic-adrenal medullary axes. Alterations in these compounds lead to disruption of cellular trafficking, proliferation, cytokine secretion, antibody production, and cytolytic activity. For example, glucocorticoids inhibit the production of interleukin (IL)-12, interferon, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and type 1 helper T (Th1) cells but upregulate the production of IL-4, IL-10, and IL-13 by Th2 cells. In addition to glucocorticoids, the catecholamines also play a role in stress-induced immune dysfunction.


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THERAPEUTIC CONSIDERATIONS


Lifestyle


Many lifestyle behaviors substantially affect immune function. Smoking suppresses immune function, as do irregular meals, simple carbohydrate consumption, excess weight, excessive alcohol consumption, inadequate sleep, and inactivity.



Diet


Consistent with good health, optimal immune function requires a healthy diet rich in whole, natural foods such as fruits, vegetables, grains, beans, seeds, and nuts; low in fats and refined sugars; and contains adequate, but not excessive, amounts of protein.


The oral administration of 100-g portions of carbohydrate as glucose, fructose, sucrose, honey, or orange juice significantly reduces neutrophil phagocytosis, but starch has no effect. Increases of cholesterol, free fatty acids, triglycerides, and bile acids inhibit various immune functions.


Alcohol increases the susceptibility to experimental infections in animals, and alcoholics are known to be more susceptible to infections, especially pneumonia. Studies of immune function in alcoholism show a profound depression in most parameters of immunity.



Nutrients




• Vitamin A: plays an essential role in maintaining the integrity of the epithelial and mucosal surfaces and their secretions. These systems constitute a primary nonspecific host defense mechanism. Vitamin A has been shown to stimulate and/or enhance numerous immune processes, including induction of cell-mediated cytotoxicity against tumors, natural killer cell activity, lymphocyte blastogenesis, mononuclear phagocytosis, and antibody response.


• Carotenes: have demonstrated a number of immune-enhancing effects. In addition to being converted into vitamin A, carotenes function as antioxidants. Because the thymus gland is so susceptible to damage by free radicals, beta-carotene may be more advantageous in enhancing the immune system than retinol.


• Vitamin C: ascorbic acid plays an important role in immune enhancement. Although vitamin C has been shown to be antiviral and antibacterial, its main effect is by improvement in host resistance. Many immunostimulatory effects have been demonstrated, including enhancing lymphoproliferative response to mitogens and lymphotrophic activity and increasing interferon levels, antibody responses, immunoglobulin levels, secretion of thymic hormones, and integrity of ground substance. Vitamin C also has direct biochemical effects similar to those of interferon.


• Vitamin E: enhances both humoral immunity and cell-mediated immunity. A vitamin E deficiency results in lymphoid atrophy and decreases of lymphoproliferative response to mitogens, splenic plaque-forming colonies, antibody response, and monocyte function. Vitamin E supplementation (30-150 IU) has been shown to increase lymphoproliferative response to mitogens; prevent free radical–induced thymus atrophy; enhance helper T-cell activity; and increase splenic plaque-forming colonies, serum immunoglobulins, antibody response, peripheral mononuclear phagocytosis, and reticuloendothelial system activity.


• Iron: iron deficiency is a commonly encountered isolated nutritional deficiency that causes immune dysfunction in large numbers of patients. Marginal iron deficiency, even at levels that do not lower hemoglobin values, can influence the immune system. Lymphoid tissue atrophy, decreased lymphoproliferative response to mitogens, defective macrophage and neutrophil function, and decreased T-cell/B-cell ratios are common experimental and clinical findings.


• Zinc: zinc serves a vital role in many immune system reactions. It promotes the binding of complement to immune complex, acts as a protectant against iron-catalyzed damage by free radicals, acts synergistically with vitamin A, is required for lymphocyte transformation, acts independently on lymphocytes as a mitogen, and is a necessary cofactor in activating serum thymic factor. In vitro, zinc inhibits the growth of several viruses, including rhinoviruses, picornaviruses, togaviruses, herpes simplex virus, and vaccinia virus.


• Selenium: in its vital role in glutathione peroxidase, selenium affects all components of the immune system, including the development and expression of all white blood cells (WBCs). Selenium deficiency results in depression of immune function, whereas selenium supplementation results in augmentation and/or restoration of immune functions. Selenium deficiency has been found to inhibit resistance to infection through impairment of WBCs and thymus function, whereas selenium supplementation (100-200 μg/day) has been shown to stimulate WBC and thymus function.

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Apr 3, 2017 | Posted by in GENERAL & FAMILY MEDICINE | Comments Off on Immune Support

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