The
Importance of Your Immune System in Fighting Illnesses
Infections are the invasion of body tissues by disease-causing agents such as viruses, bacteria, parasites and fungi that are present throughout our environment. We become susceptible to these infections when our immune system is depleted. Our white blood cell (WBC) count is the window to our immune system. WBC counts can be checked with a simple blood test. The normal range for the WBC count is between 4,000 and 11,000 per microliter of blood. In checking WBC counts in patients for the last 22 years, I’ve found that many patients are in the low range, around 4 K/uL. This means the immune system is not working up to par and the person is susceptible to many of the infections around us. In fact, nine out of ten people have a nutritional deficiency.
One does not necessarily need a blood test to detect a compromised immune system. When looking at all the 20 to 30-year-olds at the Burton snowboard event this past week we would hope to see perfect health with glowing skin and shiny eyes. Unfortunately, many of the young adults had severe acne and dull-looking skin which looked very unhealthy. Many of these issues are due to a poor diet. Our diet is the window to our skin and eyes and the immune system. Therefore, it is important to take charge of your health and do what you can to protect yourself.
Infections are everywhere. We cannot get away from them and we cannot count on others to reduce the risk of infection. For example, I was at a presentation last week and the woman next to me could not stop coughing. Since she did not cover her mouth, she risked infecting everyone in the audience.
Ways to Improve your immune system:
Infections are the invasion of body tissues by disease-causing agents such as viruses, bacteria, parasites and fungi that are present throughout our environment. We become susceptible to these infections when our immune system is depleted. Our white blood cell (WBC) count is the window to our immune system. WBC counts can be checked with a simple blood test. The normal range for the WBC count is between 4,000 and 11,000 per microliter of blood. In checking WBC counts in patients for the last 22 years, I’ve found that many patients are in the low range, around 4 K/uL. This means the immune system is not working up to par and the person is susceptible to many of the infections around us. In fact, nine out of ten people have a nutritional deficiency.
One does not necessarily need a blood test to detect a compromised immune system. When looking at all the 20 to 30-year-olds at the Burton snowboard event this past week we would hope to see perfect health with glowing skin and shiny eyes. Unfortunately, many of the young adults had severe acne and dull-looking skin which looked very unhealthy. Many of these issues are due to a poor diet. Our diet is the window to our skin and eyes and the immune system. Therefore, it is important to take charge of your health and do what you can to protect yourself.
Infections are everywhere. We cannot get away from them and we cannot count on others to reduce the risk of infection. For example, I was at a presentation last week and the woman next to me could not stop coughing. Since she did not cover her mouth, she risked infecting everyone in the audience.
Ways to Improve your immune system:
- Make sure your sleeping at
least 8 hours a night
- Limit your alcohol consumption
- Eliminate all sugar
- Caffeine in moderation
- Do not smoke or vape
- Exercise at least 1 hour 5
times a week
- Eat organic and 5 to12 veggies
a day
- Eliminate fast food and eat
your meals at home. Families who cook their meals tend to be less
sick and home-cooked foods have fewer pesticides, are less processed and
have fewer preservatives.
- Reduce stress by meditation,
yoga and breathing exercises.
- Take drugs and steroids only
when necessary; steroids actually turn off your immune response.
- Do not go to work or be out in
public if sick.
- Don’t shake hands with people
if either of you is sick.
- Wash hands for at least 20
seconds with soap and water. Do not use antibacterial soaps.
- Bleach and water work to kill
viruses, bacteria and fungi on surfaces. If someone is sick in the
family clean all surfaces often. Mix ¼ cup of bleach in 16 oz of water for
cleaning.
- Take a good multiple vitamin
with antioxidants such as Vit A, D, E, C, Selenium, and zinc (journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article…).
I recommend my Optimal Health multiple which is high in antioxidants
(see blog). My
patients rarely get sick when taking a vitamin regularly. I have been
taking it for the past 20 years and rarely get sick.
- Foods that help improve the
immune system include organic mushrooms, organic greens such as spinach,
kale, and chard, chicken or veggie soups, berries, cinnamon, garlic, and
ginger.
- My cold, flu & sinus tea
and anti-viral tea can work very well at the onset of any cold. I also
like my organic elderberry syrup in which has been shown in many studies
to prevent the flu.
- A large part of the immune
system is located in the colon. Therefore, taking a good probiotic will
help. Not all probiotics are good, and many are not what they claim
to be (pediatric-infectious-disease.imedpub.com/probiotics-…).
Labs are important to check your immune response and your overall health depending on your symptoms.
Please remember that if you feel like you are getting sick, I have a cold, flu and sinus clinic in which we can generally get rid of your symptoms within 48 hrs. Many of these illnesses last 3 weeks without treatment and you do not want to infect everyone at work or home. If you have more than 2 colds a year your immune system is probably depleted. Many people are not going to the doctor unless they are very sick this is just putting more burden on the immune system. It is always best to make an appointment and get to the cause of why this is happening. For an appointment please call 970-926-7606.
