Since the start of the pandemic, we have spent a lot of time stocking up on hand sanitizer and face masks to bolster our external defenses, but it’s also important to consider ways to reinforce the body’s internal immune defenses.
Several lifestyle factors can play a significant role in healthy immune function. Stress management, good sleep, healthy nutrition, and regular physical activity are key strategies everyone should consider adding to their immune health arsenal.
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Stress and Immune Function
Research suggests that stress may increase your susceptibility to illness after exposure to infectious microbes by disrupting normal immune responses. In this study, for example, scientists found that “people with higher levels of perceived stress, emotional reactivity, recent stressful life events, and negative emotional styles” were all at greater risk of acute respiratory infections.
Stress can be managed in various ways. Individuals should discern what works best for them. Two beneficial options that people can try from the comfort and safety of their homes are mindfulness meditation and a gratitude practice.
Mindfulness meditation can be as simple as taking time to focus on breathing in and out slowly for 15 minutes. When 138 middle-aged adults underwent a two-month training in mindfulness-based stress reduction, it produced a modest reduction in acute respiratory illness and was similar in effectiveness to accepted medical interventions. In addition, emerging research suggests meditation may support specific bodily changes that benefit immune function.
Although we may intuitively suspect that initiating a gratitude practice may improve benefit health, some experts now believe it to be part of an effective overall wellness strategy. To do so, a person may simply write down five things they’re grateful for every day. Gratitude is linked to positive emotions, such as happiness and hope, and helps shift our focus away from stress and negative emotions.
Sleep and Immune Function
Sleep is an essential contributor to our health that is often neglected. Interestingly, although humans can survive without food for more than a month, the longest recorded period a person has been able to go without sleep is just 11 days. However, the negative effects of sleep deprivation can begin within just one day of sleep deprivation. The immune system is one of the functions that are impacted.
Poor sleep quality and a lack of sleep can impair both the innate and adaptive (acquired) branches of the immune system. In addition, studies like this one have shown that stress hormones released in response to just one night of insufficient sleep can decrease the immune system’s release of natural killer (NK) cells, which seek out and destroy virus-infected cells. They also help prime the activity of other immune cells to fight viruses.
Setting a relaxing bedtime routine and managing stress can go a long way toward promoting good sleep. In addition, several nutraceuticals, including melatonin, valerian root, and tryptophan (the precursor of serotonin), may promote normal sleep.* These and other sleep-supportive nutritional and botanical ingredients may be offered in a single dietary supplement for ease of use.
Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Immune Function
A healthy diet and regular physical activity are interconnected due to their role in maintaining a healthy body weight. This is relevant to immune function because excess body fat and obesity have been associated with an increased risk for acute respiratory infections.
Obesity is considered a major health problem in the United States, but it is less recognized that up to 40% of normal-weight adults may have excess body fat that impairs their health. Challenges controlling body fat may be heightened during a pandemic because people may not be able to utilize the exercise options they normally would. Yet, encouraging exercise during this time is essential.
Moderate exercise can help improve a person’s innate immunity and may provide protection against viral infections. Some exercise options include using exercise videos, joining a virtual exercise class, and utilize the outdoors while observing safe distance guidelines.
Nutritious dietary choices should also be emphasized, as they aid in weight management. Healthy foods such as vegetables, nuts, and grass-fed meats provide nutrients that support immune function. For example, zinc, iron, B vitamins, vitamin C, and vitamin D play important roles in immune function. In some cases, targeted supplementation of such nutrients may be needed to meet individual requirements.*
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The views in this blog by JJ Virgin should never be used as a substitute for professional medical advice. Please work with a healthcare practitioner concerning any medical problem or concern. The information here is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any disease or condition. Statements contained here have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
By Marsha McCulloch, MS, RDN, LN