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Check nowWhat can damage your immune system?
Certain infections such as colds and flu can put the immune system under pressure, but usually these won't cause long-term damage. Other diet and lifestyle factors such as poor nutrition, doing too much exercise, sleep deprivation or drinking too much alcohol could all weaken your immune system.
What factors could weaken your immune system?
Certain illnesses or diet and lifestyle factors could be detrimental to your immune system. These can include:
1. Infections
At the time of an infection, such as a cold or flu virus, your immune system is working hard to help manage the symptoms and get you well again. However, did you know that many of the unpleasant symptoms we experience during this time such as headaches, aches and pains or a blocked nose are actually as a result of the effects of your immune system, rather than the infection itself?
This is because inflammation is a key tactic by your immune system to help drive the invading pathogen out. Whilst a little inflammation is good and also useful, long-term inflammation could be detrimental for your immune system – that is, continual or very serious infections, or a number of other unhelpful diet and lifestyle habits could also have similar effects, for that matter.
If your immune system becomes too active certain problems can arise, such as allergies. This is when your immune system responds to harmless particles (such as pollen in the case of hayfever) and reacts as if they were a harmful pathogen – leaving us feeling under the weather for no apparent reason! Autoimmune conditions are another type of immune over-reaction: this time when your immune system turns on your own cells and tries to damage them, like it would, again, if there was an invading pathogen.
In some cases of your immune system being overactive, drugs may be required to help quell these reactions, such as with corticosteroid medications. Whilst this may be deemed as necessary, technically these drugs are then damaging your immune system by limiting its actions.
What can be done to help?
In the case of autoimmune conditions, these should be managed by your doctor only. However, for more general immune support and protection, Echinacea Echinaforce may be helpful.
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2. Poor nutrition
Pro-inflammatory foods could potentially damage the immune system as a result of encouraging unnecessary inflammation. (1) We also know from research that unfavourable nutritive and metabolic states such as an obesity, can make us more susceptible to falling ill, (2) and/or may risk making our outcomes worse, if we were to fall ill. (3)
However, on the other hand, what we aren't eating enough of, could also damage our immune system, if we aren't providing enough of the essential nutrients we need in order for the immune system to work optimally.
Refined sugar, for one, could have a double whammy effect as it is not only pro-inflammatory but research has suggested it may also compete for vitamin C in the body, one of the very nutrients that can help protect your immune functions. (4)
What can be done to help?
Eating a varied diet containing lots of fresh foods is your best bet for acquiring many of the key nutrients you need to help keep your immune system healthy. Vitamins A, C & D help protect different elements of your immune system, from the protective mucus membranes, to supporting and modulating the function of many of your immune cells themselves.
Whilst eating well helps provide many of these nutrients, for certain ones such as vitamin D, taking a supplement such as A.Vogel's Immune Support can help to keep your levels nicely topped up.
3. Moving too much
It's interesting, because everyone tells you that moving more and doing more exercise can benefit your immune system which in many cases is true, but actually, what you often aren't told is that doing too much could be equally as detrimental.
Extreme exercise is considered a form of stress by the body, and your immune system and stress don't go well together. Whilst very short-term bouts of stress can be beneficial for the immune system and helps keep us well, (5) studies also reveal that doing too much could be a step too far, and actually start to down-regulate some of your immune functions. (6)
What can be done to help?
Move moderately! Don't go overboard with the exercise, find a nice balance, doing something that you enjoy, something that makes you feel good both physically and mentally, but don't always feel you have to go wild.
4. Sleep deprivation
Much like pushing yourself to extremes physically with exercise, sleep deprivation translates into a form of stress on the body, as can some emotions such as loneliness or grief, which may also have a slightly negative impact. (7)(8)
Sleep is not only restful, but it's very restorative and unbeknown to you, this is when many of your bodily systems are hard at work, including your immune system, in a bid to maintain optimal health.
Interestingly, getting good sleep can work both ways too; good sleep predicts better immune function, but actually, when your immune system is operating at night time it produces special cells called cytokines which are actually sleep promoting. (9)
What can be done to help?
Prioritise good sleep to help your immune system work at its best, that is, not going to bed too late, and using the appropriate relaxation techniques or help from herbs such as valerian and hops found in Dormeasan, if you feel you need a helping hand.
5. Noxious substances such as alcohol or cigarette smoke
It's no great surprise that drinking too much or smoking could hinder the functions of your immune system. Notably, some of the most immediate effects of alcohol are on the health of your gut. This is where your good gut bacteria reside, plus a large proportion of your immune system, which is why it's so important to eat well and be sensible with alcohol.
What can be done to help?
It's not all bad news, just like anything else, it seems that moderation is key and depending on which type of alcohol you have and how, it may not even be the worst thing. (10)
My advice is to consider opting for alcohol options which may even have the potential to have some very mild health benefits, such as red wine, and always drink in moderation and alongside wholesome meals, just like they do in the Mediterranean – the world's pioneers of good health!
