I was recently invited to do an interview with Club Xcite and their director Jocelyn Burke MA Ed, to share tips on supporting immune health while families are preparing to head back to school.
You can watch the video of our time together here, or read the highlights plus some additional thoughts below. Either way, I hope these tips support you in taking charge of building resilience and health for you and your family.
How do You Define Health?
Health is a state of physical, mental and social well-being and not just the absence of disease and infirmity. We are healthy when our bodies and minds are responsive, and not reactive, to our environment or our experience. Elisa Song MD describes ‘Cellular Resilience’ as one way to know we are truly healthy. She describes it as “the ability of our cells to bounce back from stress, and not just recover rapidly and completely, but be stronger for the next time.” This is a powerful statement, because it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t experience disease or stress, but that when our body is healthy and resilient, they can actually make you stronger…let that sink in.
And although diseases like Covid-19 do not seem to be impacting children as much as the elderly and health compromised, they are not out of the woods. One in two children are currently dealing with a chronic condition like eczema, asthma, severe allergies, obesity, anxiety. Auto-immunity is on the rise in both children and adults, more than ever before. These may becoming more typical, but they are not normal in children. These conditions all impact the immune system, causing higher risk for complications in acute diseases.
What is Immune Health and Why is it so Important?
Our world is one where there are biological, ecological and sociological eco-systems that rely on different organisms moving through various states of balance and imbalance to survive. In this way, bacteria, viruses, protozoa, parasites have always been, and will always be, a part of our existence. Sickness comes when there is an imbalance in the eco-system. So, what puts the eco-system out of balance? Toxin exposure in our food, air, water and buildings, nutrient deficiency, overuse of medications, psychological and emotional stress, overuse of antimicrobials…get the picture?
A primary reason people have been having complications with Covid-19 are pre-existing conditions like diabetes, obesity, heart disease, chronic lung diseases, liver and kidney disease, neurological dysfunction or are immunocompromised. When we look closer, many of these are both challenges in the input (what we are being exposed to) and our output (how we are responding and detoxifying after exposure). When we understand how these systems work in our body and what is supportive for our health, it then just comes down to a shift in lifestyle to reduce these risks.
We are ‘exposed’ to bacteria, viruses, parasites, etc. all the time… but it does not mean that we always fall ill because of it. When our immune system is working effectively, it has the capacity not only to take down the invader and stop or minimize the degree of sickness we experience. Our immune system also has the capacity to create antibody and memory cells to ‘remember’ and keep fighting each time the invader returns. This also makes us stronger and more capable of response in the future.
A big part of our immune system is the modulation of inflammation. Inflammation is actually a necessary part of the healing process in a healthy person… fevers, swelling from injuries, rashes… these are all your bodies way of sending immune cells to help heal. It is unfortunate that we have learned to turn so quickly to anti-inflammatory medications to stop this process, as they can actually slow healing altogether, particularly with low grade or moderate fevers. Anti-inflammatory medications can be effective with injury and pain, but it is important to understand how these inflammatory processes work to know when and how to use them wisely.
Some concerns specifically with Covid-19 are when pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory pathways do not modulate properly and can result in an overactivity of the immune system. This is called a Cytokine storm or Multi-system Inflammatory Syndrome (MISC) in children. These have been rare, but are very actually dangerous. This can happen because where the virus attaches to enter the cell, called the ACE2 receptors, are found on or around your organs. We don’t know enough about this virus to fully understand why this is happening, but in most cases what the research has found is the major compromises are often linked to nutrient deficiencies, which are quite common with most of the above-mentioned conditions.
Tips to Keep the Immune System Strong:
Again, if we are looking for ways to create resilience physically, mentally and socially, we need to start with the basics. There are some very well researched principles that focus on five foundational principles of nutrition and health that ensure rapid and effective response to invaders and appropriate inflammation regulation. We have to think both in terms of building resilience regularly and having appropriate tools to be responsive when an invader arrives.
Nutrient sufficiency is required for optimal health. Stress, disease and dysfunction all compromise our ability to be nutrient sufficient. Through food, and sometimes supplementation, these are the key nutrients we must ensure are in ready supply:
Vitamin D – We can obtain from sunshine and from food, BUT there are necessary co-factors for us to assimilate, digest and utilize in either form including Vitamin K and Magnesium. Many people are deficient in Vitamin D, but it is important to test for your levels if you intend to supplement, as with most fat-soluble vitamins, overdose is possible. You want your vitamin D status, measured as 25(OH)D, close to 30 ng/mL (75 nmol/L).
- Sunshine is best with full body exposure without sunscreen for short periods of time in the middle of the day.
- Fish and fish oil (tuna, sardines, salmon, cod, trout), Dairy (milk, yogurt), mushrooms, egg yolk
Zinc – Highly important for both immune and reproductive health and MOST people are unknowingly deficient in this mineral as well. Zinc and Copper work synergistically together, so ensuring 15-1 ratio of zinc to copper is important.
- pumpkin seeds, animal proteins (red meat, shellfish), legumes (chickpeas, lentils, beans)
Copper – An important anti-oxidant mineral and important when using high doses of Zinc to respond to viruses
- Oysters and other shellfish, whole grains, beans, nuts, potatoes, and organ meats (kidneys, liver), dark leafy greens, dried fruits such as prunes, cocoa, black pepper
Vitamin C– A known anti-viral vitamin and necessary for tissue repair, Vitamin C is important both preventatively and responsively to infection.
- Oranges, acerola cherries, grapefruit, green peppers, red sweet peppers, guavas, cayenne pepper, kiwi, strawberry, mustard greens
Hydration – Often overlooked, but important for every function in our body, especially elimination of toxins, hydration is key to health. Ensure you obtaining half your body weight in ounces of fresh spring or filtered water. Sugary drinks, caffeine and exercise will minimize hydration, so ensure you drink a little more to compensate for those.
Digestive Health and Blood Sugar Regulation are key for a healthy terrain. Growing evidence is pointing to the idea of the ‘terrain’ being more important to our resilience than the type of microbe or virus. Almost all chronic illness stem from issues with digestion and/or blood sugar regulation in some way, primarily when our microbiome is compromised. Optimal function of these systems are necessary for true resilience, regardless of what conditions you may be dealing with. There are a few things you can to do on your own :
- Reduce/eliminate sugar intake, processed grains and packaged foods, trans-fats, alcohol
- Include a rainbow of colors in your diet, at least 3-5 colors at each meal
- Eat fermented foods like sauerkraut or kimchi
- If you or your child are dealing with a chronic or acute illness like IBS, SIBO, diabetes, obesity, heart disease or an auto-immune disorder, seek out a nutrition professional to support you in a personalized plan to address these issues.
Stress and Anxiety reduction is also highly important for physical, mental and social resilience. Psychological stress causes the same cascades of inflammation in the body as physical stress. Stress can be positive and motivating to a certain degree, but staying in a sympathetic nervous system state for long periods of time will cause undue stress on the body. So much of the uncertainty of the pandemic has kept people in heightened states of stress. Here are a few important ways to reduce stress
- Mindfulness and breathing
- Sufficient sleep
- Moderate exercise
What I have shared with you is a basic outline of how to address immune resilience. I am offering a six week online course starting September 10th to explore this complex topic more thoroughly and to address individual needs. If you would like to learn more and join us, read more here:
https://amy-saloner-3302.mykajabi.com/the-resilient-family-course