How to strengthen your immune system

Our immune system has to deal with bacteria, viruses and fungi every day. Mostly, the defense against pathogens goes unnoticed. When we bite buttonholes, there is usually no infection, although up to 400 bacteria sit at the tip of a sewing needle.

With a small number of germs, the immune system can handle well. They are warded off before they multiply in the body. If the number of germs is too large, the natural defenses will not do it anymore. It comes to an infection. "How high this threshold is depends not only on how infectious the pathogens are, but also how fit our immune system is," says Professor Lothar Rink, Director of the Institute of Immunology at the University Hospital Aachen. "Keeping his immune system fit is therefore just as important as the regular update of the antivirus program on the PC."

1. Prevent vitamin D deficiency

The danger for infections increases in the dull season. Lack of exercise and poorly ventilated spaces can weaken the immune system. In addition, most people experience vitamin D deficiency. 90 percent of this hormone is produced by the body itself in the skin with the help of UV-B radiation from the sunlight. In winter this radiation is too weak. Recent studies from Copenhagen, however, show that killer cells of the body's defense need the sun vitamin for effective fight against viruses and bacteria. Vitamin D activates T cells and enables them to target pathogens. Japanese schoolchildren who took vitamin D pills for more than four months suffered less often from influenza than peers receiving only placebo.

2. Maintain the intestine

Around 70 percent of the body's defense cells are in the intestine. Therefore, anything that does this organ will automatically strengthen the body's defenses: regular exercise, high-fiber diet, and moderate alcohol consumption. Real kefir and certain probiotic yoghurts contain living microorganisms that can colonize the gut and protect against disease. Who wants to strengthen his intestinal flora, for example, after prolonged intake of antibiotics, can fall back on probiotics from the pharmacy.

3. eat Mediterranean food

A balanced diet with fresh fruits, vegetables and salad strengthens the immune system. In addition to the vitamins A, C, D and E as well as the minerals iron and zinc, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are important. They are found in vegetable oils such as rapeseed oil and fatty sea fish such as salmon or mackerel. Lothar Rink recommends that you do not rush to take vitamin pills: "They can be overdosed and then have a negative effect on the immune system." Multivitamin juices can be a good alternative.

4. Drink more

Even if the thirst in the cold season is not as great as in the summer, at least two liters should be drunk daily. "The immune system is not a solid organ, its cells are scattered throughout the body and are transported by blood and lymph," says Lothar Rink. "If the fluid balance is not right, the immune cells - seen from a visual standpoint - remain stuck in a jam, and if everything is in flux, they migrate from the blood into the tissue and fight against pathogens."

5. Add zinc

Those who can not manage to feed themselves well in everyday life, or who consume no animal products out of conviction, should resort to zinc preparations from the pharmacy. If the body has too little zinc available, it can come in an infection to an inflammatory response and thus to the multiplication of the pathogen, as US scientists have demonstrated. "Preventively, not more than ten milligrams of zinc should be taken daily," advises immune expert Rink. "Much does not help much, but harms." Announcing an infection, a short-term high-dose zinc cure (75 milligrams daily) can reduce the severity of the infection and shorten the duration of a cold by one day, as a study from New Delhi has shown.

6. Balance magnesium deficiency

This nutrient is also essential for a functioning immune system. A Munich study has shown that more than two-thirds of those who had a weak immune system suffered from acute magnesium deficiency. Vitamin C is excreted unused without sufficient magnesium. The scientists recommend taking an effervescent tablet (250 milligrams) in the morning and in the evening for 14 days. Those who drink mineral water with a high magnesium content prevents deficiency.

7. Avoid arginine deficiency

This protein component is involved in many processes in the body. Among other things, it stimulates the production of white blood cells, improves the activity of killer cells and thus increases the immune system.In small amounts, arginine is produced by the body itself, containing the amino acid in many foods (such as pumpkin seeds, walnuts, dried peas). Often, however, the amounts consumed, especially in older people, are insufficient to meet the demand. Then a targeted supplement of arginine may be useful.

8. Reduce overweight

For those who are severely overweight, the risk of dying of blood poisoning, for example, is seven times that of normal weight. Scientists at Louisiana State University in the US have been able to show that a particular receptor in the body that detects disease is no longer functioning in a very one-sided, high-fat diet: the immune system is subdued. In addition, vitamin D is deposited in the fatty tissue and thus can not develop its effect. Malnutrition and severe underweight are also associated with an immune deficit.

9. Avoid antibiotics

In more than 90 percent of cases prescribed antibiotics are superfluous. Fatal: The more antibiotics are ingested, the higher the likelihood that resistance will develop. If antibiotics are really needed then they will not work. Used deliberately, the bacteria killers do far more than they should. The consequences: a damaged intestinal and vaginal flora, a hypersensitive skin and a weakened immune system on a broad front.

10. laugh more often

The mental state influences the body's defenses. We are especially susceptible to infections when worried. Under stress, the number and activity of defense cells decreases because the communication between the brain and the immune system is disturbed. Conversely, laughter increases the level of immunoglobulin in the blood and thus strengthens the defense. London researchers also found that people who find themselves more likely to be happy and content in everyday life have significantly lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol in their blood than those who often feel lousy. High cortisol levels weaken the immune system.

11. Relax regularly

Meditations have a long-term positive effect on the immune system. This is reported by a research team from the University of Wisconsin. After eight weeks of training, the study participants had more antibodies than after a flu shot. Autogenic training and yoga work similarly. A 45-minute relaxing massage also increases the body's defenses and reduces the concentration of stress hormones in the body. Los Angeles scientists found that the proportion of white blood cells responsible for bodybuilding was increased, and the stress hormone cortisol in the blood was reduced.

12. play sports

Regular exercise is ideal for strong defenses - unless you're overdoing it. It has been proven that up to five hours of moderate endurance sports a week are beneficial for a healthy immune system. Those who train significantly more or particularly intensively, on the other hand, are at least as susceptible to diseases as a non-athlete in the bad weather period. Athletes who completely exhaust themselves observe the so-called open-window phenomenon. The immune defense sinks, pathogens are thus practically opened a window to the body. The proportion of white blood cells (leucocytes) that are important for the immune defense initially increases immediately after intense exercise, but then falls sharply after only a few hours. The result is an increased risk of infection and cold.

Home remedies for a strong defense

• Thymus tapping: Gently tap the thymus gland for about one minute several times a day with two fingers or with a slightly clenched fist. It lies behind the breastbone in the middle of the ribcage. The stimulating effect lasts for two to three hours.
• Eat carrot soup: Cook 500 grams of peeled carrots in one liter of water for one to two hours, then pass through a strainer or puree in a blender. Then add a tightly-teaspoon of salt to a quart of soup. Eaten in small quantities, this carrot soup strengthens the immune system according to Professor Ernst Moro.
• Echinacea cure: Intake of purple sunhat or Echinacea can increase the number of white blood cells and spleen cells (which are also responsible for a smooth defense function). But beware: Echinacea should not be taken for more than eight weeks. A permanent immune stimulant can turn into the opposite and promote an autoimmune disease such as psoriasis or articular rheumatism.

Boost Your Immune System Naturally (May 2024).