Welcome to brain Stuff production of iHeart Radio. Hey, brain Stuff, Lauren Vogelbaum here. Doing everything we can to have an immune system that runs like a top should be a priority all the time, but of course it's on our minds more during cold and flu season and when we're worried about a deadly pandemic. You may have heard that certain foods are good for bolstering your immune system, but is that true? First off, there's no way to boost
your immune system. We spoke with Kristen Kirkpatrick, a registered dietitian with Cleveland Clinic. She said, it's better to say enhancing immunity. And here's why. The human immune system has two facets, innate and acquired or adaptive. The innate immune system is your first line of defense that starts working the moment you're born, based on your mother's lifestyle when you were in the womb. These are cells that go
to work immediately fighting off in actions. But if the innate system can't do the job, after four to seven days, adaptive white blood cells and proteins acquired antibodies targeted to a specific pathogen will be mobilized to fight the infection. It's true that these two systems do better under certain conditions, but our bodies aren't like a video game. You can't just eat or drink something to get a health bonus. Still, eating the right foods can maintain or improve your bodies
immune function. Fresh or minimally processed foods are best, and excess sugar should be avoided because it can slow down immune function. Kirkpatrick said a healthy diet, along with things like sleep and stress management, all those things help contribute to that robust immune system. Good food diversity and colorful plants are going to be a key factor to a healthy gut. But don't kill yourself if you have a cookie.
We also spoke with Alison Brown, a nutritional researcher and chair of the National Organization of Blocks in Dietetics and Nutrition. She explained that you could compare the body and immune system to a luxury imported car. Unfortunately, some of us treat our automobiles better than our bodies. She said, if your car is a luxury car, you can't just put regular gas in a luxury car. You want to put premium fuel in it. So the same goes for your body. Here's a few things you need to fuel it right.
First up evidence shows that vitamin A enhances immune response in ways that researchers are still unpacking, though we do know that it supports the innate immune system, including what's called natural killer cells. Plus, vitamin A is needed to form the epithelial cells and mucous layer that act as
defensive barriers in the lungs and intestines. The best sources for vitamin A tend to be orange or golden colored foods like sweet potatoes, carrots, egg yolks, and cantaloupe, though other plant and animal sources includes finach, broccoli, and liver. Then there's full late, also known as B nine, which helps send signals to the natural killer cells. It also helps with forming and repairing DNA. To incorporate more into your diet, look two lentils and other lagoons, leafy greens
like brussels sprouts, beats, and the aforementioned deliver. Then, of course, there's the famous vitamin C, a powerful antioxidant that does many beneficial things for the body. Research paper that explored vitamin c's impact on immunity says that it supports protective epithelial cells and killer cells work. It's also crucial for helping immune cells called macrophages to clean up infected areas. The best sources include things like citrus, kiwi fruits, and spinach.
Vitamin D, the sunshine vitamin, is also critical to optimal immune function in the body. It acts as a hormone that signals actions and cells and helps fight offruses and infections. Low vitamin D levels are associated with higher rates of sepsis, m R s A and hepatitis C, but when people have at least thirty nanogram's permilla leader of vitamin D in their bloodstream can help prevent or blunt the severity
of pneumonia and respiratory infections. Researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina currently are studying weather supplementing with vitamin D can lessen the severity of COVID nineteen infections. They're hoping that D three supplementation in particular, could better the survival odds for Black Americans and the elderly in care homes, both being groups of people who run a higher risk of vitamin D deficiency and both having been especially vulnerable
to COVID nineteen. Salmon, other fatty fish, and egg yokes offers small amounts of vitamin D and sun exposure is an easy way to synthesize of vitamin D unless you have darker skin, in which case D three supplements are key. Nutritional Epidemiologist Walter Willet colleagues at Harvard University's th H. Chan School of Public Health recommend taking a supplement of one thousand or two thousand international units per day if you believe your levels might be low, for instance, if
you have darker skin or get limited sun exposure. Then there's vitamin E, which is a nutrient that can help protect cells from damage and support the creation and action of T cells, which are a type of white blood cell that's important to the immune system. Good sources include almonds, sunflower seeds and most other seeds for that matter, avocados, spinach, mangoes, butternut squash, and cooking oils like staff flour and olive oil.
And finally, there's selenium, a trace mineral that's necessary for certain proteins to function. Those seleno proteins help kick off the immune response when germs invade, but it also makes sure the response isn't too vigorous, which can cause inflammation and cell damage. Brazil nuts, fish, chicken, and ham all contain it. Today's episode was written by Maria C. Hunt and produced by Tyler Clang. For more on this and lots of other curious topics, visit how stuff works dot com.
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