Doing your best to ensure your immune health

There are two main parts to your immune system: the non-specific (innate) and specific (adaptive) immune responses.

Non-specific immunity

These include barriers like your skin, sinuses and mucous membrane and cells (phagocytes) that literally “eat” pathogens that come through the barriers. Natural killer cells attack anything that is not genetically marked as self (you!)

With a viral attack like Covid-19, the non-specific system launches into full gear with inflammation which starts to make life uncomfortable for the virus and unfortunately uncomfortable for the infected person.

However, this is just a holding pattern till our immune system kicks into gear and our B cells start making antibodies that our T cells can identify. Those that are immunised have the advantage of vaccinegenerated antibodies.

Nutrients have a significant impact on our initial immune responses to attack. Vitamin D benefits most immune cells and helps them to do their job protecting you from pathogens like viruses. Vitamin D also influences the effectiveness of viruskilling compounds. I generally recommend 1000-2000IU daily in summer and 2000-4000IU in winter. Our non-specific immunity is also affected by micronutrients including zinc, selenium, iron, copper, manganese that help make potent antioxidant enzymes to defend against viral attack.

Polyphenol antioxidants such as OPC, curcumin and those in green tea, beta-carotene, vitamins A, C, and E, and folic acid are also very important. They protect immune cells against the infection so they can do their job. Secondly these stimulate our natural killer cells, the most potent aspect of our non-specific immunity.

What does this mean?

Those concerned about their immunity should supplement with vitamin D and a good multi-formula that has the trace minerals and antioxidants that help our immune system cope with infection.

Let’s say a virus has penetrated your non-specific immune defences and starts to infect cells. Sitting, waiting for such attack is your specific immune system that is able to create a devastating attack against the virus.

However, this part of your immune system has a significant shortcoming. Initially, it does not recognise the attacker and needs to be “trained” to identify and attack the virus. Antibodies are proteins made by the immune B cells that bind to an invader marking it for destruction by T cells.

Natural immunity is based on the immune system’s ability (activated B cells) to produce antibodies that will both fight a current infection and a return of the same pathogen.

Artificial immunity is from vaccines that trigger B cells to make antibodies to provoke a rapid T cell response against a first infection against a virus. This means your immune system is already primed, waiting for exposure and can launch a much faster, more aggressive response against the virus.

Vitamin D acts like a master commander of your immune defences. Dr Anthony Fauci, who leads the US health Covid response, recommends supplementing with 4000IU of vitamin D daily to help immune responses. It is also important to make sure you have optimal levels of antioxidants, vitamins and trace minerals, especially selenium and zinc.

John Arts (B.soc.sci, Dip Tch, Adv. Dip.nut.med) is a nutritional medicine practitioner and founder of Abundant Health Ltd. For questions or advice contact John on 0800 423559 or email john@abundant.co.nz. Join his all new newsletter at www.abundant. co.nz.