Strengthening Your Immune System- Not Scientifically Possible?

With national COVID-19 surges and the onset of flu season, there are a bunch of complicated terms floating around online like active immunity and passive immunity (also known as innate and adaptive immunity). Then there are all the immune-booster claims that are simply not scientifically possible.

Learn more in our low-commitment 14-day Lower The Load course.

Text COVID to 1(224)302-6224 to start for free

Here's a lesson from Day 2 of our 14-day course:

Myth-Busting: Common Messaging About Your Immune System and COVID-19

There is a lot of magical thinking in some of the immune-boosting messages you'll see online. Let's insert some science into the discussion.

1) You can always strengthen your immune system with supplements and healthy eating. True or False?

FALSE

There are plenty of things you can do to support your immune system, but you can't boost it indefinitely.

Your immune system can only be boosted as high as its highest potential. It can't go higher than that! And, get this, not everyone's immune potential gets an A+ grade! Some people's potential is only a C grade. That’s the highest they’ll ever get.

We’re not into shaming people here at Byte Wellness. In general, our immune potential (even if that potential is a C) is nothing to sneeze at. Working at 100% of a C level puts you in better position to fight viruses than working at 60% of a C level (which might be an F). 100% functioning is a better outcome than most of us can claim right now.

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2. Eating healthy food and taking vitamins can prevent you from developing COVID-19, the flu and the common cold. True or False?

FALSE

Your immune system needs a variety of nutrients, vitamins and minerals to work at its best. We can find most of these in a well-balanced diet that includes large amounts of differently colored fruit and vegetables. But, some of us also need supplemental vitamins (like vitamin D if your levels are low).

Let’s pause to note that most Americans have a long way to go before we reach that eating goal. The standard American diet doesn’t deliver adequate amounts of many of these nutrients. How could it when 60% of Americans’ calories come from nutritionally bankrupt ultra-processed foods.

BUT, as we pointed out earlier, even if you successfully shift toward an ideal well-balanced diet and you eat all the nutrients your immune system needs to work at its best, there’s still no guarantee that you can avoid infection.

Sure, all things held equal, it’s reasonable that a healthier immune system (working at A+ level) has a better shot of preventing infection and minimizing complications compared to a less healthy immune system (working at C level). But, remember that not everyone’s 100% immune function is an A+.

That’s why it’s still so important to practice hand-washing and social distancing to avoid coming into contact with the virus that causes COVID-19 as much as possible.

So what can affect a person's immune system potential?

These factors play a role in determining whether your immune potential is an A+ or a C. Do any of these apply to you?

These can lower your immune system potential

• Genetic Immune Deficiencies

• Age Extremes (Infants and age above 65)

• Smoking

• Cancer

• Chronic Diseases (Diabetes, Liver Disease, Kidney Disease, etc)

These can help you reach your potential

• Regular moderate exercise

• Eating diverse vegetables

• Adequate Stress Management and Sleep

Okay, honesty time:

1) How much do you understand about how your immune system works?

2) How can you tell if any of the "immune-boosting" tips you read about actually work?

3) How much time and energy do you actually have to research all this online? Probably not much, right?

Learn science-based approaches to optimizing your immune system in just 2 weeks of daily text message lessons. Text COVID to 1(224)302-6224 to start our Lower The Load course or free.

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