If you haven’t already taken practical actions to keep your immune system healthy, there’s no better time to start. Supporting a healthy immune system comes down to simple things like drinking plenty of water, getting enough sleep, exercising, managing stress, and eating a healthy diet. Along with a healthy diet, supplements can offer your immune system a helping hand, especially as you get older.
That’s because your immune system tends to weaken with age. Important immune cells known as T cells don’t function as well as you get older. White blood cells, known as macrophages, also slow down with age. Your body produces fewer protective antibodies when you have an infection in your later years, too. All this adds up to a less powerful ability to fight off infections as you get older and gives you an excellent reason to provide your immune system a little extra support beyond the usual healthy living strategies like exercise, diet, and sleep.
Luckily, a new study just uncovered a supplement that can help an aging immune system fend off infections with more vigor. A recent study from researchers at Oregon State University found that adults who took a multivitamin got over illnesses quicker and had fewer symptoms than those that didn’t. The study included 42 healthy people between 50 and 75 years old. Researchers split these people into two groups. For 12 weeks, one group received a daily multivitamin that was designed to improve immune function. The other group received a placebo.
Before and after the supplementation started, researchers measured the level of minerals and vitamins in the participants’ blood. They also measured how well their immune function system was currently working by looking at various immune markers in their blood.
At the end of the study, researchers saw that the people who had taken the multivitamin successfully raised their zinc and vitamin C levels — both of which are super important to maintaining a robust immune system.
People who took the multivitamin also reported being sick for a shorter time and having fewer symptoms than people who didn’t take the supplement. Researchers said people in the multivitamin group were ill for fewer than three days on average, while people in the placebo group were sick for an average of six days.
Regardless of your age, if you want to keep your immune system healthy this winter and beyond, you may want to start (or keep) taking a quality multivitamin.
Besides A Quality Multivitamin, What Else Should I Have In My Medicine Chest?
- Helps maintain collagen
- Helps form red blood cells
- Provides antioxidant protection against free radicals
- Supports the immune system
- Supports bone health
- Supports calcium balance
- Supports cardiovascular function
- Supports healthy cell growth
- Supports immune system modulation
- Supports modulates the immune system
- Supports healthy skin
- Supports proper growth and development
- Supports healthy metabolism
- Supports healthy reproduction
- Supports immune and nervous system health
- Supports healthy blood sugar levels
- Supports hearing and visual acuity
Arabinogalactan: Arabino from the Larch Tree Extract:
- A good source of fiber
- Have a variety of beneficial effects on the body
- Help balance the immune response
- Two times more potent than Echinacea
- Support the growth of friendly probiotic bacteria
- Support colon health
- Recommended for Immune System Support
- Arabinogalactans support a balanced immune response and insulin levels within normal ranges*
- Arabinogalactans support immune cell activation and healthy cell replication
- Support natural killer cell and macrophage activation
- For any age!
DMG or dimethylglycine is an adaptogen that can maintain good health and benefit performance and productivity. DMG supports:
- Physical and mental performance.
- Oxygen utilization, Asthma, and COPD
- Strengthening of both arms of the immune system, including antibody, lymphocyte, and cytokine production.
- Detoxification, especially in the liver.
- Circulation and vascular health.
- Glucose and fat metabolism.
- Blood pressure, cholesterol, triglycerides, and homocysteine levels within normal ranges.
- Physical and mental energy levels by reducing lactic acid build-up during periods of stress.
- Mental alertness and brain function.
- Overall body health by acting as an indirect methyl donor and providing useful building units for the biosynthesis of vitamins, hormones, neurotransmitters, antibodies, and nucleic acids.
NAC or N-Acetyl Cysteine helps support healthy lung tissue and the body’s natural defenses, including cellular health. It also helps break down mucus in the respiratory tract, rebuild lung tissue, and support immune cells’ activation to support immunity.
Olivir or Olive Leaf Extract should be on your list as the number one choice in natural antivirals. As well as being an extraordinary virucide, it is also a bactericide fighting a host of common disease-causing bacteria.
Probiotics: Research indicates that probiotics support immune health by enhancing B cell, T cell, and NK cell function. Additionally, they support healthy cytokine production, particularly in the colon.
Quercetin: Quercetin is known for its antioxidant activity and anti-allergic properties characterized by stimulation of the immune system, antiviral activity. Quercetin supports healthy mast cell function, which mediates inflammatory responses. Quercetin also promotes cardiovascular health by protecting lipids from oxidation and supporting capillaries’ health by enhancing their strength and integrity. Bonus, Quercetin can also help control allergies!
Sources:
- Aging Lowers Your Immunity – Live Science
- Multivitamin supplement linked to less-severe, shorter-lasting illness symptoms – MedicalXpress.
To find out more about what you can do to fight off viral and bacterial infections during the winter season, call Doctor’s Nutrition Today at 228-897-0070 and talk to one of our doctors (DC) about your health.
