As we sit on the verge of tighter lockdown restrictions, immunity is back in the focus of us all. Even if you take COVID-19 out of the equation, it’s still a good idea for us all to take steps to improve our level of immunity. With seasonal flu, the common cold and who-knows-how-many other diseases out and about, it’s always worth taking steps to make sure you give yourself at least a fighting chance when it comes to avoiding illness.
So what does science say about boosting immunity naturally?
There’s a lot of nonsense when it comes to common remedies and treatments for illness - hot toddy for a cold, starving a fever, sweating out a virus. The reality is, whilst there might be a tiny semblance of truth to some of these approaches, they’re not effective in the slightest.
Immunity starts inside, with what we feed ourselves and how we treat our exercise, rest and recovery.
What we know is that immunity is an ever-changing picture and that our actions and behaviours need to change throughout the year. We have seasonal illnesses - the question is, do these viruses spread in the winter because of the time of year, or are other factors to blame?
We know that viruses are ever-present and can be caught at any time of the year. We’re always exposed to illness, but we don’t always catch it. There’s a couple of main reasons for this…
Our immune system is able to cope with the threat.
The viral load is lower.
These two factors can have a huge impact on our likelihood of picking up an illness. The viral load is one in particular that we have more limited control over, so we have to be vigilant.
What’s viral load?
The best way to explain this is using a candle analogy…
Imagine a candle burning. If you move your hand quickly through the flame, you don’t get burned. You can do this over and over again, but you’ll be fine. Your exposure to the heat isn’t enough to cause damage.
Now, imagine you hold your hand a couple of inches above the flame and leave it there for 20 seconds - you’ll cause yourself a horrible burn injury. Same candle, same hand, but the exposure is deeper and longer.
This is what can happen during a pandemic or a seasonal illness. You’ll be exposed to more people with a virus, more often. If you sit next to someone in an office who is infected, your chance of infection is significantly higher than if you pass them in the street - you’ve been exposed to the virus at closer quarters and for a much longer time span.
In order to reduce the impact that viral load has on us, we need to boost our immune system. Here’s how we go about that, backed by science…
Exercise and Immunity
There are almost no physical processes that aren’t improved or enhanced by exercise and immunity one of them. Regular exercise has been shown to promote the activity of a number of immunological processes, making the immune system both more effective and more efficient. There is a word of warning though - too much exercise, for too long has been linked with decreased immunity.
Overtraining is a real thing and one that we should be careful to avoid, because there are serious negative affects when it comes to immunity.
Dietary Advice
There are some obvious points here - make sure you are consuming plenty of fruit and vegetables, drinking lots of water and keeping alcohol consumption low. Nothing mind-blowing here, but it’s sometimes good policy just to remind you of the basics.
On top of this, there is supplementation advice we can offer you. Research shows that vitamin D is important when it comes to immunity, so all of those of us who live in the UK should be supplementing with vitamin D throughout the winter as our sunlight exposure reduces so dramatically. Zinc is also backed by solid supporting evidence when it comes to boosting immune function.
Sleep Well
Sleep is the most restorative process our bodies can go through, so ensuring we achieve around 7 or more hours per night is important. Sleep deprivation has an immediate and profound impact on reducing immunity, making us significantly more susceptible to viral and bacterial infection. During times when viral load is higher, this is one of the key aspects of reduced immunity and one of the reasons why so many of us pick up seasonal bugs.
Follow the usual advice of no caffeine in the 2-3 hours before bed time, sleep in a dark, quiet and cool room, stick to a similar bedtime, try not to drink too much water in the lead up to sleep, to stop you getting up to go to the toilet.
Boosting Immunity, Concluded
Whilst immunity is forefront in our minds during the depths of a global pandemic, the reality is the steps we take to improve our immunity benefit us in lots of ways. These steps are the pillars of good health - eat well, exercise well, sleep well. They also protect us from a huge range of bugs, not just COVID-19 because it’s in the press at the moment.
There’s no 100% certain way of avoiding viral and bacterial infections, but by following these steps and improving your immunity, you’re at least giving yourself a fighting chance. At a time when the world is on extra precautions, it may be time to address your own risk factors.
At AdMac Fitness we’re not about fads, fashions and short term fixes. We want you to succeed properly over the long term, so with our help and advice you can get your fitness back on track! If you’d like us to help you, contact us on 07921465108 or email us at admacfitness@gmail.com. We look forward to hearing from you!