Please share this with your family and friends. We could all use a little natural immune support this time of year.
So it’s that time of year again, cold and flu season. But now we’ve got a new problem, the coronavirus! So I decided to update my yearly blog on the immune system, in order to handle the three of them the best way we know possible.
Before I get into my favorite supplements for the immune system, I thought it best to cover the basics first. Without these down pat, supplements will not help much, if at all. If you have these handled first, your immune system will have a much easier time with anything that comes its way.
1. Get enough sleep
The average person should probably get about 7 to 8 hours per night. Not making this a priority boggles my mind. Everyone should know that getting less than seven hours of sleep will suppress your immune system. So, get 7 to 8 hours per night.
2. Don’t eat sugar
Depending on the study, sugar can suppress your immune system 50% for up to eight hours. I think we all should realize that if we’re not feeling so great, and we go on a sugar binge, we get sick more often. For more information on healthy diet – the foundation of health! – check out this article.
3. Get enough—but not too much—exercise
Once again, study after study shows that getting enough exercise, but not too much exercise, is a healthy stimulus for the immune system. Why is too much exercise bad for the immune system? Because it causes the release of stress hormones which suppress immunity and depletes key vitamins and minerals necessary to the immune system such as vitamin C, B complex, potassium and magnesium. As a general recommendation, 3 to 5 hours per week is optimum: three hours if you’re not used to it, five hours if you are.
4. Wash your hands!
I listened to a recent podcast with Chris Kresser that stated that only 20% of people actually wash their hands properly! Yuck! If you’ve ever been in an airport bathroom, I would say this estimation is correct! I see people walk out of the stalls all the time, and just go about their way without even washing their hands!
The moral is, wash your hands with soap and water for 15 seconds every time you use the bathroom, or any time you feel you may have touched an infected surface. In this study, it’s stated that if 60% of people wash their hands properly, communicable diseases with decreased by 70%! As an aside, it seems like hand sanitizers are bad for your microbiome, so unless you can’t wash your hands, you don’t need to use them, and they might actually be harmful. Just wash your hands after using the bathroom!
5. Support your immune system naturally
Here is the list of things are that are not well-known ways to help your immune system naturally.
Fight the infection that you already have.
I was shocked. When I first started running blood tests and urinalysis on all of my patients, I would say that conservatively, 1/3 to 1/2 of my patients had some kind of acute or chronic infection that I did not even know about! Killing the already existing infection will strengthen your immune system against any potential cold or flu. All you need is a complete blood count and a urinalysis from any lab to find these.
Make sure you’re blood sugar is balanced.
Once again, once I started running lab tests on all my patients, I would say that 1/3 to 1/2 of all my patients had non- optimal blood sugar. Blood sugar issues wreck your immunity because of the inflammation they cause throughout your body.
Handle all the nutritional deficiencies that you have.
As confirmed via blood test, a lot of people have suboptimal levels of vitamin D, magnesium, zinc, vitamin B, and other nutrients. Eating the right foods that contain these nutrients, and supplementing where needed will give a much needed boost your immune system.
In the fifth step, the best way to support your immune system naturally is to get checked using nutrition response testing and functional blood chemistry. However, not all people have access to this. For these people, the following protocol is a great background immune system support protocol. All these supplements can be gotten through Standard Process. If you are patient, call our office, and we can set you up with an online account with Standard Process. If you are not a patient, click on this link to talk to our nutritionist to make sure that this is the right protocol for you.
NATURAL IMMUNE SYSTEM SUPPORT PROTOCOL
In order of priority:
Cataplex D – 6/day – helps to regulate the healthy production of inflammatory cytokines, normalizing immune function, and decreasing inflammation. https://www.standardprocess.com/products/cataplex-d
Cataplex AC – 9/day – natural immune support for bowel infection and flu. This supplement boosts that part of your immune system that specifically fights viruses. Many a patient has staved off the flu using cataplex AC. https://www.standardprocess.com/products/cataplex-a-c
Trace Minerals B12 – 3/day – Broad-spectrum mineral support for immune defenses. Most people are deficient in many minerals, especially trace minerals, which depletes their immune system. Also greatly assists in metal detoxification (metal toxicity will really disable you immune system). https://www.standardprocess.com/products/Trace-Minerals-B12
Zinc Liver Chelate – 1/day – Targeted immune support for immune defense. Zinc helps stop viral replication and is deficient in most people. https://www.standardprocess.com/products/zinc-liver-chelate
Calcium Lactate-6/day-Calcium is used to initiate immune system response. In fact, when the body develops a fever, it is actually liberating calcium from the bones to aid in the immune response (that’s why giving calcium lactate to a child when they have a fever will quickly reduce a fever-it’s giving the body what it wants, what a novel concept!) https://www.standardprocess.com/products/calcium-lactate
Honorable mentions:
Immuplex – this should be higher on the list but is currently not available. Dose should be 3/day. Natural, broad-spectrum immune support, used to support all the organs in the immune system-the thymus, spleen, bones, liver, and lymphatic system. https://www.standardprocess.com/products/immuplex
Andrographis Complex – 3/day. Also not currently available. Several studies show this herb is effective to boost the immune system without a stimulating effect. https://www.standardprocess.com/products/andrographis-complex
At the onset of any cold or flu-like symptoms add:
Congaplex – 3/hour until you feel better then 6/day for 1 week – natural immune support for colds, sinus symptoms, etc. https://www.standardprocess.com/products/Congaplex is a blend of Cataplex AC, Calcium Lactate, and Thymex (used to support the center of the immune system, the thymus), for a kick butt acute immune system support product! https://www.standardprocess.com/products/thymex
Like I said before, A functional blood chemistry and Nutrition Response Testing analysis are the best ways to identify any nutritional deficiencies and/or imbalances that may be affecting your health. But in a pinch (or while waiting to come into our office) use the above protocol. Contact our office for more information.
To your good health!
Dr Keith Sheehan
Sheehan Natural Health Improvement Center
1301 East King Street
Lancaster, PA 17602 (717) 392-6606
