After a hot summer, which is untypical for our latitude and which brought many people to their limits with above-average temperatures, the cold season now follows with uncomfortably cold temperatures. The current wave of colds shows the challenges that the harsh climate poses to the immune system. My customers also have to interrupt their training because of a cold, which prevents them from progressing.
In the following I will show you how best to behave in order to strengthen your body accordingly.
An important aspect in this context is the balance between TH1 and TH2 immune cells, which each take on very different functions in the immune system and cover certain aspects of the defense reaction.
TH1 cells activate our killer T cells. To put it simply, they do not fight bacteria or pathogens directly, but rather kill infected cells in your own organism, i.e. cells that are affected and diseased by the pathogens. In this way, the immune system ensures that diseased cells cannot spread.
TH2 cells, on the other hand, activate the B cells, also stimulate the mast cells and lead to the formation of neutralizing antibodies that directly destroy pathogens – for example pathogens such as bacteria and viruses – so that they can no longer cause damage. Put simply, they do not kill diseased cells, but rather the triggers of the disease.
In a healthy state, the balance between TH1 and TH2 immune responses is situationally regulated according to the current requirements of the organism. However, many factors can lead to a permanent, chronic dominance of one of these defense mechanisms.
A reliable means of activating TH2 cells is adequate sleep. Today, 80-90% of people suffer from chronic sleep deprivation. How much sleep each person has to sleep varies greatly and also depends on everyday stress. The optimum is therefore individual.
Factors that make up a healthy sleep:
– Fall asleep within 5 minutes.
– Sleep through. Even if it seems normal to most; waking up at night is not normal. Even if you have to go to the toilet. The bladder has a capacity of 1-2 liters. Anyone who is awakened by the urge to urinate is not sleeping deeply enough.
– Wake up by itself. Anyone who is woken up by an alarm clock has not slept enough.
What promotes good sleep:
– To bed before midnight. Every hour before midnight counts twice.
– Reduce electrosmoke as much as possible: Cell phone out of the bedroom (airplane mode is a bit better than without), turn off electrical devices, unplug electrical devices, remove electrical devices from the room. Progression before perfection also applies here, e.g. unplugging electrical devices is better than switching them off.
– Turn off the WiFi or no WiFi in the bedroom. With us it is now the case that the W-Lan switches itself off from midnight until 05:00.
– No direct light in front of the eye after 8:00 p.m.: laptop, desktop, mobile phone, etc. TV is ok because it is not that close to the eye.
Little sleep, in turn, leads to increased stress reactions. And a lot of stress activates TH1 or disturbs the balance between TH1 and TH2 and compromises the immune system. You should therefore initiate stress-reducing measures as far as possible.
Carbohydrates usually have a stress-reducing effect (see also my Instagram-post).
Diet certainly also plays an important role in the immune system. Everyone is familiar with a handful of foods that, once eaten, cause an uncomfortable gut reaction. Whether bread and pasta or dairy products or just junk food. They irritate the gut, leading to inflammation in the gut and thus weakening the body’s immune system. The gut and the microbiome, which are all the bacteria that are in our gut, have a significant impact on our immune system and health. The gut immune system is the largest compartment of the immune system and about 80% of all immunologically active cells are located in the gut lining, thereby influencing the body’s overall immune system. And of course the intestines are also responsible for the absorption of important nutrients. It is now recognized, among other things, that zinc, vitamin C, vitamin B6, vitamin B12 and folic acid contribute to normal immune function. So when you eat things that irritate or inflame your gut, you reduce your immune function. This can be lactose, fructose, gluten or something else. Most of the time, the stomach bloated. You should also make sure you are getting enough protein. This is also individual. The immune system is built on protein. Low protein consumption has been shown to reduce immune function (see also: https://www.healthcoach-bardo.de/ist-zu-viel-protein-ungesund/ ).
The variety of your diet also determines how many intestinal bacteria you have. Probiotics help as long as you take them. The microorganisms occur naturally in lactic acid products such as yoghurt, kefir, buttermilk, but also in preserves such as sauerkraut, pickles or kimchi. Prebiotics, on the other hand, are the indigestible components of food, such as fibers such as inulin and oligofructose, which nourish the gut bacteria and promote growth and activity of the bacteria in the colon. You can consume them every day and thus support your intestinal flora. For example root vegetables such as celeriac, carrots, sweet potatoes or simply vegetables that you tolerate well. A lack of vitamin D also leads to a weakened immune system. Many studies reveal a glaring vitamin D deficit. Your vitamin D blood level should not be below 75 nanomoles per liter. As a reminder, our main source of vitamin D is sunlight. In most western countries, the sun’s rays decrease in autumn and the falling temperatures lure us less outdoors: our vitamin D production is drastically reduced, until the end of March. So you are well advised to start using vitamin D-rich foods (herring, beef or cod liver, eggs, etc.) and vitamin D supplements from now on. Opt for daily intakes rather than mega-doses of vitamin D as that is more in line with human biology.
My secret tip for a resilient body is “Laughter”. In fact, studies have shown that the body’s resistance to disease is increased when a person laughs a lot. Studies in the genotology of modern laughter research show this. The American immunologist Lee Berg and his colleagues observed that the circulation of certain immune substances is increased for hours after a vigorous laugh. The number of T lymphocytes increases. The activity and number of natural killer cells are also increased. And the antibodies of the immunoglobulins multiply. Interferon-gamma, which the cells release to fight a virus infection, is also increasingly detectable in the blood after a good laugh. Laughing is healthy. Laughter strengthens the immune system. A baby laughs about 200 times a day. An adult only about 40 times a day. Depressive people were rightly prioritized for the corona vaccination.
Do strength training! It has been proven that the production of the so-called myokines is increased by strength training. The muscle healing substances have a variety of tasks. A single myokin species can act on multiple organs at the same time. Interleukin-6, for example, stimulates the formation of new immune cells and has an anti-inflammatory effect. Science has only been able to prove in detail in recent years how diverse the positive effects of strength training are. They range from the well-known, strengthening effects on muscles, tendons, ligaments and joints to improving cardiovascular function and therapeutic benefits in the treatment of mental illnesses. In my daily practice, I sometimes observe a remarkable increase in quality of life, which never ceases to amaze me.
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