OnCore Nutrition - Two Peas in a Podcast

Episode 26: Coronavirus - our tips to optimise your immune system

Episode Summary

If you’re tired of panicking about the coronavirus, we’ve got some stuff you can actually do! We’re bringing you our top tips on nutrition and lifestyle to prime your immune system to keep you well

Episode Notes

Coronavirus 

The WHO COVID-19 Situation Report as of March 5 reports 95,333 confirmed cases globally, including 3,282 deaths

Our immune systems declines by about 2-3% a year from our 20s, which is why older people are more susceptible to infections

Mortality rates from diseases like pneumonia and bronchitis are three times higher among elderly people.

Our top 10 tips to optimise your immune system

1. Spice up your life. 

Use of garlic (allicin may boost our immune system), onions, ginger, turmeric, cayenne pepper, chilli, cinnamon, cloves, star anise, ginger, cumin in your cooking will boost your antioxidant intake. They may also assist with natural detoxification processes and may possess antimicrobial properties.

2. Get plenty of polyphenols. These can help in numerous ways to activate our immune system and initiate immune responses. 

• Drink green or black tea, red wine
• Use herbs in cooking (Peppermint, oregano, sage, rosemary, thyme, basil, lemon verbena, parsley, marjoram), dark choc, berries (the darker the colour the better)
• Add nuts and seeds to salad, brekky, snacks
• Cook with EVOO and enjoy olives
• Eat plenty of fresh fruit + veg 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5925142/pdf/JIR2018-1264074.pdf

3. Sweet dreams

7-9hrs sleep can boost the spread of T-cells which fight infection in the body. One study also showed that just one night of 4 hours’ sleep depleted the body’s natural killer cells by 70%.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3256323/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8621064

4. Remember that you’re sweet enough

Eating or drinking high GI carbohydrates and simple sugars can reduce our immune response. Studies have suggested that after a dose of sugar, certain white blood cells called neutrophils were far less aggressive in attacking bacteria. Some viral studies suggest sugar may help!

The body, and immune system needs glucose - we;re best off getting it from complex, slow release or low GI CHOs so we don’t have spikes in BGL. And if you’re keen to indulge, you might be better off doing so after exercise, so the uptake goes to the liver and muscles to replenish what you’ve used. 

https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article-abstract/26/11/1180/4732762

https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2016/09/glucose-inflammation/498965/

5. Get your vitamins and minerals - but don’t jump for a pill.

Various micronutrients are essential for immunocompetence, particularly vitamins A, C, D, E, B2 (riboflavin), B6 (poultry, seeds, fish, chickpeas), and B12, folic acid, iron, selenium, and zinc.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6212925/

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2018.03160/full

Include brightly coloured fruits and vegetables, including berries, citrus fruits, kiwi, apples, red grapes, kale, onions, spinach, sweet potatoes, and carrots.

Omega-3 fats - nuts, seeds, oily fish (and shellfish for Zn), avo

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6834330/

6. Take care of your gut

• Our intestines encounter more antigens than any other part of the body
• As many pathogens enter the body via the intestinal mucosa, it is vital the gut-associated lymphoid tissues (GALT) can provide effective immune responses when necessary.
• GALT represents almost 70% of the entire immune system and about 80% of plasma cells (mainly IgA-bearing cells) reside in GALT.
• Probiotics, prebiotics and gut health -  Imbalances in the gut microbiota may dysregulate immune responses.
• Listen in to our next few weeks where we’re planning an extra special gut loving episode

https://www.nature.com/articles/nri3738

https://www.immunology.org/public-information/bitesized-immunology/organs-and-tissues/immunity-in-the-gut

7. Stress less Easier said than done if you’re running out of toilet paper!

The brain and the immune system are buddies. They’re  in constant communication. When we’re stressed, the brain produces more cortisol to  prepare the body for emergency situations. But in doing so it depresses our immune system. Relaxation exercises like yoga, meditation, mindful colouring, get into nature, paint your nails, walk the dog, play with puppies take a bath, light a candle, whatever works for you!

8. Exercise - studies suggest you’re more likely to get colds if you don’t exercise. The impact that exercise has on sleep quality might also indirectly strengthen our immune systems. We know CV is a virus which attacks our lungs, the better our lung function is the better you will be able to cope with the virus. If you don’t exercise, now is a great time to get started!

9. Keep warm 

Cold viruses may be more infectious at temperatures lower than 37°C, which is the average core body temperature. Despite this, most health experts agree that the reason winter is "cold and flu season" is not that people are cold, but that they spend more time indoors, in closer contact with other people who can pass on their germs.

Some experiments with mice suggest that cold exposure might reduce the ability to cope with infection.

10. Drink up! Staying hydrated helps your body naturally eliminate toxins and other bacteria that might cause illness. Aim for 35-45ml/kg/day.

We’ve spoken about this before - chicken veggie soup kill multiple birds with one stone - warm liquid, protein, vitamins and minerals. 

Supplements:

• Many over-the-counter products claim to ‘boost’ your immune system, but there is little evidence to show that they do. 
• If you have a poor diet, it may help to take a daily multivitamin, but the preference is to get all your nutrients, including vitamins, minerals and bioactive compounds from food, negating the need for supplements
• If you include a diet with lots of veg, fruit, wholegrains or legumes, nuts, seeds or oily fish – your immune system should have everything it needs to run optimally.
• NAC or N-Acetyl Cysteine is the supplemental form of cysteine, a semi-essential amino acid. It’s considered semi-essential because your body can produce it from other amino acids, methionine and serine, and it only becomes essential when we don’t get enough methionine and serine. NAC and glutathione also boost immune health.
• A test-tube study indicated that in other immune-compromised situations, such as the flu, NAC may hamper the virus’s ability to replicate. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19732754
• Most protein-rich foods, such as chicken, turkey, yogurt, cheese, eggs, sunflower seeds and legumes contain cysteine
• For your body to make the amino acid cysteine, you need adequate amounts of folate, vitamin B6 and vitamin B12, which you can get from beans, lentils, spinach, bananas, salmon and tuna.
• NAC has low bioavailability as an oral supplement, meaning that it’s not well absorbed. High doses can cause GI upset. 
• Zinc - An analysis of several clinical trials show that short-term use of zinc lozenges may reduce the length of a cold if started within 24 hours of cold symptoms.
• Blends such as ‘Armaforce’ - blend of herbal and nutritional ingredients andrographis, echinacea, olive leaf, vitamin C and zinc
• Andrographis - Indian Echinacea - may reduce reduce duration and severity of cold and flu symptoms
• Echinacea - studies are mixed and generally don’t support its use. One clinical trial supports the use of echinacea for reducing the length of colds, but not the severity of symptoms. One large trial suggests a specific echinacea formulation could be as effective as a prescription drug to treat influenza, with fewer side effects.
• Olive leaf extract - In vitro studies show that OLE has antimicrobial activities against some infective agents including E. coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staph. aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Candida albicans 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12870202

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17873849

• Vitamin C - Absorption is also to some extent dependent on the dosing regimen, e.g, there would be better absorption with 250 mg taken four times daily than 1,000 mg taken once daily. 1000 is the prudent upper limit and it’s very easy to get the RDI of 45mg/d with fruit + veg 
• AVOID vitamin E supplements - no significant evidence that supplements support the immune system and research suggests possibly more harm than good (stroke and cardiac issues)
• Essential oils  - Some EOs have demonstrated immune enhancing properties but caution in pregnancy, blood pressure issues or epilepsy

Most supplements have dosage and interaction warnings. If you have any medical conditions or take any medications or supplements please check with your doctor, pharmacist or dietitian to ensure no interactions. 

https://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/diagnosis-treatment/symptom-management/integrative-medicine/herbs/search