Well for one, more people are going to be getting a lot more fresh air this month. That may portend great things in diminishing somewhat what otherwise could have been a lot more winter crud going around. Fresh air in the outdoors is something I’m not taking for granted anymore. Why?

My architectural student daughter has classes and does studio work with a number of Chinese students. They come from all parts of China, but one thing most have in common is they come from many of China’s burgeoning cities. She’s noticed a few of them doing something fascinating: opening windows in the classrooms and in their dorm rooms to take in Iowa’s fresh air, even when outside temps are frigid. The faculty sometimes needs to tell them to close the windows and keep the heat in. The students have been so used to poor air quality in their homeland that they can’t get enough of this new found clean air.

Can a good daily dose of fresh, outside air help your immune function? Maybe and maybe indirectly. For one thing, being outside usually means…unless you’re snoozing in a hammock…you are getting some kind of exercise like walking, running, yard work, whatever. Science has shown moderate exercise can strengthen immune function.

Getting outdoors regularly also seems to be a trait in people who aren’t sick a lot. And, being outdoors means less time spent inside where furnace heat can dry out air, and germs and viruses can circulate and live longer.

I know we’ll soon have some snow here and the temps will get back to reality. But for now, I’m gonna enjoy it as much as I can. I played disc golf a few days ago in the balmy weather. Maybe tonight it will be mai tais on the deck under the tiki lights.

“One well-known study in 1979 found that when a plane sat three hours with its engines off and no air circulating, 72% of the 54 people on board got sick within two days. The flu strain they had was traced to one passenger. For that reason, the Federal Aviation Administration issued an advisory in 2003 to airlines saying that passengers should be removed from planes within 30 minutes if there’s no air circulation, but compliance isn’t mandatory.”

Man I hope that doesn’t happen on our trip. I will be slamming plenty of EpiCor before, during and after.

And, here are some “fun” (gross)  plane horror stories from flight attendants that will really spell it out for you:

bacteria to the human gut, helping to support digestive health by increasing the amount of good bacteria. Prebiotics (such as EpiCor plus a variety of fruits and vegetables) contain natural matter that help feed the beneficial bacteria already in the gut, helping to promote growth of that bacteria.

As we all know by now (right?!) a healthy amount of beneficial bacteria in the gut determines a great portion of how well your immune system functions. The health site Vitabase gives a good overview:

“The role of probiotics in immune function has been studied for decades. Scientists were curious as to why our bodies would strike up such a close relationship with these bugs. The most crucial role probiotics seem to play for humans is that of training the immune system. Most people don’t know that 60-70% of their immune system is located in the gut as a vast network of lymph tissue referred to as GALT (gut associated lymphatic tissue). The probiotics in our gut are constantly interfacing with the GALT and essentially priming the immune system for contact with other bacteria. They serve as a way for the body to learn how to respond to bacteria without actually having to suffer an infection. This becomes particularly important in young children whose immune system is in constant state of development until about age 7.”

One question I have on prebiotics vs. probiotics: Is one better than the other? One BBC piece does a head to head comparison of cowboy “poo” to try to find a winner. And prebiotics won. This study probably won’t find its way to the New England Journal of Medicine, but it’s fun to read.  Another source sizes up the two, and concludes both could be beneficial in certain health circumstances. With probiotics, one issue is that it is difficult to know if most or even a majority of the live bacteria in a delivery system (yogurt, pills/capsules, etc.) actually make it to the gut. A lot of bacteria can get destroyed during processing, shipping and shelf time. So you may be spending money for additional bacteria that are not bioactive anymore.

For example, do most people know that allergies are a direct result of an over-aggressive immune response?  Do they also know that immune response can be a big part of joint and muscle inflammation?  Or how about cellular inflammation? That affects heart disease, obesity, etc. And don’t forget digestive health, where 70% of immune response starts. Digestive tract microflora, also known as beneficial gut bacteria, helps drive overall immune response, absorption of nutrients into the body, even brain health and cognitive function.

And I’m sure I haven’t even begun to cover all of the health ramifications of good immune health.

So when you talk about maintaining a healthy, balanced immune function,  just know it’s much more than colds and flu.

@napernurse (Dawn McKinney) tweeted about some good medical advice that connects lack of sleep with immune dysregulation and inflammation in the body. Inflammation is the root of all things evil, right?

@fyiliving passed along to me a brief piece about public transit riders and exposure to germs that could result in making you sick more often. Yet, the story points to research that shows frequent riders may be exposing themselves to microbes regularly enough that they build a stronger, more responsive immune defense as a result, and may actually reduce their chance of getting sick. The Hygiene Hypothesis in action.

@Dr_Vijaya_Nair links to a story on how chiropractic can impact immune health, as the nervous system is synced with the body’s immune system at various junctures.  Since chiropractic adjustment techniques are designed to reduce misaligned pressure on nerve pathways, this may also impact immune health as well.

]]> http://www.balancedimmunehealth.com/2011/04/twitter-highlights-on-immune-health-some-cool-stuff/feed/ 0 http://www.balancedimmunehealth.com/2011/03/a-new-immune-study-involving-gut-bacteria-and-stress-has-me-a-bit-confused/ http://www.balancedimmunehealth.com/2011/03/a-new-immune-study-involving-gut-bacteria-and-stress-has-me-a-bit-confused/#comments Wed, 23 Mar 2011 02:32:06 +0000 Craig Maltby, Editor http://www.balancedimmunehealth.com/?p=2784 A medical blog associated with Stanford University School of Medicine today talks about some new research

gut bacteria

showing that stress can disrupt the balance of good/bad bacteria in the gut, thereby impacting immune function in the body. The basic concept has been studied before and has several published reports supporting it. The blog post today talks about an Ohio State/Texas Tech study that showed stress led to “changes in the composition, diversity and number of microorganisms in the gut. As a result, bacterial communities in the intestine became less diverse, and had greater numbers of potentially harmful bacteria…”

What stumps me is a passage from the research summary stating, from the lead researcher, “”When we reduced the number of bacteria in the intestines using antibiotics, we found that some of the effects of stress on the immune system were prevented”, he added. “This suggests that not only does stress change the bacteria levels in the gut, but that these alterations can, in turn, impact our immunity.”  I don’t get it. If bacteria in the gut were reduced, I would tend to think the effects of stress on the immune system would not be prevented, but rather would be amplified. Lower, imbalanced gut microflora should  mean less effective immune response. What am I missing?

Further into the piece comes a section that helps spell out the role of intestinal bacteria and immune function:

“The gastrointestinal tract is a complex and dangerous frontier.
All the nutrients required for life must pass through, while the bad guys are kept out. Given the large area, there is much that can go wrong, leading to a huge range of ailments. In keeping with its immense surface area and intense exposure to foreign antigens, the intestinal tract is the largest organ of immune surveillance and response in the human body.”

Yes, the gut is ground zero for the immune cavalry’s ride to the rescue in the rest of the body.  But what about the relationship to those parasites? As the Galland points out:

“…over two-thirds of your body’s immune system is located in the wall of the small intestine. The immune cells (called lymphocytes) leave the intestine and travel all over your body. When activated by a parasitic infection, they can carry the inflammatory message to your joints, your skin, your eyes, and your lungs.”

Hmmm. Interesting. We’ve talked in this blog about over-reaction of immune defenders being a big reason for all kinds of inflammation in the body. Now, it may appear immune cells are coded with inflammatory instructions spawning from parasitic infections in the gut, kind of like creating a bunch of Manchurian Candidates that go out and take up residence in the rest of the body.

Goes to show that balancing these good/bad role players in the body is highly complex.

“My concern is symptoms. How does one know that their immune system is not balanced? Are there any signs to suspect?”

I’ll start broadly, and link as much support information as I can. And, keep in mind, these are my thoughts only. I am a health enthusiast who has read a lot about immune health and things that impact immune function, but I am not a doctor or health care professional. And, my thoughts are my thoughts only, not any proxied endorsement of this blog sponsor or any other entity.

First off, if you are someone who catches everything that’s going around–cold, flu, related respiratory tract illnesses, etc.–and you catch it  multiple times throughout the year, you may have a severely imbalanced immune response.  Many people believe a weak immune system allows colds to occur over and over. That may be a myth. It could  be that the passive end of your immune system…suppressor cells that make sure your aggressive cells don’t over react…are not working to keep aggressive immune cells in check.  In other words, if you get a slight bug, your immune response could be way over the top, turning what should be a mild cold into prolonged,  miserable ordeal.

If you have pronounced allergy symptoms–again, over-aggressive immune response to pollen or dust that causes your histamine factory to crank out copious amounts of phlegm, skin irritation, etc.— that may be a sign of immune imbalance.

And don’t forget stress. Stress can cause immune function to go haywire. If you are under significant stress for long periods of time, and you seem to always get sick when the stress comes around, that may be another sign of immune imbalance. Stress, accompanied by lack of sleep, poor nutrition, other bad habits from stress, can divert immune function from where it should be working, allowing health problems to fester.

I could probably meander on endlessly, but I hope that provides at least a good start about the immune balance concept and “real world” examples of what it might mean.

Triclosan: and EDC-classified molecule

Don’t forget that acronym: EDC. It stands for “endocrine disrupting compound.” A new University of Michigan study suggests that exposure to an EDC substance called triclosan, found in antibacterial soaps and other products like diaper bags and toothpaste, may be linked to higher instances of allergies among young people age 18 and under.

The endocrine system is the hormone production center for the body. Hormones can be a significant modulator of immune cell activity.

The author of the study had this summarizing statement about exposure to triclosan: “The triclosan findings in the younger age groups may support the ‘hygiene hypothesis,’ which maintains living in very clean and hygienic environments may impact our exposure to micro-organisms that are beneficial for development of the immune system,” said Allison Aiello, associate professor at the U-M School of Public Health and principal investigator on the study.

Keep in mind, this study is simply an analysis of data collected from 2003 to 2006. It was not a direct intervention study where participant were given a compound and compared to a placebo group. The evidence for EDCs and immune function is still being debated and far from settled.

Once in a while, it’s kind of interesting to see what the latest science is showing in terms of a molecule actually impacting the behavior, not of immune cells, but of the actual bacterium itself.  Please welcome to our show, the cranberry, or more specifically, cranberry juice.

Some new research has come from the Worcester Polytechnic Institute (I know, not a research mecca like Berkeley or MIT…it’s located in Worcester, Mass, but appears to be a nice little sci/tech specialty school). It shows that cranberry juice itself, when consumed by people with a history of urinary tract infection (UTI), appears to decrease the number of UTI’s over a 12 month period. It also appears to inhibit the wicked antibiotic-resistant MRSA staph infection

Apparently, cranberry juice can alter the e.coli bacterium in UTI occurrences by blunting and curling up the sharp little claws, called fimbriae, on e.coli germs that otherwise allow the e.coli to attach to other cells in the urinary tract and multiply.

The juice also almost completely eliminated MRSA bacteria from being able to form a thin biofilm on human tissue, where normally MRSA bacteria would proliferate.

It’s all fascinating. I’m not saying go drink a quart of cranberry juice each day with your EpiCor and become a walking health fortress. But it is cool to continue seeing confirmation of whole foods’ and supplements’ potential to promote healing and health.