The result of immune balance? The possibility of fewer sick days, fewer “dragging” days, fewer physical problems due to chronic stress’s impact on immune cells.

So what simple things can you do to balance and maintain your immune system?  Here are five:

1. Eat smart. Reduce processed sugar, increase fruits and veggies. The Mediterranean Diet is considered a very good immune health diet.
2. Get sleep. Research shows lack of sleep increases stress levels and weakens immune function.
3. Get exercise.
4. Wash hands often.
5. Take supplements containing 500 mg dosing of EpiCor. Human clinical trials show EpiCor balances immune response.

There you go. The Immune Balance Five. Go forth and do them.

It’s also filled with lots of moms…and a few dads…with young children in tow. And, from hearing the coughs and seeing runny noses all year round, a number of those kids are sick. This could mean that such coffee places are more potent breeding grounds for colds and flu than home, school or work, since there is such a mix of kids and adults from wide areas that frequent Paneras and other such places.

If I were a stay-at-home parent or anyone else who regularly goes to coffee places stocked with lot of kids (here’s one in Seattle that specializes in making the coffee shop as close to a daycare center as possible), I’d do a lot to make sure my immune system was as balanced and in sync as possible.  EpiCor every day, hands down.

BTW, someone has taken coffee and immune health to the next level. They don’t have a retail chain yet, but maybe it’s coming.

Just remember this: there is no FDA approved cure or preventive treatment for the flu or cold. There may be a number products that are effective against symptoms, or may provide proven immune health support, but at this point that’s about as far as any product can go in talking about efficacy. And, those symptom improvers should have some legitimate published, peer-reviewed clinical trials behind them in order to talk to consumers about the topic.

Social media is a big and growing forum where non-prescription health products get discussed. Within several of the forums I’m active in, I’m constantly amazed at the conversations about things such as “cancer prevention” or treatment.  And of course weight loss is the king of the hill when it comes to wild health claims.  Sometimes, these treatment and prevention discussions are coming from natural health physicians or even M.D.’s (or those who claim to be such). Sometimes those claims are connected to a product promotion. Sometimes they are not. Either way, these  health experts should know better.

What is legit in the social media world?  I’m not a regulatory professional. My take is that if someone is taking a certain product and is experiencing certain benefits, by all means, that can be talked about on a blog or other forums.  But that person should not extrapolate his or her experience to the general population, inferring that because something worked for them individually, it will work for everyone.  And any discussion about efficacy across the board, if supported by research, should still be presented in terms of ”possibly reducing risk”  or “may be associated with…” blah blah blah.  And if a blogger or health community high-volume commenter is being compensated by a product company for their writing, that must be disclosed. The FTC has some relatively new rules about social media and health products.

Just remember, even the celebrated medical breakthroughs in our lifetimes were not preventive cures. Mumps,  measles, tuberculosis were illnesses that many thought had been eradicated from the face of the earth, only to show up again years later. The vaccines that helped change the health outcomes of an entire planet were products that greatly reduced risk of these diseases to an extraordinarily minuscule level, but did not absolutely prevent or cure them.  So any consumer health product that talks about disease prevention, treatments or cures–even if the spokesperson’s last name is Salk– should be highly questioned or possibly ignored.

Rebekah Winquest

I’m glad to present a post below from Rebekah Winquest, who runs a blog called Just Good Energy. She markets several natural food products, and also does product reviews by using the products herself.  And she does a fair amount of research about the product she’s taking. Right now, she’s taking EpiCor for an extended period. Posted below is her first review. I look forward to reading what she says about the rest of her EpiCor journey.

“I recently wrote an article on the top 20 most recommended and popular supplements for 2010. Included in that list is a product called Epicor. I had not personally taken this supplement but heard a lot of feedback that it helped people’s allergies, immune system, frequency of colds, etc. I have been in contact with the company Embria Health Sciences, who created Epicor, and have been taking it daily for the past 2 weeks along with researching and learning about the science behind Epicor.

Epicor starts off as the simple yeast saccharomyces cerevisiae, otherwise known as baker’s yeast. It is given oxygen to grow and is then put through a specific and unique fermentation and drying process, also known as “yeast fermentate”. It is the fermentation process that creates this unique product. The result is a superfood in my thinking – a whole food supplement that provides the body with not only extra nutrients but potent antioxidants and the ability to help balance the entire immune system. Nutritionally Epicor provides vitamins, minerals, aminos acids, antioxidants, and even beta-glucans.

What is interesting to me is that Epicor helps to “balance” the immune system compared to “boosting” the immune system. Keep in mind that autoimmune disorders, inflammatory disease and even allergies are overexcited immune systems that attack itself so obviously someone in that position could not take immune stimulating supplements. If you think about it, most immune-related products on the market are all about building the immune system but rarely have I found one that focuses on bringing it to an ideal balance or neutral state. We want our immune system to be ready at any given time to strengthen, as with the flu, or back down if needed, as with allergies. This balance is ideal and Epicor seems to have found a niche in this arena.

Now to my experiences… As most of you know I eat extremely healthy, drink green superfoods daily, consume plenty of antioxidant-rich foods and superfoods, stick to organic, and eat about 70% raw alkaline foods. I rarely get sick or catch colds and viruses from others. Here is the catch… From the day I got pregnant 2 years and 11 months ago I suddenly for the first time had allergies. I had a runny nose and sneezed daily until the day my son was born. It was so bazaar because I had never had an allergy in my life and now I had a very strong reaction to dust, and all environmental pollutants and even pollen! As soon as I stopped nursing my son the allergies kicked in really strong again. I tried all of the natural remedies that I had studied but nothing worked.

I began taking 500mg per day (1 capsule) of Epicor 2 weeks ago and suddenly realized a few days ago that I had sneezed and blew my nose maybe 4 times in the past 2 weeks, even with the pollen-rich air outside. I don’t want to jump too far down the road and say that I am 100% cured because of Epicor, but I do know that I feel better with my allergies and the only thing I have done different is take Epicor.

I have researched further that Epicor is not only great for helping to prevent occurrences of colds and the flu but can also help with inflammation. I am going to write about my experience with Epicor again in 2 weeks, after taking it for 1 month total and am curious to see if the inflammation that I often experience in my sciatic will improve (also started after having my adorable son).

For those concerned about taking Epicor while having a yeast infection or candida overgrowth: They claim that there is no similarity between the yeast used to make Epicor and Candida albicans, which is the unhealthy yeast strain that can flourish in the body causing infections and candida.

I would love to take it for the remainder of the year and see how I feel – it can be taken year round. Stay tuned for more updates.

Reference: “Epicor, The Key to a Balanced Immune System” by Larry Robinson, PHD, Vern S. Cherewatenko, MD, Med and Stuart Reeves, PHD”

Postscript from Craig: Thanks, Rebekah.  Since EpiCor is a nutritional supplement, I’m betting the people behind the product won’t assert that the ingredient will cure or prevent anything. But I do know that mulitple placebo-controlled, double-blind clinical trials have demonstrated a reduction in allergy and cold/flu symptom severity and duration among healthy people who took EpiCor. Hope your experience is similar.  

Still, today I was scanning some of the industry news that’s recently been distributed throughout the supplement industry. Since I’m particularly interested in immune support, I’ve done some quick searching of what’s new in the market. All I can say is wow! There are now more immune support products than I can ever recall seeing in the past. Just a sampling, if  you’ll allow me:

PeakImmune4®, “an essential immune support dietary supplement that provides vital antioxidant and anti-inflammatory action.  The active ingredient in PeakImmune4 is Rice Bran Arabinoxylan Compound (RBAC). A polysaccharide dietary fiber derived from rice bran, RBAC is modified by an enzyme from Shiitake mushrooms using a patented biotechnology process.”  But to view any science, you have to order it from the Web site and say why you’re interested.  Not cool.

Immune Extra® is an “all natural, vegetarian, clinically-tested supplement containing Proligna®, a botanical extract derived from pine cones that optimizes your immune system.” Hmmm. And how many pine cones are typically in the humam diet? Actually, this product does put forth a good immune balance discussion and seems to have some respectable science behind it.

KalmCold – Its makers in India say the active ingredient “is said to increase appetite, strengthen digestion and diminish flatulence, hyperacidity and biliousness. It is also utilized for treatment of many conditions like bacillary dysentery, bronchitis, carbuncles, colitis, coughs, dyspepsia, fever, hepatitis, malaria, mouth ulcers, sores and tuberculosis. The roots and leaves have a reputation for being anthelmintic.”  But no published science to be seen.

Equilibrant. Nice name. Implies balance. No science posted at all. The ingredients look like a mish-mash of about everything: Vit. D, Vit. A, Calcium, Selenium, Astragalus Root Extract, Shrubby Sophora Root Extract, Licorice Root Extract, Shittake Mushroom Extract.

Immune health is a hot supplement category right now and growing hotter. For many reasons. That’s even more reason to make sure you’re a wise consumer when considering a supplement product.  Make sure the manufacturer is safe and qualified to be producing the product. Insist of solid science. If you’re not confident in judging research quality, find an expert and ask him or her to assess the science. Read all you can about the brand and ingredients. And consult your doctor before taking anything new and untested in your dietary regimen.

Now, the immune balance supplementation science seems to be bearing itself out with respect to my experience. If immune balance doesn’t help ward off seasonal cold and influenza, it may help reduce length and severity of symptoms. The eyes are 90% cleared up after 24 hours. The bronchial crud made a very visible appearance, but has since receded in the past 36 hours. A mild cough did not balloon into a incessant hack and is not next to non-existent. I have not spent 5 minutes at the toilet coughing up gunk each morning and night. I’m sure sipping a couple of pear martinis at the neighbors’ house when this was starting didn’t help things, but I’m sure it wasn’t a game changer either way.

As for my daughters, one half-day at home for one of them has been it. The other is symptom-free so far. And throughout it all, no fever for anyone.  All in all, I’ll take this scenario any day.

A good time was had by all…

to Orlando, with stops at every McDonald’s, Wendy’s, Steak and Shake, and Arby’s in the Miwest and Southeast. We were in and out of buses while the temperature ranged from 0 to 20 something (even in Georgia!). And, of course, some girls and guys insisted on wearing shorts and flip-flops in sub-30 temps. Once in Orlando, we started in each day at 6:00 for breakfast at the hotel, and usually ended at midnight or 1:00. This wasn’t a vacation, it was an endurance marathon, especially at the Disney parks ( 4 parks in 4 days), where it got so crowded at Disney World they shut off the entrance gates for a while during a Monday afternoon. And of course, real food places at Epcot and other locales were booked full all day, so one had to rely on the famous $9.00 Disney burgers, or every kind of fried, breaded chicken shape plus fries.

So, between the nutrient-deprived diet, lack of sleep, close confinement with many bodies inside a bus for hours at a time, wildly swinging temperatures, days full of logistics and deadlines, and some truly bad burritos at Epcot’s Mexico, there was ample opportunity to get sicker than a  dog (and not Goofy). About 9 or so of our kids did come down with something, but were able to bounce back within a day.

As for me, I took a 7-day ration of supplements on the road with me, and also ate massive servings of pineapple, melon and orange juice every day for breakfast (and yes, a little bacon, biscuits and gravy and eggs).  I’m sure I didn’t drink enough water. I was fine the whole trip, yet when I got home I came down with some sinus inflammation and mild cough a day later. But those seemed to be dissipating within 18 hours or so.

…as was precious sack time when you could get it.

That got me to thinking about alcohol and immune health. We’ve all read about the anti-aging properties of alcohol, especially red wine with its polyphenol and resveritrol content.  We’ve heard how daily alcohol intake can aid in long-term circulatory health and cognitive function. But what does alcohol, in general, do to immune cells? Certainly there exists valid research on immune system damage from alcohol abuse and alcoholism.  But what about moderate alcohol intake? In women, moderate amounts of alcohol has been found to reduce bone loss leading to osteoporosis, possibly through modulating activity of regulatory T-cells.  More research shows innate immune response affected by alcohol, depending on dosage. Moderate alcohol intake was linked with “attenuated” (weakened) inflammatory response, while heavy consumption was connected to augmented inflammation. Other findings showed moderate wine or alcohol intake in healthy males “may strengthen the immune response toward different types of viruses,” and “in nonsmokers intentionally exposed to rhinoviruses, alcohol consumption was associated with a decreased risk of common cold.” And atherosclerosis risk  may be beneficially impacted by moderate alcohol intake as well. “..acute alcohol consumption has dual anti-inflammatory effects that involve augmentation of IL-10 and attenuation of monocyte inflammatory responses involving inhibition of NF-κB. These mechanisms may contribute to the beneficial effects of moderate alcohol use on atherosclerosis.”

Yet, some studies have scanned meta-analysis data and concluded moderate or even low alcohol intake among women can increae risk of breast cancer, and possibly other cancers.

So when you’re invited for a little nip by the tree or under the mistletoe, keep that nip little or moderate, and keep your immune health in check.

What is it?

It’s this: The notion that a single nutritional supplement taken year round may deliver efficacy in the form of symptom alleviation for seasonal allergies (non-food, that is) winter season cold/flu conditions. And all this is done naturally through a novel yeast culture fermentate with no side effects and no safety issues.  No separate cold/flu remedies, allergy remedies, all of the potions that fill a medicine cabinet.  (And many of which are under new scrutiny from FDA due to new findings on side effects and even toxicity.)

Two things really hit home for me about this:

1) My own experience and my family’s experience. I’ve been free of any significant allergy episodes and symptoms for two years, when I began EpiCor daily supplementation.  I’ve also been free of any significant cold and flu experience during that time as well. My teenage daughters, who maintain a schedule more intense and insane than Churchill during the war, and who started the EpiCor regimen this fall, and who normally are hammered with sinus infection, strep, respiratory conditions during the winter and spring, so far have had minimal problems. One has spent two days home from school during H1N1 peak time this fall, the other has sailed through scot-free.  This is new territory for both of them.

2) The continuing stream of published research supporting immune balance supplementation with regard to cold/flu and allergies. A cold/flu study using EpiCor and an EpiCor allergy study both speak to the improved symptom experience I and many others are experiencing.

By the way, I pay full price for all EpiCor I take, and I buy it through normal retail channels.

Your 21st Century immune system

The next-gen iPhone. The new Droid. The technology continues to bedazzle. We all know how the cell phone has evolved. First it was a clunky box you installed in the trunk of your car, wired to a hand set holstered in your center console. You could only use the phone to make and receive phone calls. Period. Now, many people use their mobile phones more than they use their laptop or desktop (do they still make those??) computers. And making phone calls may rank third or fourth in function usage.

This cell phone evolution might be analogous to the immune system. Much like the cellular transmission technology that is the heart of numerous mobile information features,  the immune “operating system” can be the fulcrum for many health experiences and conditions beyond the conventional cold and flu cycles. While the immune “technology” hasn’t changed per say, our understanding of the technology and how how to “deploy” it has change  markedly over the years

Take obesity, for example. We are now understanding how immune health can be hindered by obesity.  Anyone involved in obesity or body fat reduction can now presume that any improvement in BMI and weight may likely improve immune function as well.

Heart health is another immune connection. Research is now showing atherosclerosis may be influenced by immune response and its role in arterial inflammation rather than just build up of plaque in arteries.  And diabetes connects directly with immune function. Out-of-balance immune response may lead to immune cells attacking insulin producing cells in the pancreas.

And these are just a few examples. The entire field of stress and the immune system is almost another world unto itself.  Just as smart phone application builders are transforming the core of mobile technology, health science is transforming how we manage and enhance the core of our bio-engine:  the immune system.