StemCell Therapy

Editor's note: This is the second of a two-part letter.

So, we know that many people are getting near sleepless nights, not eating well and not exercising at all during the pandemic. Long-term stress and poor sleep can both result in dysregulation of the immune system in such a way that the production of good immune cells is suppressed and the amount of bad immune cells are upregulated. A cascade of events can create the setting of low-grade inflammation throughout the body and result in a decrease in the proper functioning of immunoprotective cells. This makes a person not only more susceptible to various infections, it also increases the risk of cancers, and chronic cardiovascular diseases (high blood pressure, diabetes mellitus and heart diseases). We label a patient in this state as being immunocompromised or immunosuppressed. Maintaining an adequate amount of sleep is truly fundamental to keeping our immune system in a balanced equilibrium. The National Sleep Foundation has published recommendations for adequate sleep duration for all ages in order to maintain well-being. School-age children (6-13 years) need 9-11 hours, teenagers (14-17 years) need 8-10 hours, adults (18-64 years) need 7-9 hours, and adults over 65 need 7-8 hours.

Sleep experts also recommend that we stick to a regular sleep schedule, go to bed and get up at roughly the same time every day. We should not go to bed hungry or stuffed. Avoid consuming nicotine and caffeine due to their stimulating effects, especially in the evening. Even though alcohol makes us sleepy, it disrupts sleep later in the night and is to be avoided after dinner hours. We need to create a restful environment best is a cool, dark, quiet place. Avoid prolonged use of light-emitting screens before bedtime. We all benefit if our eyes and brains rest for 30 minutes before sleep with no TV, computer or cellphones. Regular daytime physical activity promotes better sleep.

Eating a well-balanced diet can modulate and improve our immune responses. There is science that indicate that some foods boost the immune system more than others. These include citrus foods (grapefruits, oranges, tangerines, lemons, calamansi, limes), red bell peppers, broccoli, garlic, ginger, spinach, yogurt, almonds, sunflower seeds, turmeric, green tea, papaya, kiwi, shellfish, oily fish (salmon, tuna, mackerel) and poultry (chicken and turkey). They contain vitamins C, A, B6, E and D, minerals (like zinc and selenium), iron, folic acid and probiotics. My overall advice is that variety is the key to proper nutrition. Eating right will help build a strong immune system.

There is an abundance of science supporting a compelling link between physical activity and the bodys defense system. Regular physical exercise has an overall anti-inflammatory influence through multiple pathways. Epidemiologic studies consistently show decreased levels of inflammatory biomarkers in adults with higher levels of physical activity. Physical exercise also helps us control our weight, reduce our risk of heart attack, help our body manage blood sugar and insulin levels, improve our mental health and mood, help keep our thinking, learning, and judgement skills sharp as we age, strengthen our bones and muscles, reduce our risk of some cancers and falls, improve our sleep and increase our chance of living longer

The latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data revealed that 94% of people who died with COVID-19 had other chronic health issues, which probably increased their risk of contracting the virus. I recommend that everyone, especially people with underlying chronic medical conditions, better their health and immune status to help fight an infection successfully.

It remains an enigma to many health experts as to why many people (at least 80%) infected with COVID-19 are asymptomatic or just have mild symptoms, while others succumb from the same infection. This conundrum can probably be answered by how our immune system defends us with a positive impact or hurts us with negative contributions to the bodys ability to fight this novel and perplexing virus. With the COVID-19 pandemic, its particularly important to understand that we need to supplement the 3 W's of protection: wear a mask, watch your distance, wash your hands. We need more than protection. Prevention needs to become widely adopted in our community.

Dr. Ramel Carlos is a board-certified neurologist practicing in Guam for 18 years and a specialist in epilepsy and clinical neurophysiology. He is also a pediatrician, a diplomate of the American Board of Disability Analysts and the editor-in-chief of The Guam Medical Association Journal.

Originally posted here:
A doctor's Rx: How to boost our immune system during the pandemic, Part 2 - The Guam Daily Post

This entry was posted on September 15, 2020 at 10:56 am and is filed under Immune System. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed. |