Despite the apparent health-giving properties of summer, holidays, outdoor activities and all the fresh fruit and vegetables of the season, as soon as the Autumn winds start to blow, a chill is felt in the air, and the children go back to school, those troublesome cold and flu viruses are on rampage again. According to research it is “normal” to catch four to six colds a year but that figure certainly seems more normal for some than others who never catch colds at all.
But how about you – are you ready to spring into action?
Those whose immunity is compromised are clearly more likely to be the ones to succumb first and this could be related to a number of lifestyle factors… nutritional deficiency, physical and emotional stress, excess alcohol, smoking, drugs, legal and illegal, excessive sugar consumption, chemical toxins and allergies to name a few. Then there are health problems such as raised cholesterol and triglyceride levels and diabetes, which can also play their part in lowering defenses.
Primary prevention of infection means building a healthy immune system and this means sticking to the rules of a healthy lifestyle and avoiding such factors that weaken immunity. We all know it is essential to have plenty of nutritious, preferably organic food to eat, a balance of work and play, exercise and relaxation, sufficient sleep, a minimum of pollution in our environment, a positive attitude to dealing with stress and the cultivation of practices to engender peace of mind. We may tend to forget however how central digestion is to health. If our “digestive fire” is good, food that we eat will be digested and assimilated well and the residue of wastes remaining to be eliminated will be minimal. If however, our digestive energy is low, digestive juices and enzymes are not secreted as they should be, much of what we eat will remain in the gut as partially digested or undigested food, and produce toxins which can permeate the body and in turn lower resistance.
| Bearing this in mind the first steps to enhance immunity are to improve digestion and assimilation and to detoxify the system. Spices such as ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, coriander, clove, black pepper and asafoetida are some of the best remedies for the digestion and for raising immunity and these can be taken as part of your diet and as tasty hot teas. Take ginger. Its pungency warms and strengthens the digestion, stimulates the flow of digestive juices and invigorates the whole system. The volatile oils are highly antiseptic, activating immunity and dispelling bacterial and viral infections. Similarly cinnamon is a perfect remedy for warding off the effects of the cold, invigorating the digestion and detoxifying the body.
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The volatile oil in cinnamon is one of the strongest natural antiseptics known. Its antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal properties make it an excellent medicine to prevent and resolve a whole range of infections. A hot cup of sweet and exquisitely aromatic cinnamon tea with its expectorant and decongestant actions, will help to relieve coughs and colds, flu and catarrh. |
Next it would be appropriate to choose from the herbs which have shown a remarkable ability to enhance our own immune mechanisms. Some increase the production and activity of macrophages, cells that the immune system sends to digest foreign invaders, Some also stimulate the production of defense substances like interferon, which protect non-infected cells from viruses. Others enhance the production and function of T-cells, vital immune cells that kill viruses, fungi and certain bacteria, and natural killer cells that are responsible for destroying cells already infected with a virus.
| Some of the most significant immune enhancers are echinacea (Echinacea angustifolia), golden seal, (Hydrastis canadensis), licorice, (Glycyrrhiza glabra), and astragalus (Astragalus membranaceus). Without doubt the most popular immune- boosting herb in this country today is Echinacea. This amazing herb can improve the immune system in many ways including increasing activity of T-cells, interferon and natural killer cells and raising properdin levels. Properdin activates the alternative complement pathway which is responsible for increasing nonspecific host defense mechanisms like neutralization of viruses, destruction of bacteria and increasing the migration of white blood cells to the areas of infection. |
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Echinacea may work best as a preventative if it is not taken continuously. The antibiotic activity of goldenseal's alkaloids against a wide range of infecting organisms including Staphylococcal sp, streptococcus sp, diplococcus pneumonia, are well documented. It also has remarkable immunostimulatory activity, increasing blood supply to the spleen and thereby promoting optimal activity of the spleen and the release of immune-potentiating compounds. One of the alkaloids, berberine, is a potent activator of macrophages. |
