Educate Yourself and Take Control of Your Health
You might have an overactive immune system resulting in allergies, arthritis, gut problems etc et.
Or you might have heath conditions that might weaken your immune system.
What can help to strengthen your immune system response.
You can read about Immunity and Your Immune System and get educated about Immunity.
BUT especially read about Beta Glucan. (Including links to the scientific studies about Beta Glucan
If you’ve ever stubbed your toe or suffered a minor paper cut, then you’re familiar with the effects of inflammation. The heat, redness, and swelling you experienced following that minor injury was the result of acute inflammation, which is part of your immune system’s natural response to trauma.
But there’s another kind of inflammation with which you may not be aware. Unlike acute inflammation, which usually involves pain and is short lived, chronic inflammation can be a “silent fire” and last for weeks or even years.
In fact, most people don’t even realize they’re “on fire” until they’re diagnosed with a serious disease. This may be why chronic inflammation has been identified as a factor in such diverse disorders as autoimmune diseases, such as inflammatory bowel disease and rheumatoid arthritis, Alzheimer’s disease, type II Diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
So, what is chronic inflammation? And more importantly, what can you do if you are suffering from it?
The Connection Between Inflammation and Your Immune System
Inflammation is an integral part of your body’s natural defenses. When threatened by harmful substances, such as a bacteria or viruses, your immune system sends wave after wave of white blood cells and chemicals to seek and destroy the offending organisms. This “inflammatory cascade” produces the heat, redness, and swelling which characterize acute inflammation. Once the offenders are destroyed the inflammatory cascade stops and healing begins.
During chronic inflammation, however, the inflammatory response is continual. Any number of factors can cause chronic inflammation.
Hereditary and environmental factors. Both may have a causal effect on autoimmune disease, such as inflammatory bowel disease or rheumatoid arthritis. In an autoimmune disease, your immune system mistakes its own tissues as “foreign,” unleashing the inflammatory response.
Typical Western lifestyle. Diets rich in sugars, fats, and food additives, as well as a sedentary lifestyle, may promote the production of inflammatory chemicals.
The “Fire” in Your Belly
Most people aren’t aware of the major role our gastrointestinal (GI) tract plays in our immune health. Besides digestion, our GI tract is home to nearly seventy percent of our immune system. It is a major source of lymphocytes, a type of white blood cell that plays a large role in defending the body against disease, and mast cells, which release histamines and other chemicals as part of an allergic response.
Calming the Flames—A Natural Approach
As home base for the majority of your immune system, your GI tract plays a vital role in your inflammatory response. By paying attention to your gut, you can minimize the effects of inflammation naturally. The following natural approaches can help:
Omega Essential Fatty Acids such as EPA and DHA may help decrease your risk of cardiovascular disease and support a healthy immune response. Although the best sources of omega-3 fatty acids are oily fish such as salmon, mackerel, and sardines, non-fish food options include flaxseed, flaxseed oil, and walnuts.
Ginger and rosemary have been shown to support the healthy metabolism of inflammatory chemicals.
Turmeric extract inhibits the activities of a wide range of enzymes implicated in pain and inflammation.
Rice protein has been shown to have a lower allergy potential than other protein sources, making it a safer alternative.
You can also minimize chronic inflammation by eating a healthier diet (including more vegetables and nutrient-dense superfoods) and getting regular, moderate exercise. Both will reduce the amount of fat in your body, which research suggests may incite the inflammatory response.
By Cindy Clayton-Sudalnik, D.C.
The Most Powerful Natural Antioxidant You May Never Have Heard Of
Antioxidants can play an important role in reducing inflammation in the body. Antioxidants help to counteract oxidative stress. They neutralize excess free radicals to protect cells, prevent illness, and reduce inflammation.
The most powerful natural antioxidant discovered to date is Hydroxytyrosol.
Hydroxytyrosol has an ORAC value (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity – its ability to absorb cell damaging free radicals) of 68,576 – which is considered to be 15 times higher than green tea and 3 times greater than CoQ10. It is recognized by scientists, because of numerous, well documented studies, for its powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effectiveness.
Hydroxytyrosol has the highest level of free radical absorption ever reported for a natural antioxidant. It has some very special characteristics that contribute to its effectiveness. It is:
* Rapidly absorbed into the bloodstream and tissues where it can perform its free radical scavenging duties
* The only phenol (organic compound) that is able to cross the blood-brain barrier, which allows it to absorb free radicals throughout the central nervous system
* Both fat and water soluble, giving it the highest bioavailability of any antioxidant.
The Science Behind Hydroxytyrosol
In numerous human, animal and in vitro (test tube) studies, Hydroxytyrosol has been shown to:
* Reduce markers/indicators of inflammation
* Support healthy mitochondrial function and significantly increase ATP (a molecule that carries energy within cells) energy production
* Promote significant and rapid reduction of LDL (bad cholesterol)
* Boost eye health and reduce risk of macular degeneration
* Have a therapeutic effect on the heart and cardiovascular system.
Inflammation Relief is totally natural and derived from the juice of fresh organic olives (Olea europaea). Each capsule of Inflammation Relief delivers a high concentration of polyphenols (Hydroxytyrosol) and oleic acid and sets a new standard for a true bioavailable anti-inflammatory natural formula.
In addition, the olive polyphenols in Inflammation Relief deliver one of the highest levels of free radical scavenging activity against the damaging effects of free radicals on cells and body tissues. One capsule contains as much antioxidant polyphenols as 8 to 12 ounces of extra virgin olive oil but without the calories.
Inflammation Relief is a proprietary formula exclusive to Qgenics. At the core of this exclusive formulation is Cellinfusion™ Technology which provides 3.4 times greater absorption giving maximum bioavailability and potency of the olive phenol extract at the cellular level to achieve results.
Find out more and Order Inflammation Relief
Why does autoimmunity conditions lower you ability to fight disease and what does it mean?
Learning how this condition works and what can help it would be important to so many people who suffer with these conditions. 8-9% of the population suffer and there are 100s of them.
Allergies are versatile. They can show up just about anywhere in your body and create an incredible variety of symptoms. They can affect your nose, eyes, throat, lungs, stomach, skin and nervous system. They can give you a stomachache, a rash and even bring on fatigue and headache.
Allergy symptoms occur when your body’s immune system overreacts to a substance in your environment. But it is not the substance that causes the allergic reactions; it is the body’s reaction to that substance that prompts the reactions. The immune system overreacts and releases a chemical that the body uses to fight microbial invaders. But in allergies, the invaders are not viruses or bacteria. They are harmless substances: pollens, dust, mold spores and other substances including food.
When the immune system uses its weapons to fight off infection, the results are usually good. But if the immune system gets confused and mistakes pollen for bacteria, it can unleash those same weapons unnecessarily, wreaking havoc in the body.
People with allergies have immune systems that can react to just about anything that comes along. A tiny particle of the right substance puts your panicky immune system on the defensive. Your body strikes back by releasing a rush of a chemical that causes the familiar swelling and running in your nose, eyes and sinuses.
These overly sensitive immune cells (called mast cells) release a substance called histamine. Histamine causes small blood vessels to widen allowing fluid to pass from the bloodstream into the surrounding tissues, causing nasal conditions, runny eyes and nose and sometimes hives.
Histamine can make the smooth muscles in the walls of the lungs, blood vessels, stomach, intestines and bladder contract. This contraction can bring on a wide range of symptoms. Histamine in the lungs causes wheezing. Histamine also indirectly stimulates the production of thick, sticky mucus.
Hay fever is triggered by pollens. There are allergies to cat hairs, bee stings or certain foods or drugs.
They are all the result of the same thing; the immune system overreacts to the substance in your environment
What to do for allergies
In spring nearly 8% of Americans experience seasonal allergies.
Most conventional treatments are aimed at cooling off this inflammation. Standard treatment for allergies involves taking certain medications. While these drugs can be effective, they all have side effects, such as drowsiness, raised blood pressure, interference with sleep, and some may even suppress your immune system predisposing you to infections.
Natural help for allergies
Fortunately, there is natural help for allergies including eating certain foods, vitamins, herbs and immune-balancing foods. You can also reduce the number of allergens in your environment.
Reduce the allergen triggers in your environment
The Mayo Clinic offers the following suggestions for reducing exposure to allergy triggers:
a. Stay indoors on dry, windy days. The best time to go outside is after a good rain, which helps clear pollen from the air.
b. Delegate lawn mowing, weed pulling and other gardening chores that stir up allergens.
c. Remove clothes you’ve worn outside, and shower to rinse pollen from your skin and hair.
d. Don’t hang laundry outside — pollen can stick to sheets and towels.
e. Wear a pollen mask if you do outside chores, or work outside.
f. Check your local TV or radio station, your local newspaper, or the Internet for pollen forecasts and current pollen levels.
g. Close doors and windows at night or any other time when pollen counts are high.
h. Avoid outdoor activity in the early morning when pollen counts are highest.
i. Keep indoor air clean using a portable high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter in your bedroom.
j. Clean floors often with a vacuum cleaner that has a HEPA filter.
k. Keep indoor air dry with a dehumidifier.
l. Use the air conditioning in your house and car.
2) Eat more colorful fruits and vegetables
Keep your immune system healthy by eating lots of colorful fruits and vegetables. Blueberries, strawberries, tomatoes, sweet potatoes and bell peppers are good choices. These foods are rich in flavonoids, which act like antihistamines. They also contain carotenes, which have anti-inflammatory activity. Eating garlic and onions can help retard the inflammatory reactions of allergies.
3) Take a supplement to support your immune system
Thankfully, there is much scientific evidence which points to beta-glucan providing natural relief for allergy symptoms.
Beta-glucan is a form of soluble fiber derived from the cell walls of baker’s yeast that can support and modulate the immune system.
Studies published on PubMed.gov have shown that beta-glucan supplementation for 4 weeks significantly improved allergy symptoms.
Beta-glucan may reduce runny nose, sneezing, congestion and itchy, watery eyes caused by pollen allergies. It also offered improved overall physical health and emotional wellbeing as compared to a placebo.
The health benefits of beta-glucans are well documented and show they support the immune system, the body’s first line of defense against illness, disease and allergies.
Immune Defense by Qgenics provides 1,953 mg of natural beta-glucan per serving. That’s up to 2 times more beta-glucan than most other brands giving better results and better value for your money.
Some people with autoimmune are very wary about “immune boosting supplements”. However…
Immune Defense could be called an immune system modulator. Immune Defense is made up of 70% pure 1,3 &1,6 beta-glucans derived from the cell wall of baker’s yeast. 70% purity is the maximum that can be reasonably used to avoid over stimulating the immune system, which results in health problems.
Click here for Immune Defense
Do you turn off the drug commercials on TV?
It is interesting as the majority of these commercials fall currently under three categories migraine, psych drugs (and their side effect tardive dyskinesia and autoimmune diseases.. None of these drugs go to the cause of the problem and are just band aids that come with side effects
I like to talk about them all but the one that i notice the most are the autoimmune medications. The ones about you skin being clear, or your arthritis, or IBS or….. All of which are autoimmune problems.
And what they are selling is a medication which lowers your immune response, thus lowers your immunity. Per Drugs.com….. “affects your immune system. You may get infections more easily:. The ad on TV states you may be unable to fight infections
Yes, and one says it lowers the large amount of eosinophils – which are white blood cells. So the disease creates a strong immune response, but the medication lowers it.
Now interestingly, there is apparently a “link” with autoimmune and migraine per studies and research done.
We will address migraines in another article as well as tardive dyskinesia which is actually a side effect of the drugs they give for “mental health”. TD as they now call it, is connected with a lack of B12. Yes we will get to that article as well.
But autoimmune seems to be the number one target …people do suffer from the itchy, blotchy skin problems as well as digestive problems, etc. all of which are really autoimmune problems.
To address these issues – build health.
Here are some pages that talk about this including skin problems,
And see our index on Educate Yourself and Take Control of your Health
Lupus is an autoimmune disease. Lupus is an incorrect autoimmune response attacking its own tissue and resulting in nerve damage or neuropathy.
What exactly is Neuropathy from Lupus