In the midst of a time of ever looming threat of viral infection, it becomes more important than ever to support our immune system.

A healthy immune system can make the difference between your ability to fight off common cold more easily or becoming sick every 1-2 months, or experiencing long term consequences from more severe viral infections.

Post-viral syndromes are not a new phenomenon, with infections such as Cytomegalovirus (CMV) and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and other infections including Ross river fever, Bartonella (Lyme disease) and more recently, Covid-19 being known to potentially cause this.

Post-Viral syndrome can cause symptoms including:

• Chronic severe fatigue
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Brain fog and cognitive impairment
• Gut pain
• Joint aches and pains
• Headaches
• Dizziness
• Lowered exercise tolerance
• Persistent cough
• Shortness of breath

Not everyone will experience long term complications after a viral infection, and it is thought that the likelihood of developing these consequences is influenced by several things – some of which can be modified.

The immune system needs a strong foundation in order to be able to thoroughly fight off infections and reduce long term reactions.

While vaccinations can significantly reduce the likelihood of a severe reaction to infections, there are some concerns. Many have concerns of side effects from vaccinations, and while the rates of occurrence are low, it is still a cause of fear for many. It is also a concern but many that one can still get sick with Covid-19 even after vaccinations, but it is believed that they will not get as severely sick and may have 50% less chance of transmitting the virus due to a lowered viral load.

The same principles that influence a health immune system will apply when we consider our likelihood of having an adverse reaction to a vaccination, as well reduced vaccine effectiveness. While the majority of people will experience minimal acute symptoms from a vaccine and no long term symptoms, there are a small group of people who may experience more severe symptoms. It is still not completely understood why some people will react more than others, but there are many things we can do to give ourselves to least likelihood of a negative reaction.

There are many things which influence our immune system, which impact on our ability to fight off infections, have a positive response to vaccinations and to process toxins.

“The microbe is nothing. The terrain is everything” -Claude Bernard 1813-1878

The terrain theory was first proposed by Claude Bernard, and later built upon by Antoine Bechamp (1816-1908). It was rivalled by Louis Pasteur, although some belief that he stated on his death bed “I was wrong. The germ is nothing. The Terrain is everything”.

There are aspects of truth in all of these concepts. Indeed, before Pasteur introduced the germ theory it was believed that disease came from non-living things such as dirt, foul air and ‘vapors’. Harmful micro-organisms can and do cause disease, but the severity of this disease is influenced by the health and genetics of the person – the overall aspect of this being referred to as the terrain.

Key Foundations for a Healthy Immune System

Stress

Chronic stress can affect the gut microbiome which means you can’t detox chemicals as effectively, and also dampens the immune system.

Lymphatic system

Your lymphatic system works alongside the immune system to help protect you from harmful substances such as infections and toxins. A stagment lymphatic system means a more prolonged infection duration and an increased likelihood of side effects from vaccinations.

Our lymph is moved by muscular contractions – if you don’t move, neither will your lymph. Exercise, dry skin brushing and rebounding are ways to increase the lymph drainage. By allowing our lymph to drain effectively

Sleep

Our immune cells follow a daily rhythm, with some types of immune cells peaking in the night and others during the day. Getting sleep before midnight helps developed your naive T cells.

people who sleep less than 6 hours a night have been shown to have 11.5x less of an immune response to a vaccination.

In addition, those who have a nap after a vaccination had a better immune response.

Gut Health

Our microbiome is so important when it comes to improving immunity, as the multitude of beneficial microbes within our digestive system will impact how well we can fend off a virus, the severity of an inflammatory response, and will also influence vaccine response.

Taking pre and probiotics for 2 weeks before a vaccine helps to reduce the potential of adverse reactions, if you don’t have that amount of time then take it for as long as possible.

Check out my latest post about medications and your microbes.

Age

Generally, the older you are the weaker your immune system, but the concept of ‘immune age’ is something that doesn’t always correlate with your actual age. Your age will also determine how well you can fight off a bug, as well as how you respond to vaccinations.

Your immune age is determined by your genetics, as well as inflammation. Other things that affect this include your levels of sleep, exercise, diet and stress. A lower immune age means your innate and adaptive immune system becomes disrupted.

Weight

Research has shown that those people in the obese category are less responsive to vaccinations and have a worse effect from viral infections. This is partly due to the chronic low grade inflammation that obesity can cause which dampens the immune system.

Exposure to chemicals

PFAs are one of the worst offenders here. These are found in sources such as fire retardants, fast food containers, non stick cookware, some beauty products. Higher blood levels of PFAs are associated with a worse effect from viral infections and a poorer response to vaccinations.

Nutrition

Having enough of the good stuff, and not too much of the bad stuff. Simple right? Here’s a few things to consider: get enough nutrients which your immune system needs like zinc, vitamin c, vitamin d, iron, vitamin a, vitamin e, selenium…. these nutrients are required for adequate immunoglobulins which helps your body to clear out viruses and process spike proteins.

Stay away from foods which your immune system doesn’t like, such as refined process food and excess sugar. Try to avoid eating foods which you are intolerant to as these can upset your immune system too.

Hormones

Yep, might not be obvious but your hormones are important when it comes to a healthy immune system. Natural oestrogen and progesterone are involved in your immunity and controlling inflammation.

If you suspect your hormones need some support chat with your health care provider.

Ten tips for supporting a healthy immune system

1. Spend time in nature
2. Don’t smoke
3. Eat a wide range of plant foods that are high in fibre
4. ‘Eat a rainbow’ – a broad range of colours in your fruit and vegetables is a good way to know you’re getting a variety of nutrients
5. Get plenty of sleep
6. Try to manage stress by taking time off from listening to stressful news, incorporating stress management techniques into your day and creating healthy boundaries. If that doesn’t help, chat with a herbalist or naturopath about herbs that can help your stress response.
7. Exercise regularly and try to maintain a healthy weight
8. Include prebiotic and probiotic foods in your diet such as fermented foods
9. Support your lymphatic system with practices such as dry skin brushing, exercise and drinking plenty of water
10. Avoid processed and very sugary foods

References

Abraham, K., Mielke, H., Fromme, H. et al. Internal exposure to perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) and biological markers in 101 healthy 1-year-old children: associations between levels of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and vaccine response. Arch Toxicol 94, 2131–2147 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00204-020-02715-4

Aric A. Prather, PhD, Martica Hall, PhD, Jacqueline M. Fury, BS, Diana C. Ross, MSN, RN, Matthew F. Muldoon, MD, MPH, Sheldon Cohen, PhD, Anna L. Marsland, PhD, RN. (2012). Sleep and Antibody Response to Hepatitis B Vaccination. Sleep. 35(8) 1063–1069. https://doi.org/10.5665/sleep.1990

Besedovsky, L., Lange, T., & Born, J. (2012). Sleep and immune function. Pflugers Archiv : European journal of physiology, 463(1), 121–137. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00424-011-1044-0

Calder, P. C., Carr, A. C., Gombart, A. F., & Eggersdorfer, M. (2020). Optimal Nutritional Status for a Well-Functioning Immune System Is an Important Factor to Protect against Viral Infections. Nutrients, 12(4), 1181. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12041181

Classen, J. B., & Classen, D. C. (1999). Public should be told that vaccines may have long term adverse effects. BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 318(7177), 193. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.318.7177.193

Galmés, S., Serra, F., & Palou, A. (2020). Current State of Evidence: Influence of Nutritional and Nutrigenetic Factors on Immunity in the COVID-19 Pandemic Framework. Nutrients, 12(9), 2738. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12092738

Hagan, T., Cortese, M., Rouphael, N., Boudreau, C., Linde, C., … Pulendran, B. (2019). Antibiotics-Driven Gut Microbiome Perturbation Alters Immunity to Vaccines in Humans. Cell, 178(6), 1313–1328.e13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2019.08.010

Hashemi, S., Thijssen, M., Hosseini, S. Y., Tabarraei, A., Pourkarim, M. R., & Sarvari, J. (2021). Human gene polymorphisms and their possible impact on the clinical outcome of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Archives of virology, 166(8), 2089–2108. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00705-021-05070-6

Herrero, L. (2021, July 8). Yes, you can still get COVID after being vaccinated, but you’re unlikely to get as sick. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/yes-you-can-still-get-covid-after-being-vaccinated-but-youre-unlikely-to-get-as-sick-163870.

Im, J. H., Je, Y. S., Baek, J., Chung, M. H., Kwon, H. Y., & Lee, J. S. (2020). Nutritional status of patients with COVID-19. International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases, 100, 390–393. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijid.2020.08.018

Shinde, T., Hansbro, P. M., Sohal, S. S., Dingle, P., Eri, R., & Stanley, R. (2020). Microbiota Modulating Nutritional Approaches to Countering the Effects of Viral Respiratory Infections Including SARS-CoV-2 through Promoting Metabolic and Immune Fitness with Probiotics and Plant Bioactives. Microorganisms, 8(6), 921. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms8060921

Torjesen I. Covid-19: Norway investigates 23 deaths in frail elderly patients after vaccination BMJ 2021; 372 (149) https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n149

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