This video, titled "Immunity for Prevention and Long Haulers Syndrome," is presented by Deb Ford, a doctor of clinical nutrition. She explains how the human immune system works, covering its various parts like white blood cells, antibodies, and the lymphatic system, as well as the differences between innate and acquired immunity. Deb also discusses how lifestyle choices, nutrition, sleep, and stress management significantly impact immune function and suggests natural supplements and practices to strengthen the immune system and support recovery from conditions like long-haul COVID.
Key Takeaways
1
The immune system is a complex network of cells and organs that defend the body against infection, working silently and tirelessly 24/7.
2
The immune system has both an innate (born with) and acquired (developed through exposure) defense system to protect against pathogens.
3
The skin and gut are crucial physical barriers in the innate immune system, with up to 80% of immune function residing in the gut.
4
Acquired immunity allows the immune system to remember and quickly fight off previously encountered pathogens, preventing repeat illnesses.
5
An overactive immune system can lead to allergies and autoimmune diseases, while an underactive system causes immunodeficiency.
6
Good personal hygiene, regular handwashing, and using non-toxic cleaning agents are important for preventing the spread of harmful germs.
7
A healthy lifestyle, including a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, regular exercise, healthy weight, moderate alcohol, and avoiding toxins, is key to a strong immune system.
8
Adequate sleep (7-8 hours for adults) is essential for immune function, as lack of sleep can increase susceptibility to illness and hinder recovery.
9
Managing stress through techniques like deep breathing and incorporating adaptogenic supplements like ashwagandha can prevent the immune system from being compromised by chronic stress.
10
Key supplements like Vitamin D, Zinc, Vitamin C, Quercetin, Curcumin, Probiotics, and Omega-3s are recommended to support and strengthen the immune system.
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okay welcome hello i am so glad you're
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here today all right this month on my
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free webinar
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i'm going to talk about your immune
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system real important relevant topic
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right now because of the ongoing covet
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environment i'm going to go deep and how
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your immune system is designed to work
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so you know what's going on and then
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towards the end i'm going to give you
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the tools to stay as healthy as possible
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finally i'm not going to leave you
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hanging i'm going to give you a list of
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the natural products that research is
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suggesting that it's going to do a great
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job to keep your immune system
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working
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effectively you know these are natural
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products i love because they've evolved
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with us on this planet they work on
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multiple metabolic pathways chemical
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pathways so lower doses are needed and
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there's few if any side effects
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many are just plain plant compounds and
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i'm getting a little ahead of myself
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here because there is just so much good
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information i want to give you i value
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your time so i'm going to give you a lot
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of information you want to you might
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want to get a pencil and paper here um
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now let's see if we can get the
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technology to work
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yeah okay here we go
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all right
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all right thank you so much for joining
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me this is going to be some important
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information i guess first i should
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introduce introduce myself deborah ford
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doctor of clinical nutrition dietitian
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fitness professional
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soon-to-be author and the owner of the
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good earth health code shop for over 45
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years
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i've been at this a while and my passion
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as well as my career
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is health vitality longevity i guess now
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we call it biohacking my interest has
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been since a teenager you know it
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stemmed from my own health problems the
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conventional medicine couldn't help and
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i had as many surgeries as i cared to
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have and i figured i couldn't do any
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worse so
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i had to figure it out since no one else
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could
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okay i'm going to record this and then
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post it on my website deb4.com
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and i have to state from the beginning
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here that if you have a medical
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condition check with your doctor on
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anything nothing i talk about today
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should be construed as diagnosis
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prescribing or recommendations this
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presentation is for educational purposes
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only i don't want to be cancelled or
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banned so don't misunderstand what i'm
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saying here you know a lot of my
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colleagues have been taken off the
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internet because
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of things they say you'll notice these
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days that google shows you a lot of
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pharmaceutical information a lot of
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medical information
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very little natural medicine
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they're financially vested in the drug
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companies so we really have to dig for a
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lot of this natural information until
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things change of course i go to pubmed
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that has not yet been compromised so we
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carry on okay
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what is the immune system well in a very
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complex nutshell let me explain the
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immune system is just an intricate
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network of cells and organs that defend
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the body against infection
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you know we have backup after bad backup
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in this incredible network it's a web
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you touch it here and it reacts over
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here all things interconnected so
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there's seven basic parts probably more
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but we're talking white blood cells
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antibodies then the complement system
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that enhances the antibodies phagocytes
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clearing out all the microbes and the
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damaged cells without that we could get
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kind of polluted then you have the
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lymphatic system throughout the body all
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those lymph loads that are everywhere
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but they're really concentrated around
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the joints where you move so you've got
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to move to help it work
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then the glymphatic system in the brain
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fairly newly discovered but that springs
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into detox action while we sleep
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then you've got the spleen you've got
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the bone marrow and you've got the
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thymus right here behind the sternum it
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shrinks when we get stressed so no
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wonder we get sick from under a lot of
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stress right
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pay
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so
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you're going to hear
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and feel
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your heart beating
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you know it's working but the immune
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system is silent
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it's working tirelessly even though
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we're not aware of our immune system it
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works 24 7 protecting us from literally
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thousands of potentially deadly attacks
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every day quietly elegantly working
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behind the scene you know the immune
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system is responsible for protecting us
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against infectious agents
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infection occurs when viruses
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bacteria
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fungi
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protozoa a lot of microbes enter in the
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body begin to multiply this process does
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not always lead to disease but when the
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cells are damaged causing symptoms
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disease can't follow mycovid cells
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have become damaged inflamed and then
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that cytokine storm gets out of hand
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causing even more harm
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normally the immune system springs into
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action its response to infection
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many symptoms that a person has
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that they suffer from like fever and
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just fatigue and headache and rash
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they're going to result from the immune
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system doing its job eliminating that
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infection from the body the spreading of
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microbes
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is called transmission
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and that involves a number of stages
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first you've got escape from the host or
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the reservoir of infection wherever that
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infectious agent normally lives and
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multiplies and then you've got transport
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into the new host
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then you have the entry into the new
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host usually the cells and then you have
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escape so it's going on to the next
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person different pathogens have
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different modes of transmission some
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common roots of transmission of
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infectious disease include person to
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person
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food and insects
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person to person you got the common cold
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for example it's called common because
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it is so easily transferred from person
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to person you know it's spread by
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shaking hands that's why we shoulder and
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elbow bump now or picking up something
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like a credit card from a person who's
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got a cold and just wipe their nose
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their drippy nose of course coughing
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sneezing those are also a really good
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way to transmit
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disease
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like us certain microbes need nutrients
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to grow
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sometimes infections can be caused from
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food
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these pathogens like to live and consume
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the same foods we eat and that can cause
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food poisoning and when you eat the
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contaminated food
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you know like potato salad left out in
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the sun
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you're gonna get sick okay they love
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that then then mosquitoes and fleas can
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also be responsible for spreading a lot
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of disease
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by passing parasites and bacteria that
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could enter our bloodstream many plagues
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in history were transmitted this way
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today you've got west nile you got lyme
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those are the common ones of today
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without the immune system
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helping to destroy these infectious
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agents we'd be sick all the time
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when it comes to germs
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these
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there are several different categories
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of germs that can be bad for our health
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okay but the immune system is equipped
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to handle them all germs you know we're
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referring to the microscopic bacteria
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viruses fungi protozoa and even tiny
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prions that can carry disease let's look
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a little deeper you know the bacteria
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they are single celled organisms that
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get nutrients from their environment
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which can be our bodies harmful bacteria
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can cause various infections and even
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dental cavities but not all bacteria are
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harmful for example the friendly flora
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that live in us around us that outnumber
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us by as much as ten to one they can
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keep our digestive system working they
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can make some essential vitamins that we
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can't make and they can keep a balance
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so that harmful bacteria can't move in
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then you've got viruses yeah you've got
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viruses living in and on you all the
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time some good some not so good viruses
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are even smaller than bacteria and they
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need to use
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other cell structures to reproduce
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they can only survive if they live
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inside something else so they enter and
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hijack our cells viruses spread easily
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and can make a person sick because they
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live in infected body fluids
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you know easily spread they can be on
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you know surfaces that we share
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doorknobs even pens that you pick up and
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pass around infections from viruses can
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cause minor conditions like a cold or
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very serious diseases like hiv then we
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have fungi fungus like toenail
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infections you know like athlete's foot
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yeast infections they're not super
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dangerous to healthy people however
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people with weakened immune systems can
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get very serious fungal infections you
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see that a lot of times when people are
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on chemotherapy then you have protozoa
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one cell little organisms like bacteria
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but bigger you know they thrive in
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moisture and intestinal infections and
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other diseases they cause spread through
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contaminated water we think often
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malaria is one of those you've heard of
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now i don't have it up here but prions
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you don't hear about
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them very much but oh my goodness they
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are
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smaller than a virus much much smaller
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and thank goodness they're rare because
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they are very very infectious diseases
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they're a little protein particles
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that's kind of like mad cow disease and
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kuru
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they aren't living as we know it
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they're like less than half a virus but
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they are nasty things
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so now let's examine the different lines
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of defense used by the immune system
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protect us so this is going to get a
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little detailed so you might want to
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write down two columns innate
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and acquired first we're going to talk
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about the innate inn
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and it's a range of protective
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mechanisms that you're born with okay
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the innate immune system provides
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non-specific protection against a lot of
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different pathogens
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a number of defense mechanisms that
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serve the immune system it's going to
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include physical barriers that's that's
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going to be like your skin that is a
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great physical barrier then you've got
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chemical barriers such as antimicrobial
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proteins that your body makes that can
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harm or destroy those indeters and
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certain body cells
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that they can be infecting
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and before moving on to that second line
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of defense let's delve a little bit
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deeper into the innate immunity
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the skin is probably the best known one
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it's the external barrier from layers of
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cells serving as a protective barrier to
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infection not only does the skin provide
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a protective barrier to keep invaders
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out but it also secretes a lot of
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special fatty acids and enzymes natural
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oils of the skin contain a lot of this
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protection so we don't necessarily want
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to dry the skin out or or because that's
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going to make it too porous and then
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those little bugs can get in there one
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of the fatty acids oleic acid your body
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makes can kill certain bacteria and then
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the enzyme lysozyme breaks down the
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outer well
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outer wall of certain bacteria so
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keeping the skin intact is very
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important you don't want to let it get
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too dried out and porous to infections
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that allows the pathogens to enter too
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easily
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skin first line of defense to prevent
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outside pathogens from entering the body
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next the gut
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really it's the exterior skin folded
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inward from the from the mouth on and it
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plays a crucial role in immunity up to
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80 percent of your immune system is
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created within the gut this tube is
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truly where the outside world meets the
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inside world through the food and water
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that's really important internally
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you've got other mucous membranes you've
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got the respiratory tract you know along
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with the gastrointestinal then you have
12:45
the genital urinary tract which provides
12:48
mechanisms of barriers and then you've
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got the ears these membranes are
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designed to trap particles to prevent
12:54
them from multiplying after they've
12:56
attached
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okay so then another crucial aspect to
13:01
the innate immunity is chemical barriers
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to infections when these microbes
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penetrate the body's protective
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barriers they enter the internal tissues
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they can encounter many chemical
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substances that work to prevent the
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growth there are many mechanisms lots of
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pathways and cells that have chemicals
13:22
that work to get rid of these invaders
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you don't care about all those details
13:26
just know they're continually on the
13:28
lookout for foreign invaders and ready
13:31
to strike at any time if you've ever
13:33
played pac-man you know that early video
13:36
game that is
13:38
it was really designed to resemble how
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our body fights these germs good old
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pac-man
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okay
13:47
so now
13:49
the final process of innate immunity
13:52
that's as deep as i'm going to go the
13:53
innate immune system provides general
13:56
defense against harmful germs and
13:58
substances
13:59
using immune cells and natural killer
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cells and phagocytes the pac-man kind of
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game you know minus the music innate
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immunity causes the response you're
14:08
familiar with swelling and inflammation
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inflammation is designed to eliminate
14:13
the infection or at least to hold it in
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check until the next
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second line of defense the acquired
14:21
immune response is going to be able to
14:23
take over i'm going to talk about that
14:25
because it is really
14:27
wonderful
14:28
a great system you know infection can
14:30
cause tissue damage but it can also
14:33
trigger that inflammatory response
14:36
triggers the rest of the immune system
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you know so you may have a little pain
14:40
you might have swelling you might have
14:42
redness you may have a fever those are
14:44
induced by chemicals released by the
14:47
phagocytes those pacmans those white
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cells that eat up infection and you know
14:52
like a pimple is an example of that
14:54
inflammation and then you've got the
14:55
white blood cells healthy immune
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response of course
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chronic inflammation
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when that exists in the body things
15:02
start to break down and that's when
15:04
chronic disease can develop that's where
15:06
we need to get at the root cause that
15:08
needs to be determined
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okay now second line of defense is
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called acquired or adaptive immunity
15:18
okay
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it is called such because you're not
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born with it it's the kind of immunity
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that you really
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acquire from exposure to pathogens
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you come
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with a clean slate when you're born
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and with every exposure you're acquiring
15:36
more immunity for example any person my
15:39
age more or less got exposed to and
15:42
overcame measles moms chickenpox when
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they were really young my brothers
15:47
brought everything home from school so i
15:50
had them all when i was about four or
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five i only recall the smallpox vaccine
15:55
that gave everybody a scar on the
15:57
shoulder that vaccine was actually
15:59
stopped in 1972 because there was no
16:01
more cases there were no more cases in
16:04
the u.s so the first line of
16:07
defense this line of defense is acquired
16:10
so you're going to get that if you've
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had an infection or disease or you get
16:14
it from another person's antibodies for
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example
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babies get it from mother's milk and
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also when they're born they have some of
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our acquired immunity one of the most
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amazing jobs that our immune system is
16:28
is to store all the information from all
16:31
the harmful invaders and it remembers
16:34
how to fight them this process is called
16:36
adaptive or acquired immunity that
16:39
adaptive immune system makes unique
16:42
antibodies and uses them to specifically
16:46
fight certain germs in the body that
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it's previously come in contact with
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that adaptive immune response works
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closely with the innate immune system
16:55
they really work hand in hand
16:59
so when you get certain diseases and
17:01
survive generally you don't catch those
17:04
again
17:05
those specific illnesses that's because
17:07
of the acquired immunity when you get an
17:09
immune system
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when your immune system is exposed to a
17:13
certain pathogen it learns it recognizes
17:16
and can make your immune system better
17:18
equipped to fight off that germ the next
17:21
time it's exposed to it so amazing
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acquired immunity is dependent on
17:26
specialized white blood cells named
17:29
lymphocytes
17:31
okay these lymphocytes are cells that
17:33
are responsible for the body's ability
17:36
to distinguish and react to
17:38
an infinite number of different foreign
17:40
substances
17:42
lymphocytes
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really originate from stem cells in the
17:46
bone marrow
17:47
and then they can travel and multiply in
17:49
response to appropriate stimulation you
17:52
know if your white blood cells or
17:54
lymphocytes are high in your blood you
17:56
know you're fighting something and
17:57
you've heard the terms t cells and b
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cells those are just referring to
18:02
different types of lymphocytes both t
18:04
and b recognize and eliminate these
18:07
foreign molecules but they do so in
18:09
different ways
18:12
so lymphocytes are designed to recognize
18:15
these foreign molecules by receptor
18:18
molecules a receptor molecule is a
18:21
special protein whose shape is designed
18:25
to fit
18:26
molecules it's kind of like a lock and
18:28
key think of these molecules as you know
18:32
a key that fits into a lock very
18:35
specifically you know any foreign
18:37
material that binds specifically to a
18:39
receptor is called an antigen antigen
18:42
are these molecules from invading or
18:44
microorganisms like viruses like
18:47
bacteria protozoa fungi as well as
18:50
molecules that you may be allergic to
18:52
like pollen or dust or even transplanted
18:55
material tissue in certain
18:57
surgeries
18:59
certain antigens can induce an immune
19:01
response when they bind to and unlock a
19:04
receptor molecule like allergens
19:08
so one of the most incredible abilities
19:11
of our immune system is it keeps a
19:13
record of every microbe it's ever
19:17
defeated this enables the immune system
19:19
to recognize and destroy that microbe
19:22
quickly if it enters the body again
19:24
before it can multiply and make you sick
19:27
it immediately deactivates it however
19:29
some infections like the flu and the
19:31
cold
19:32
have you know we fight them a lot of
19:34
different times because there's so many
19:36
different virus strains
19:38
their mutations you know they change all
19:41
the times
19:42
they mutate rapidly all the immunology
19:45
classes i ever took before coven said
19:48
they were never going to be able to get
19:49
a vaccine against the common cold
19:51
because it mutates so rapidly with
19:53
covert they had to attack it a different
19:55
way not like vaccines we've ever used in
19:57
the past with traditional vaccines the
20:01
immune system is is triggered by a small
20:03
amount of an illness and that produces
20:05
antibodies
20:07
that enables the body to quickly launch
20:09
the immune attack to fight off the virus
20:12
you know like it's already had the
20:14
illness when they make a vaccine they
20:16
add just a little bit of that and
20:19
adjuvants which are other toxins that
20:22
the body really doesn't like like
20:24
aluminum mercury so the body's really
20:26
going to react to it and rally a defense
20:29
a little controversial i know
20:31
we usually like to avoid toxins like
20:33
aluminum and mercury
20:37
okay
20:39
when we are exposed to different things
20:42
it dictates
20:44
our acquired immunity to react for
20:48
example
20:49
where we live
20:50
i mean do we live on a farm do we go
20:52
barefoot what are we exposed to
20:54
vaccinations diet lifestyle and all of
20:58
our exposures to different environmental
21:00
conditions all impact
21:02
our ability to fight off very diseases
21:05
you know if you've ever experienced
21:07
allergies when you're visiting some
21:09
place for the first time this may be due
21:11
to the exposure or something your system
21:13
is not familiar with
21:15
next time you visit you may not have the
21:17
same reaction which you can thank your
21:19
acquired immunity to
21:23
because we've all been exposed to
21:25
different pathogens we all have a unique
21:28
immune defense
21:30
this means your immune system is going
21:32
to vary from person to person
21:35
while we all have similar innate
21:38
responses like your skin barrier like
21:40
your gut barrier our acquired immunity
21:43
is vastly different
21:45
recent studies have found that that our
21:48
personal history where we've been what
21:50
we've had in our environment you know
21:53
where we live
21:55
whom we live with do we have pets that's
21:58
responsible for 80 percent of our the
22:01
differences between our individual
22:03
immune systems while genetics may
22:05
account for the rest
22:08
so let's talk about an overactive immune
22:10
system which can result into a lot of
22:13
different things including allergies and
22:16
immune and autoimmune disease
22:18
allergic reactions include
22:21
allergies to foods medications
22:23
stinging insects like a bee allergy
22:26
anaphylaxis hay fever sinus infections
22:29
asthma hives dermatitis eczema these
22:32
conditions
22:33
the body's the immune system has an
22:36
overly very strong response to these
22:39
that they're allergens but they perceive
22:41
them as an immune assault so if you've
22:44
experienced
22:46
seasonal allergies you know firsthand
22:48
the results of an overactive immune
22:50
system
22:51
sneezing itching eyes you know mucous
22:54
production and the way your body system
22:56
reacts to those threats this is your
22:59
acquired immunity at play that's when
23:02
the immune system identifies all those
23:04
little invaders as a threat and it's
23:06
like all hands on deck while blood cells
23:09
go to work
23:11
to store that information so the next
23:13
time you're exposed the immune system
23:15
should know how to fight it right
23:18
one way is to prevent a hypersensitive
23:20
immune response to substances
23:22
is through exposure that's how
23:25
vaccinations work you know by
23:27
introducing a small amount of the
23:28
pathogen to the immune system the body
23:30
stores that information so it knows how
23:32
to launch an attack in the future in
23:35
fact that's how we're beginning to look
23:37
at peanut allergies okay
23:40
or even hay fever kind of like with um
23:43
you know a homeopathic approach so you
23:46
can prevent the immune system from going
23:48
into overdrive you know you give it a
23:50
little bit of what it conceives as
23:53
danger
23:55
do that a little bit every day that can
23:57
be done with local bee pollen you know
24:00
it's a bit of a homeopathic approach you
24:02
know teeny tiny amounts bee pollen even
24:05
in germany and the german federal board
24:07
of health recognizes bee pollen as a
24:11
medicine you know pollen is made by the
24:13
bees and when they land on a flower and
24:16
that's why it's essential for the bees
24:18
in your area to be local so that you can
24:20
combat your local threats i've seen this
24:23
happen regularly you know but you have
24:26
to have local honey
24:28
you know you and don't wait until it's
24:30
the season the allergy season start
24:32
months before and just with tiny tiny
24:35
amounts
24:36
okay
24:37
autoimmune disease another example
24:40
of overactive immune responses include
24:44
multiple sclerosis autoimmune thyroid
24:47
disease type 1 diabetes
24:49
lupus
24:50
rheumatoid arthritis
24:52
and systemic vasculitis when the immune
24:55
system mounts a response against normal
24:57
components of the body
24:59
autoimmune disease is to blame
25:04
an underactive immune system also known
25:06
as
25:07
immunodeficiency doesn't function
25:10
correctly and makes people vulnerable to
25:13
infections it can be life-threatening in
25:15
severe cases immunodeficiency can also
25:18
arise as a result of medical treatment
25:21
or caused by another disease such as hiv
25:24
or aids
25:25
or certain types of cancer
25:29
okay now i know that was a lot
25:32
now
25:33
you have a more in-depth understanding
25:36
of how complex the immune system is and
25:39
how
25:40
wonderful it does at protecting us so
25:43
now look let's look at some things that
25:46
we can do to strengthen our immune
25:48
system you know that's what we really
25:50
need to know how we can boost our immune
25:52
system you know that's already so
25:54
complex and you know
25:56
wonderful and a lot of these things are
25:59
continuing to be studied the inner
26:01
connectiveness of the immune response is
26:03
so complex but simple things we can do
26:07
can make all the difference you know
26:09
like good personal hygiene keeping those
26:12
pathogermic
26:13
pathogenic germs at bay most of us
26:16
already have good hygiene practices
26:18
showering brushing our teeth washing our
26:20
clothes you know if it smells if you
26:22
have bad breath you know bacteria is
26:24
growing that's not good you got to get
26:26
rid of the bacteria sometimes just
26:28
washing though isn't enough
26:30
we're surrounded by lots of microbes and
26:34
it's essential we protect ourselves
26:36
against the spread of harmful bacteria
26:39
while keeping the beneficial bacteria
26:41
around us to protect us you know while
26:43
you may be tempted to stock up on all
26:46
sorts of antibacterial stuff and spray
26:48
every surface of your home with strong
26:50
chemical antibacterial agents these
26:53
harsh chemicals may be doing more harm
26:55
than good and may be creating resistant
26:58
bacteria and resistance fungi
27:02
that's happening while there are a few
27:05
healthy hygiene tips to keep
27:08
harmful germs in check like the regular
27:11
hand washing can't be overstated simply
27:14
running hands over one running the water
27:16
over your hands is not enough
27:19
you gotta vigorously wash
27:20
with mild hand soap for at least 20
27:22
seconds and that's going to adequately
27:25
disrupt the cell membrane of the
27:27
microbes washing it down the drain
27:30
you're getting rid of the risk of
27:32
spreading germs homemade sanitizer is
27:34
also great little spritz 80 alcohol the
27:37
storage the germs add a little bit of
27:39
aloe vera and that's going to moisturize
27:41
it and then maybe add some nice smelling
27:43
essential oils that may boost the effect
27:46
and you're not adding toxins to your
27:48
skin and not drying your skin out
27:50
leaving it more prone to invaders for
27:52
cleaning surfaces around your home
27:55
distilled white vinegar can be used as a
27:57
non-toxic disinfecting agent love it
28:00
many essential oils like tea tree oil
28:02
contain antimicrobial properties that
28:05
make it also an effective cleanser
28:07
simply adding a few drops to water in a
28:09
spray bottle
28:11
it's going to be really good or you can
28:12
put it in a room air purifier okay so
28:15
now let's look at the effects of
28:17
lifestyle my favorite power tools you
28:21
know that that they're being researched
28:23
and they give your immune system such a
28:26
boost we cannot ignore how powerful they
28:29
are so your first line of defense
28:32
is to live a healthy lifestyle can't be
28:36
overestimated it's extremely powerful
28:38
science keeps proving it time and time
28:40
again not only is your immune system
28:43
going to benefit but every part of your
28:46
body is going to be better by following
28:48
some simple tips
28:50
in fact the same things are going to
28:52
prevent these infectious diseases like
28:54
cancer and heart disease and diabetes
28:56
and high blood pressure and so much more
28:59
wonderful so don't smoke and avoid all
29:03
toxins
29:04
eat a diet high in fruits and vegetables
29:06
they contain 25 000 phytonutrients that
29:11
work to prevent disease 25 000
29:14
we're going to be studying them forever
29:16
i tell you
29:17
a lot of the research i'm going to tell
29:18
you about a little bit about covid and
29:20
they're doing it on these phytonutrients
29:22
exercising regularly 150 minutes a week
29:25
just fabulous maintaining a healthy bmi
29:28
healthy weight it's a huge risk factor
29:30
we have to get this one right over 40 of
29:33
us are obese and that truly hobbles the
29:37
immune system and causes chronic disease
29:40
if you drink alcohol drink in moderation
29:44
sleep seven to eight hours
29:46
so important and also take steps to
29:49
avoid infections such as washing your
29:51
hands we talked about that and then
29:53
minimize stress and aggravation learn to
29:55
let it go no ruminating over problems
29:58
turn your phone off you don't need all
30:00
those alarms
30:01
nutrition my favorite coming up here
30:05
it's
30:06
you know people that are well nourished
30:08
are going to be stronger people that are
30:10
malnourished are going to be more
30:12
vulnerable to infectious disease
30:14
micronutrient deficiencies for example
30:16
so you know magnesium and zinc and
30:18
selenium and iron copper and folic acid
30:20
vitamin a b6 c e
30:23
those
30:24
deficiencies may alter immune response
30:27
a proper diet is the most important
30:30
thing in determining your immunity
30:33
cambridge university did a study that
30:36
found a diet high in fruits and
30:37
vegetables resulted in a better immune
30:39
response i knew it and it's not just
30:41
fruits and vegetables that can help
30:43
seeds nuts whole grains not pasta and
30:46
bread and beans can also be protective
30:49
against bacteria and give your immune
30:51
system a good boost avoid processed
30:53
foods but add sugar
30:55
that you know
30:58
that's going to be
31:00
hobbling to the immune system
31:02
and then make sure you get adequate
31:04
calories and micronutrients it's vital
31:06
for optimum health you know there
31:08
appears to be a direct connection
31:10
between nutrition and immunity in
31:12
seniors
31:13
that
31:15
they have a lot of micronutrient
31:16
malnutrition older people tend to eat
31:18
less and often less variety i love
31:22
vegetable chicken vegetable soup for
31:23
them however it's not just the elderly
31:26
we need to worry about anybody is on a
31:27
really strict diet anyone who has poor
31:30
eating habits probably has a
31:31
micronutrient deficiency so now i'm
31:33
going to tell you about some superfoods
31:35
here
31:36
blueberries contain anthocyanins
31:40
dark chocolate contains theobromine
31:43
tumeric you've got all those
31:45
curcuminoids
31:47
not only antioxidant but
31:48
anti-inflammatory love it
31:51
broccoli house has sulforaphane
31:54
sweet potatoes or anything orange is
31:56
going to be rich in beta-carotene type
31:58
of vitamin a and that's really good to
32:00
protect skin damage from the ultraviolet
32:02
rays spinach has flavonoids garlic has
32:06
allicin a lot of research on that green
32:08
tea contains flavonoids kefir and
32:11
sauerkraut help with fighting bacteria
32:14
seeds and nuts have vitamin e citrus
32:17
fruit and bell peppers a lot of vitamin
32:18
c but i still say taking a multivitamin
32:22
and mineral supplement like ultra
32:23
preventive 2 daily or pure's
32:26
o-n-e-1 it's really a good insurance
32:29
policy
32:31
to
32:32
your immune system
32:37
sleep also plays an essential role i've
32:40
had to be a real student of sleep
32:43
studies show that people who don't get
32:45
quality sleep or enough sleep are more
32:47
likely to get sick after being exposed
32:49
to a virus
32:51
additionally lack of sleep can affect
32:53
how long it takes for you to recover
32:56
the immune system you know
32:59
releases proteins called cytokines
33:01
during sleep a little cytokines are good
33:04
when you're under stress or fighting an
33:06
infection you need those cytokines to
33:08
clear things out not too much just
33:10
enough it's always a balance keeping
33:13
things at bay
33:14
additionally the formation of infection
33:17
finding antibodies and cells that
33:20
are reduced when you don't get enough
33:23
sleep without enough sleep your body is
33:26
susceptible to not only infectious but
33:28
chronic illness in fact chronic sleep
33:31
loss is going to increase your risk for
33:32
obesity diabetes dementia and heart
33:36
disease
33:37
so we need about as an adult
33:40
seven or eight hours of good quality
33:43
sleep
33:44
miss sleep cannot be restored so if you
33:47
have trouble falling asleep or staying
33:49
asleep there's a lot of things you can
33:51
do to get a better night's sleep i've
33:53
done them all they work first of all
33:55
make sure you have a calm sleep
33:57
environment you know no tv
34:00
cool dark is best next you might need to
34:04
create a bedtime routine you know
34:06
telling your body it's time to sleep you
34:09
might want to do some stretching you
34:11
might want to take a hot bath that can
34:13
trigger good sleep a thing to avoid is
34:16
emails social media anything that can
34:18
cause stress or has the blue screen if
34:21
you have trouble turning off your
34:23
thoughts you might want to just jot down
34:26
in a journal things you might want to
34:27
remember to do the next day
34:29
deep breathing meditation all these
34:31
things good okay you might want to try
34:34
some essential oils such as lavender to
34:36
help calm your body down spritz your
34:38
pillow
34:40
i personally like melatonin
34:42
l-theanine valerian to assure a really
34:45
good night's sleep but those blue
34:47
blocking glasses they're important for
34:49
me too
34:50
and not doing anything real strenuous
34:52
three hours before okay
34:55
all right stress
34:57
so common in today's society you know
34:59
busy schedules pack social calendars
35:01
demand a lot from us more than any other
35:03
time in history other stretches
35:06
stresses such as money
35:08
and ruminating and being anxious all
35:11
contribute to chronic stress when you
35:13
experience stress
35:15
those hormones are released to protect
35:17
you you know this is helpful when we're
35:19
in danger and we need to run however
35:22
when you're chronically exposed to those
35:24
stress hormones
35:26
they prevent they present a real problem
35:29
the result is chronic stress a list
35:32
mile long of diseases ranking from
35:34
depression to heart attack during times
35:36
of stress the immune system is also
35:38
hobbled therefore regularly
35:41
participating in stress reducing
35:43
activities not only beneficial for
35:46
overall health but your immune system
35:49
stress is going to impact your weight
35:51
your habits your gut your brain so many
35:54
things so
35:55
we're all faced with stress we got gotta
35:57
manage dress we gotta take control we've
36:00
got to de-stress
36:02
you know after all never enough time in
36:04
the day or enough money and if you're a
36:06
people pleaser the word no
36:09
may not come easily to you
36:11
the problem with feeling overwhelmed
36:13
burnout stress throughout the day that's
36:15
just going to release a lot of cortisol
36:19
that stress hormone cortisol is going to
36:22
disrupt the blood sugar in your body
36:24
it's going to ship it to your brain in
36:26
an effort to prepare you to fight or
36:29
flee at the same time non-essential
36:32
things like your immune system and your
36:34
digestive system are
36:36
down regulated not so important because
36:39
you've got life and death stuff going on
36:42
so we need to we need to really change
36:44
that
36:46
quick easy way i love deep breathing put
36:48
a hand on your belly a hand on your
36:51
chest slowly breathe in through your
36:53
nose
36:55
the hand on your stomach should go out
36:58
while the one on your chest should stay
36:59
pretty much the same
37:01
you know it looks like a little bit of a
37:02
buddha belly you did that you got it
37:05
exhale through your mouth
37:09
you know
37:11
you may not need to use your hands once
37:13
you got it down but
37:15
you need to remind yourself to practice
37:17
this several times throughout the day
37:19
what i recommend drink a lot of water
37:21
and every time you go to the restroom do
37:23
this breathing technique it will
37:26
automatically reset your brain and
37:28
reduce stress
37:30
the more you do it the more you're going
37:32
to be training your body to be less
37:35
stressed just like we have trained it to
37:38
be stressed we got to train it to be
37:41
calm
37:42
get out of that stress
37:44
looping
37:45
you know regular exercise is going to be
37:48
helpful but this deep breathing
37:50
technique is instantly going to provide
37:53
relief
37:55
now of course i love supplements
37:58
my favorite one is ashwagandha but then
38:01
you can also use valerian root for this
38:03
anxio anxio-calm l-theanine gaba so many
38:06
every culture we've ever studied the
38:09
largest category of healing is stress i
38:12
guess we humans are just worriers
38:16
so now that we've what you've been
38:18
waiting for
38:19
special supplements i consider essential
38:22
in this day and age we've got vitamin d
38:25
somewhere between two and five thousand
38:27
i use you know if you're not
38:29
supplementing i can just about guarantee
38:31
you are deficient
38:33
lab values should be around 60. so
38:35
everything from cancer to depression to
38:38
the common cold research has been done
38:40
on it next thing zinc 25 for women 50
38:43
for men stops viral replication you can
38:46
go higher for a few days but not longer
38:49
because you can create imbalances and
38:51
other things so be sure to take a good
38:52
multivitamin to assure that balance
38:55
vitamin c anywhere between 500 and a
38:58
thousand three times a day if you need
39:00
it they're even using iv vitamin c for
39:03
covid wonderful
39:05
quercetin
39:06
500 milligrams twice a day we've used
39:09
this for allergies forever it
39:12
strengthens the cell wall
39:14
so that allergens can't cause the cell
39:17
to explode and then you have to take
39:19
antihistamines okay
39:21
now research is showing that it
39:23
strengthens the cell wall against the
39:26
covered spikes
39:27
as well
39:28
and quercetin also helps usher zinc in
39:32
to the cell so it stops the viral
39:34
replication in there that's so cool and
39:37
then curcumin
39:39
my favorite stops the inflammation
39:41
protects the cells in so many ways take
39:43
it every day bcm 95 it in my opinion and
39:48
research shows it is phenomenally
39:50
effective very very good probiotic
39:53
diversity somewhere around 20 billion is
39:55
going to be good because the gut lining
39:57
houses 80 percent of the immune system
39:59
we need to make sure that that's strong
40:01
and intact keeping that friendly flora
40:03
abundant then omega-3 somewhere 1000
40:07
2000 epa dha
40:09
anti-inflammatory in addition avoiding
40:12
the seed oils like canola and soy and
40:14
soybean they're high in omega-6 and
40:16
inflammatory so you keep those down
40:18
you're going to help the omega-3 do
40:20
better
40:22
okay so now
40:24
long haulers we've got a lot of people
40:26
that are having problems may have h2
40:29
deficiencies don't know
40:31
covid actively attacks those ace2
40:35
receptors so the nutrition focus is on
40:38
these three areas
40:40
these plants either
40:42
interface with the spiked protein itself
40:44
so it can't get in there or it blocks
40:46
the receptor site so between the
40:48
receptor and the spike can't get in
40:50
there
40:51
and then third it's going to just block
40:54
something in between there so
40:56
ace2
40:57
they're they're everywhere they're in
40:58
your lungs those receptors are in your
41:00
heart your blood vessels your kidneys
41:02
your gut
41:03
you know problems there is what leads to
41:05
the clotting and the cytokine production
41:08
and this you know it's all about
41:09
inflammation so the research on these
41:11
natural products a lot of phytonutrients
41:14
plant and vegetable compounds
41:16
we have known these mechanisms of action
41:20
and these pathways
41:21
and that's what i've been recommending
41:23
forever you know those 25 000
41:25
phytonutrients they protect us against
41:27
disease like the flavonoids the largest
41:30
group of ace2 inhibitors found in
41:33
grapefruit
41:34
naringinin it's also hesperden and
41:37
quercetin that we've already talked
41:38
about curcuminoids from turmeric bcm 95
41:42
terry naturally the top the best
41:44
resveratrol from red grapes or wine
41:47
ashwagandha also has some things in it
41:50
alkaloids you know gin glyce look like
41:53
cosine
41:55
glycoglycocide excuse me ginseng and
41:57
licorice contain those spirulina
41:59
lemongrass neem
42:01
garlic and pepper latch onto that ace
42:04
receptor and compete with the spike
42:06
protein geranium and lemon citronella in
42:10
articles of research they recommend them
42:12
for underdeveloped countries because
42:14
they're safe scalable and flexible and
42:18
they're also affordable for these
42:20
underdeveloped companies countries but
42:22
for me i love them because they're safe
42:24
they're available and these have been
42:27
known about written therapeutic uses for
42:29
over 5000 years though that's good
42:31
enough for me
42:35
so for long haulers let me just quickly
42:37
say alpha lipoic acid coq10 nad from
42:41
niacin and neck now we've got these
42:43
gentle boosters astragalus elderberry
42:47
echinacea goldenseal androgynous
42:49
propolis garlic
42:51
and you want the smelly part the allicin
42:53
is the smelly part that's the one that's
42:55
most active against those microbes and
42:57
then you've got mushroom extracts reishi
43:00
turkey tail shiitake mayataki cordyceps
43:03
love them all those are gentle boosters
43:05
you can do every day
43:07
wow we covered a lot of information and
43:09
as you can see there are so many things
43:11
we can do to protect ourselves
43:15
and not be immobilized the body wants to
43:18
be well
43:19
it wants to survive and it has so many
43:22
remarkable
43:24
and intricate webs that designed to keep
43:27
us well
43:28
we can't take it for granted we need to
43:31
practice these healthy lifestyle
43:33
measures
43:34
good sleep good diet stress reduction
43:37
toxin avoidance good relationships
43:40
exercise nothing extreme but a really
43:42
healthy balanced lifestyle like a good
43:45
life
43:46
and then add the supplements to further
43:48
arm yourself against pathogens sometimes
43:50
we're just a little bit more at risk
43:52
when any of these areas i talk about is
43:55
upset whether it's sleep or stress you
43:58
really need to add a little extra armor
44:00
like when i travel attending health
44:02
conferences i'd be sure to add some of
44:05
those boosters along to my regular
44:06
regime before during and after for a
44:10
while after i've been traveling you know
44:12
because you're a little worn down and
44:14
you're exposed to a lot of people
44:17
on airplanes and all and so i always
44:19
take a lot of goldenseal in these cases
44:22
add it to my regular arsenal because you
44:24
can imagine at the shop also we're on
44:26
the front line anybody who's exposed
44:28
wouldn't feeling well they want their
44:30
vitamins you know you can't be too
44:32
careful
44:34
and you know you can't take too good
44:36
care of yourself i mean if you're not
44:37
going to take care of yourself who will
44:40
okay a lot of good stuff i hope you
44:43
learned something that you found was
44:45
going to be helpful if you have any
44:46
questions please feel free to reach out
44:48
to me deb
44:50
debford.com and if you want to make an
44:52
appointment you can also do so on my
44:54
website devford.com
44:56
so you may have
44:59
some interested in looking in some of
45:02
the research i use for today in addition
45:04
to what i've got up here here's some of
45:06
the resources i use you might want to
45:08
take a
45:09
screenshot of that
45:11
there's a lot of good stuff there
45:13
so
45:14
i want to say thank you so much for
45:16
taking time out of your busy day to join
45:18
me the topic of immunity vital to health
45:21
the more we know about how our body
45:23
works the better equipped we can be to
45:26
defend ourselves against disease you
45:28
know that's why i like to educate you
45:30
when you know more you can do better and
45:32
you're going to be able to expect better
45:34
results okay well thank you so much for
45:37
listening again
45:38
and
45:39
feel free to reach out if you have any
45:41
questions
45:42
have a great day
45:49
you
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Immunity for Prevention and Long Haulers Syndrome
Deb Ford DCN RDN
77 views
Nov 10, 2021
45:49
In today's environment, we have to do all we can to keep our immune system functioning properly. Bacteria, viruses, fungi, protozoa, and prions are all microbes that the immune system has to defend itself against 24/7. The innate and acquired immune systems depends on you to do all you can to keep them working effectively.