Food For Immune Support And Managing Anxiety

I have a secret: nutrition and it's impact on immune health is something that I think about a lot, but I am a nutritionist (and kind of a nerd!). I no longer feel alone as now more then ever people are concerned about their immune health as they wait in self-quarantine. Today I will share with you some high-impact ways to adjust your nutrition to support your immune system and foods known to help with anxiety.

I know I have written about this in other articles, but I cannot stress this enough - excess sugar/simple carbohydrates is often the hidden culprit behind expanding waistlines AND the disruption of the body's ability to battle germs. It basically puts your white blood cells into a temporary coma. Starting back in the 70s, researchers could see that after a dose of sugar, certain white blood cells called neutrophils were far less aggressive in gobbling up the bacteria. Participants were given 100g oral portions of glucose, fructose, sucrose, honey, or orange juice to observe the effects on the activity of neutrophils. Immediately after consuming simple carbohydrates (approximately one to two hours), there was a significant decrease in the phagocytic index, which means the immune function of phagocytes was suppressed. The effects lasted up to five hours post-feeding, confirming that the function of phagocytes was impaired by the consumption of simple carbohydrates. This is just one of many different ways that the body defends itself as the immune system is a very complex system and a lot is still unknown.

Excessive sugar consumption also blunts our immune system in other indirect ways. It depletes the body’s nutrient balance, which triggers a cascade of inflammation and metabolic disruption. Second, sugar intake is one of the classic triggers for cortisol release (cortisol is the well-known stress hormone). Regular high sugar intakes may keep your levels elevated. Cortisol functions to reduce inflammation in the body, which is good if released in small bursts over time, but longterm elevations  suppress the immune system. And let's not forget that mental stress (like say, trying to avoid the Coronavirus at all costs) also increases cortisol levels; mental stress plus our diet can give a double-whammy cortisol boost. 

I get it, this is probably information you didn't want to hear. But listen, we're all collectively stuck in our homes, working our way through our emergency stash of chocolate bars because we're bored or scared or don't want to have to work AND teach our kids so we're taking a time out. I'm not saying that you can't ever have something sweet either. Overall it's about finding balance and here are some tips to do that. 

As an added bonus, here a few workouts you can do in the comfort of your own home (make modifications and take breaks when needed)!

Workout #1

Warm-up
2 rounds:
- 6 inch worms 
- 30 sec plank on hands or forearms (modification: make it shorter)
- 3/side world's greatest stretch
- 10 squat jumps

METCON
4 rounds:
- 10 up downs
- 20 total leg lunges
- 10 push ups (modification: on knees or on wall)
- 10 squat jumps (modifications: air squats)

Workout #2
Warm-up
15 air squats
3/side world's greatest stretch
30 sec marching in place

METCON
3-5 Rounds For Time
20 Goblet Squats [pick any object to hold in-front of you]
20 Hollow Body Flutter Kicks

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