If you’re sick of hearing about the Coronavirus, welcome to the club. It’s on every news channel, media outlet, and on every organization’s main agenda. Containment is what we’re talking about and if you think this is being blown out of proportion, it’s not really relevant at this point.

What I’ve understood from all the different outlets I’ve been following have talked about is that the biggest concern is how this highly contagious illness will impact the economy in relation to productivity, commerce, travel and all other activities related to keeping society moving right along.

We are talking about quarantines and testing as well as moving in hyperspeed to develop a vaccine. But what about prevention? The only thing we are discussing is how to wash hands, sneeze, and maintain your distance. We are missing a critical component…our own immune systems!

There are many reasons why our immune systems may be compromised but here are the main ones:

• poor nutrition

• chemotherapy/genetics

• alcohol

• stress

• poor gut health

Our weakened immune systems are what allows things like the Coronavirus to take hold and spread rapidly. So rather than just look at what to do now that the coronavirus is here, let’s talk about how can we prevent it on the cellular level.

Here are the basics of your immune system which you may already know but let’s review just in case. Our immune system is made up of antibodies, white blood cells, along with your tonsils, thymus, spleen, bone marrow, lymph nodes/vessels, and other chemicals and proteins. When working properly, they basically attack and destroy the bad guys like bad bacteria and viruses because they recognize these as foreign and different from the body's normal healthy tissues.

Let’s look at each of these areas and how we make them work for us, rather than against us.

Nutrition

You are what you eat. Literally. Nutrients, or lack of, in our food make a direct impact on immune health. If we have a nutrient-deficient diet, our bodies don’t have the necessary ammo to fight off infections. Our bodies need antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, healthy microbes, and immunostimulants. This is like putting on body armor.

Let’s say you eat the typical American diet: fast food (hamburgers, chicken nuggets -- yes, that means your beloved Chick-Fil-A --, sub sandwiches, chips, soda) highly processed foods, fried foods, and all things sugar. Your body is a breeding ground for illness/disease. These foods create gaps in your body’s defense systems making it an easy target.

Eating healthy and whole foods keeps our immune system (body armor) from breaking down. It is a scientific fact that a healthy diet gives us the immune boosting vitamins and minerals we need. The other part of this equation, however, is making sure we are absorbing those nutrients.

Adding digestive enzymes to my daily supplements has helped me tremendously!

Chemotherapy and other immune deficiencies

When a person goes through chemotherapy, they are essentially wiping away the immune system. Chemotherapy keeps cells from dividing which is great for cancer cells but not great for normal cells. We stay healthy from constant healthy cell growth and when that halts, we become vulnerable. Per BreastHealth.org,

“As chemotherapy medicines damage the bone marrow, the marrow is less able to produce enough red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.” Typically, the greatest impact is on white blood cells. When you don’t have enough white blood cells, your body is more vulnerable to infection.”

Other things that impact our healthy white blood cell count are those who have recently undergone organ transplant operations. They take immune-suppressing drugs to prevent the body from rejecting the new organ which makes them ripe for infections.

AIDS/HIV and genetic immunodeficient diseases keep the immune system in a constant state of suppression. Again, proper nutrition, good sleep, proper exercise and a healthy gut will be imperative if this is you.

Alcohol

Scientific research shows that alcohol affects the structure and integrity of the GI (gastrointestinal) tract by negatively impacting the number of microbes as well as how those microbes communicate. Alcohol damages the gut lining, making it permeable (I.e. Leaky Gut Syndrome) which causes bacteria to leak into the bloodstream. This causes inflammation throughout the body which taxes our immune systems. And when our immune system is on overdrive, we become susceptible to infection.

Steering clear of the alcohol can do lots of great things for you besides just help boost your immune system like better sleep, mental clarity, a boost in metabolism, clearer skin, better nutrient absorption, and more energy.

Stress

When we become stressed, our body responds by releasing a hormone called cortisol. This hormone helps us become alert and keep us safe if we are in danger. However, when we chronically stressed, our bodies are constantly taxing our immune system by damaging healthy cells.

Need ideas to combat stress? Meditation, exercise/yoga, keeping a journal, use essential oils/aromatherapy, connect with friends, engage in favorite hobbies, spend time in nature, go to therapy, and get better sleeping and eating habits.

Gut Health

Our gut health is a huge component of this. If we have a healthy gut, we have a plethora of healthy bacteria within our immune system that kick out pathogens rather than let them set up shop. Whether it is leaky gut or a microbe imbalance, poor gut health causes a chronic inflammatory response which taxes our immune system. There are lots of factors that cause poor gut health: alcohol like I mentioned earlier, poor diet, medications (both prescription and NSAIDS - nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs), leaky gut, abundance of toxins (one of the worst is glyphosate, the main ingredient in Roundup Weedkiller).

Cut back on alcohol, eat a fiber and nutrient-rich diet, reduce reliance on medications (under medical supervision, of course), and shift to a non-toxic lifestyle will be helpful in creating that healthy microbiome.

Exercising regularly

Exercising releases anti-inflammatory cytokines and recruits cells to heal the “damage”. Obesity, metabolic syndrome and aging are known factors that worsen the prognosis as well.

When we have more than one of these impacting our immune system, we’ve got a sh*tstorm happening inside which is the perfect environment for the Coronavirus or any other illness to set up shop. Unfortunately, this is also the typical American lifestyle.

Boosting one’s immune system is a health strategy we shouldn’t overlook. If we all do the work, this could all be over a lot quicker and as well as keep this from happening again.

This is a strategy that can take time, depending on how weakened your immune system is, but this current global health crisis is proof that that we need to make our immune systems a top priority right now and for always.

FYI, this is what I’m doing in the short term:

• Using my essential oils to boost immunity

• Taking large doses of Vitamin C (liposomal)

• Taking my daily nutritional supplements

• Focusing on getting 7-9 hours of quality sleep

• Eating nutrient-dense diet to fight inflammation, increase gut health and keep energy levels up

• Exercising regularly

Stay safe and healthy, my friends!