Updated majorly 1/7/2025. One reference was no longer viable. New reference added with new information.
"Immune System Part 1: Workings Beyond White Blood Cells", published two weeks before on this on July 28th, listed different parts and workings of the immune system beyond white blood cells - even stomach acid! Please refer to Part 1, particularly as it speaks about what inflammation is, with the following: [LINK]. We now move on to the second of the three-part Immune System article series, on a couple types of haywire immune system responses, allergies and autoimmune issues.
All autoimmune diseases involve the body attacking good cells. Rheumatoid athritis, MS, lupus, and celiac are included. Various foods have immune-boosting nutrients or else autoimmune-inflaming properties - take for example some veggies. Green leafy veggies "are rich in antioxidants and immune-boosting nutrients like vitamin C, vitamin A, and magnesium"; cruciferous veggies have the immune-regulating antioxidant compound glutathione. Nightshades are veggies but they have alkaloids that may increase intestinal inflammation. A study showed that blueberries may be helpful to MS patients(1).
Food allergies are abnormal types of immune responses like hives, breathing constriction, and swelling and are overreactions to proteins of some foods. As much as 8% of US kids have food allergies, compared to approximately 2% of adults. Food intolerances are less serious issues and may cause discomfort, but usually affect the digestive tract more than anything(2).
There are upwards of "160 foods that can cause a reaction in sensitive people, [but] there are eight common foods that account for approximately 90% of all food allergy reactions... [which] include milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, and soybeans". Intolerance for lactose, the milk sugar, comes from "reduced production of enzyme lactase after infancy."(2) The wrong species of gut flora, lack of good species, and species colonizing inappropriate sections of the gut can induce food intolerances, intolerances to healthy prebiotics or sugars, or food allergies (Davis, 66-69, 284). Those conditions may actually be signs of the need for gut-healthy diet, well-targeted probiotics, and other interventions to revamp the gut microbiome(Davis, 67, 283-84).
[Note: Some allergy-causing foods aren't so good for you anyway, or at least when produced wrong. I do avoid wheat as I get brain fog and lowered immune function. My parents were told I was allergic to milk as a baby, and it turned out the nasty chemicals and hormones in that milk were probably the issue, as I did better after a while. For some examples, please click the "Not the Same" tag on the BNH blog menu to see articles on some foods that aren't so good for the body.]
Personal Product Favorites:
Two servings of veggies with superfood moringa in one scoop
Probiotic with advanced delivery system
References:
1. Younghans, Samantha Faragalli. "The Foods To Eat and Avoid If You Have an Autoimmune Disease:
Defeat Inflammation By Simply Swapping the Worst Foods For Autoimmune Diseases With the Best." Eat This, Not That!. Galvanized Media. January 25, 2020. Web. November 9, 2024. https://www.eatthis.com/autoimmune-disease-diet-foods/.
2. "Questions About Food Allergies? We’ve Got Answers!" Isagenix Health. Isagenix Worldwide, Inc. Web. November 9, 2024. https://www.isagenixhealth.net/questions-about-food-allergies-weve-got-answers/.
3. Davis, William. Super Gut: A Four-Week Plan to Reprogram Your Microbiome, Restore Health, and Lose Weight. 1st ed., New York, Hachette Go, 2022.
"Immune System Part 1: Workings Beyond White Blood Cells", published two weeks before on this on July 28th, listed different parts and workings of the immune system beyond white blood cells - even stomach acid! Please refer to Part 1, particularly as it speaks about what inflammation is, with the following: [LINK]. We now move on to the second of the three-part Immune System article series, on a couple types of haywire immune system responses, allergies and autoimmune issues.
All autoimmune diseases involve the body attacking good cells. Rheumatoid athritis, MS, lupus, and celiac are included. Various foods have immune-boosting nutrients or else autoimmune-inflaming properties - take for example some veggies. Green leafy veggies "are rich in antioxidants and immune-boosting nutrients like vitamin C, vitamin A, and magnesium"; cruciferous veggies have the immune-regulating antioxidant compound glutathione. Nightshades are veggies but they have alkaloids that may increase intestinal inflammation. A study showed that blueberries may be helpful to MS patients(1).
Food allergies are abnormal types of immune responses like hives, breathing constriction, and swelling and are overreactions to proteins of some foods. As much as 8% of US kids have food allergies, compared to approximately 2% of adults. Food intolerances are less serious issues and may cause discomfort, but usually affect the digestive tract more than anything(2).
There are upwards of "160 foods that can cause a reaction in sensitive people, [but] there are eight common foods that account for approximately 90% of all food allergy reactions... [which] include milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, and soybeans". Intolerance for lactose, the milk sugar, comes from "reduced production of enzyme lactase after infancy."(2) The wrong species of gut flora, lack of good species, and species colonizing inappropriate sections of the gut can induce food intolerances, intolerances to healthy prebiotics or sugars, or food allergies (Davis, 66-69, 284). Those conditions may actually be signs of the need for gut-healthy diet, well-targeted probiotics, and other interventions to revamp the gut microbiome(Davis, 67, 283-84).
[Note: Some allergy-causing foods aren't so good for you anyway, or at least when produced wrong. I do avoid wheat as I get brain fog and lowered immune function. My parents were told I was allergic to milk as a baby, and it turned out the nasty chemicals and hormones in that milk were probably the issue, as I did better after a while. For some examples, please click the "Not the Same" tag on the BNH blog menu to see articles on some foods that aren't so good for the body.]
Personal Product Favorites:
Two servings of veggies with superfood moringa in one scoop
Probiotic with advanced delivery system
References:
1. Younghans, Samantha Faragalli. "The Foods To Eat and Avoid If You Have an Autoimmune Disease:
Defeat Inflammation By Simply Swapping the Worst Foods For Autoimmune Diseases With the Best." Eat This, Not That!. Galvanized Media. January 25, 2020. Web. November 9, 2024. https://www.eatthis.com/autoimmune-disease-diet-foods/.
2. "Questions About Food Allergies? We’ve Got Answers!" Isagenix Health. Isagenix Worldwide, Inc. Web. November 9, 2024. https://www.isagenixhealth.net/questions-about-food-allergies-weve-got-answers/.
3. Davis, William. Super Gut: A Four-Week Plan to Reprogram Your Microbiome, Restore Health, and Lose Weight. 1st ed., New York, Hachette Go, 2022.
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