Does Your Lifestyle Affect Your Immune System?
The immune system of our body gets influenced by numerous factors. The heredity of the mother determines the degree of natural immunity that develops in the child in the womb. Once a baby is born and begins to grow, environmental factors and lifestyle play a vital role in developing immunity.
A person’s ability to resist infection depends on the ability of the immune system to overpower infectious microorganisms. We will discuss some of the lifestyle factors that significantly impact the human immune system in this article.
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Which Lifestyle Factors Impact Immunity
Here are some common lifestyle factors that directly affect the body’s immune system.
1. Physical Activity
Physical activity has a generalized effect on the entire body. It improves blood flow, develops flexibility, reduces fatigue, and stimulates oxygen delivery to all cells and tissues. It also has a positive effect on the functioning of most organs, including those organs that produce the blood cells responsible for immunity.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and the American Heart Association (ACA) have recommended at least 30 minutes of physical activity five days a week. According to research, the immune systems of adults who do vigorous exercise for 20 minutes for three days a week or more are much more active than people who do not exercise at all.
Further, it was also found that adults who practice moderate physical activity have improved immune system function compared to those who were sedentary. Thus, scientists have come to the conclusion that exercise does play an important role in ensuring the proper functioning of the human immune system.
2. Relying On Alcohol And Drugs
The prevalence of drug and alcohol abuse is not a secret from any person today. We all know how injurious these products can be for a person’s health. However still, the number of addicts across the globe is increasing day by day. Such an addiction severely impacts the immune system, making the body prone to diseases.
According to research, people do not treat their addiction due to the high cost of the treatments available. However, there is no need to worry. There are still many low-cost and even free rehab treatments available in some facilities. Take help from them to get alcohol out of your system and improve your immune system.
3. Self-Esteem And Social Activities
Conventional factors in life such as self-esteem and social activities do have an impact on the immune system. For example, a person with higher self-esteem, leading a socially active lifestyle, has greater body protection compared to other people who are depressed and remain isolated from society. This beneficial effect may be associated with the release of certain hormones that contribute to the improved functioning of the immune system.
4. Taking Stress
The stress a person experiences in a professional, social or personal life can have a negative impact on people’s health. It can directly or indirectly affect the way and manner of the body’s functioning. Excessive stress or emotional strain can lead to depression, which, in turn, causes even more harm to the body. Small and short-term stress is practically harmless in contrast to prolonged stress (chronic stress), which has more serious consequences.
High levels of stress promote the release of hormones such as catecholamines, which negatively affect the functioning of various cells and tissues. For example, catecholamines affect heart rate, blood pressure, respiration, and the functioning of the immune system. With regard to the immune system, catecholamines have a wide range of effects.
They increase the formation of immature T-lymphocytes, cause inappropriate distribution of immunocytes while suppressing the activity of the latter, and also affect the overall growth and development of immunocytes. Thus, increased levels of stress can weaken the immune system, making a person vulnerable to harmful microorganisms.
5. Diet
The growth and development factors of our body are mainly dependent on nutrition. The normal functioning of all cells and tissues in the human body requires a certain concentration of vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, fats, and other essential macro-and microelements. A person can obtain most of these essential nutrients from a proper and balanced diet enriched with vegetables and fruits.
Along with the stimulating effect on the immune system, nutrients obtained during nutrition and consumption of food supplements improve the functioning of cells and tissues. This provides reliable protection for the body against toxins produced by harmful microorganisms.
6. Daily Intake Of Multivitamins
The consumption of multivitamin supplements affects the functioning of the whole body. Vitamins affect the growth and development of the body as a whole. Our system requires a regular supply of vitamins, the availability of which is largely due to our diet.
It turns out that not all vitamins may be available through diet, or it may be that the amount we receive may not be enough. Thus, many people consume multivitamin supplements. Consuming them daily can improve overall health and the functioning of the immune system.
7. Taking Steroids
Steroid use is associated with a weakening of the functioning of the immune system. They help to increase the stamina of an organism suffering from long-term inflammatory disorders such as asthma. And although a certain level of steroids is initially present in the human body nevertheless, their amount is not enough to affect the immune system.
Abuse of contortionists or, conversely, a sharp lack of them for a long time suppresses the function of the immune system. People who use steroids are more susceptible to various infections.
Summing Up
Many of the above-mentioned lifestyle factors, we believe, are helpful for our bodies. However, by repeating the mentioned things above, such excessive consumption of steroids, drugs, or alcohol can only harm the body, weakening the body’s immune system.
By taking precautionary measures timely, a person can surely improve the immunity level of the body. But if you ignore the factors mentioned above, you are putting your life in great danger. So act wisely to live healthily!
