You and I live on a post-industrial planet where oxygen levels are constantly decreasing. This is critical because your immune system is fueled by oxygen.
Today, it’s almost impossible for your immune system to get the oxygen it needs because environmental toxins are deoxygenating the three sources of oxygen – food, water, and air – before it can reach your body.
But the good news is you can easily boost your immune system, starting today. And you can oxygenate your blood, improve circulation, and boost oxygen delivery to your cells.
White Blood Cells Need Oxygen
A recent study noted that oxygen is “indispensable” for your immune system – it needs it to work properly.1 Because while white blood cells don’t carry oxygen the way red blood cells do, they still require it as a source of energy.
Additionally, when white blood cells metabolize oxygen, they make a byproduct called hydrogen peroxide. This is broken down by the enzyme peroxidase and converted into powerful antioxidants.
And antioxidants are a critical line of defense used by your immune system.
You see, your body’s ability to fight off disease gets weaker as you age for one primary reason – free radicals.
These are “rogue” oxygen molecules produced by cells as a natural byproduct of normal biological processes, like turning food into energy. Free radicals also enter your body through small particles in polluted air, cigarette smoke, as well as via the consumption of a high carbohydrate and sugar diet.
And they are incredibly damaging to your immune system. Scientists now know the assault of free radical attacks on your immune system is one of the chief mechanisms behind the aging process — because it reduces your body’s ability to defend against illness and disease.
Studies also show aging immune cells even produce their
own free radicals, which trigger their own destructive chain reactions that cause widening circles of damage, disease and accelerated aging.2That’s why your body’s own free radical-fighting, natural antioxidants are so important.
The problem is that antioxidant “super oxides,” like superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase and glutathione peroxidase, can’t synthesize properly without enough oxygen.
Research by immunologists at UCLA proves an aging body’s ability to reinvigorate its antioxidant defenses against free radicals can literally reverse the negative effect of these harmful molecules on the immune system.3
This is critical research, because it means that by fighting the effect of free radicals on your immune system, your body not only becomes better at fighting disease — it also means you can actually slow the rate at which you age.
I always recommend hyperbaric oxygen to ramp up oxygen levels and reduce free radical activity. Studies confirm HBOT triggers antioxidant gene expression that protects immune cells from aging.4
Getting HBOT is easy. You simply breathe as normal in a special, oxygen-rich chamber. The only difference is that you’re getting 100% oxygen under higher pressure (up to 2.5 times than we normally have in air).
If you want to learn more about HBOT, call my staff at (561) 784-7852 for more information.
Bulletproof Your Immunity with Oxygen Boosting Nutrients
But for an immediate immunity boost, I recommend two oxygen-enhancing nutrients.
- Crunch on this immune-boosting mega veggie: UCLA researchers discovered that sulforaphane stimulates a wide range of antioxidant defense pathways that directly interfere with the age-related decline in immune function. Cruciferous vegetables are a great source of sulforaphane. But the best source is broccoli sprouts. They give you up to 100 times as much as regular broccoli.5 If you choose to supplement, look for one made from an extract of broccoli sprouts containing sulforaphane glucosinolate. Take at least 30 mg three times a day at least 30 minutes before or after a meal.
- The “zombie” oxygen mushroom: Cordyceps sinensis is a medicinal fungus that has the power to “turn on” genes that increase oxygen delivery to the cells while “turning-off” inflammatory factors.6 In one study of 30 elderly patients, cordyceps sinensis significantly improved the amount of oxygen these subjects were able to absorb. Another study showed that cordyceps sinensis increased cellular oxygen absorption by up to 40%.7
To Your Good Health,
Al Sears, MD, CNS
1. Meng, X. et al. “Hypoxia-inducible factor-1α is a critical transcription factor for IL-10-producing B cells in autoimmune disease.” Nat Commun. 2018. 9(1):251.
2. Florence TM. “The role of free radicals in disease.” Aust N Z J Ophthalmol. 1995 Feb;23(1):3-7.
3. Nel AE, et al. “Nrf2 activation by sulforaphane restores the age-related decrease of T(H)1 immunity: role of dendritic cells.” J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2008;121(5):1255-1261.e7.
4. Godman CA, et al. “Hyperbaric oxygen treatment induces antioxidant gene expression.” Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2010 Jun;1197:178-83
5. Fahey JW, et al. “Broccoli sprouts: An exceptionally rich source of inducers of enzymes that protect against chemical carcinogens.” Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1997; 94:10367–10372
6. Singh M, et al. “Cordyceps sinensis Increases Hypoxia Tolerance by Inducing Heme Oxygenase-1 and Metallothionein via Nrf2 Activation in Human Lung Epithelial Cells.” BioMed Research International. Vol 2013 Article ID 569206
7. Xiao Y, et al. “Increased Aerobic Capacity in Healthy Elderly Humans given fermented Cordyceps Cs-4: a Placebo controlled Trial. Ann. Meeting American College of Sports Medicine, Seattle, WA, June 3-5, 1999.