It might seem that your gut is unrelated to your immune health, but our body systems don’t work in isolation. The health of your gut has a direct impact on the health of your immune system.
This is because 70% of your immune cells are located in your gut. So a balanced microbiome plays a major role in your immune health, and taking care of your gut means taking care of your immune health. Let’s take a closer look.
What Is the Gut Microbiome?
The gut microbiome is an ecosystem of trillions of bacteria, viruses, fungi, and other organisms that live in a symbiotic relationship in our gut.
The gut microbiome and its relationship with other aspects of health have been subject to extensive research, and the gut microbiome has been shown to be involved in everything from metabolic function to skin health and immune function to mental health.
The Gut - Immune System Link
With at least 70% of immune cells being present in the gut, there is an important interplay between the intestinal microbiota, the intestinal epithelial layer, and the local mucosal immune system.
The gut microbiota consists of a multispecies microbial community of bacteria, fungi, viruses, and more. The composition of the gut microbiota is influenced by many factors, including genetics, gender, age, nutrition, stress, and environmental factors.
Next to the gut microbiota, the gut epithelial barrier acts as a physical barrier that separates the bacteria in the gut from the underlying tissues. This barrier consists of tight-junction complexes which can be disrupted by certain bacteria.
In addition, the epithelial cell layer is reinforced by a layer of mucus. This mucus lining of the epithelial barrier is among the first defense mechanisms of the intestinal epithelia against bacterial invasion, by preventing luminal and mucosal microbes from directly interacting with epithelial cells.
The continuous interaction between the gut microbiota and intestinal epithelium leads to constant immune signaling in the body.
What Can Affect Your Immune System?
Many different factors can affect your immune health. Here are a few of them:
Diet
Research has acknowledged that nutrition has a large impact on the composition of the gut microbiota and the immune system.
A diet lacking key nutrients can compromise your immune system function. In addition, a diet high in processed or refined foods, or lacking in fiber can compromise gut health and immune health. Taking a comprehensive multivitamin and/or targeted immune support supplement can help to meet some of these key nutrient needs.
Lifestyle
Healthy lifestyle factors can influence the immune system. For example, A lack of physical activity, smoking, chronic stress, and frequent alcohol use are lifestyle choices that can compromise the function of the immune system.
Sleep
Sleep is a time when your body recovers and repairs and research has suggested that lack of sleep can affect both innate and adaptive immune responses.
How To Support Your Gut Microbiome
There are many ways to improve your gut microbiome:
- Eat a diverse range of foods: The microbiome loves diversity. Incorporate plenty of different colorful fruits, veggies, nuts, and seeds.
- Eat fermented foods: Fermented foods such as yogurt, sauerkraut, and kefir all contain healthy bacteria to support the balance of beneficial bacteria in the gut.
- Eat prebiotic foods: Prebiotics function as a food source for the bacteria in your gut. Some examples include artichokes, bananas, asparagus, oats and apples.
- Breastfeed when possible: Breastfeeding supports the development of the gut microbiome.
- Take a probiotic supplement: Probiotics are live bacteria that help support the balance of good bacteria in the gut. Look for a probiotic with strains specifically targeted to your needs.
- Take antibiotics only when necessary: Antibiotics kill both bad and good bacteria in the gut microbiome. There are absolutely times when antibiotics are necessary, but be sure that they are before taking them.
The Bottom Line
Taking care of your gut means taking care of your immune health. A healthy diet and lifestyle supports both your gut and immune system in a synergistic way.
