How Much Do You Know About Your Immune System?

Did you know that your body comes into contact with billions of germs and bacteria every day?

While some of those microbes might be good, a vast majority of them may cause harm to your body. That’s why it’s important to ensure that your body is strong enough to fight them, especially with the fight against COVID-19 still ongoing - and the main line of defense against these bad bacteria, viruses, and germs is your very own immune system.

Everyone Talks About the Immune System, But What Is It Exactly?

The immune system is a network of cells, tissues and organs that work together to fight against infections and keep you in the prime of health. Each part of the immune system has a unique part to play when it comes to defending your body. For example, white blood cells recognise disease-causing organisms called pathogens and fight off infections.

Additionally, the bone marrow is responsible for producing white blood cells, the lymph nodes store infection-fighting cells throughout the body and the spleen helps clean the blood and removes old or damaged cells.

Even though the immune system is a complex network of defenses, for our easy understanding, it can be broken down into 3 major defenses: physiological, innate and adaptive.

Get to Know The 3 Defenses of Immunity

The first layer of defense in our immune system is physiological immunity, found on our skin.

As the largest organ in our body, the skin is the first barrier against pathogens such as bacteria, germs, and viruses. Any breaks or weakening in the skin’s barrier act as an invitation to pathogens to invade the body. That’s why, ensuring that your skin is healthy and strong is not only great for a beautiful complexion but is also essential for your immune system.

Example: Imagine your physiological immunity as a brick wall and this is your first line of defense. If an attack takes place, it has to pass through the brick wall.

The second layer of defense is innate immunity, which is the quick-response cells in our body that jump in to fight any pathogens that make it past the skin. The most known example of innate immunity is white blood cells. The white blood cells are taught to recognise harmful pathogens so that they can quickly fight off the infections before they hurt the body further.

Example: Imagine your innate immunity as a security guard. This is the second line of defense behind the brick wall, your first line of defense. If an attack took place and passed the brick wall, it now has to pass through the security guard.

Saving the best for last is the final layer of defense - adaptive immunity. These cells are the “smartest” line of defense against pathogens that bypass the physiological and innate immunity barriers. As the name suggests, your adaptive immunity defense adapts according to the situation to find a way to protect the body. Best of all, once they figure out the solution, the latter is forever imprinted into the cells as an “immune memory.”

Example: Imagine your adaptive immunity as a police officer. The police officer is the final and third line of defense that springs into action when harmful substances have managed to pass both the brick wall (physiological immunity) and the security guard (innate immunity). Once the police officer has defended and prevented the attack, he/she will also remember what to do should the event repeat itself. This is why the adaptive immunity contains ‘immune memory’ cells.

This is why all 3 line of defenses are important for your body to maintain a strong immune system!

Strengthen Your Defense System with The Right Nutrients & Supplements

The various parts of the body need to work together like a well-oiled machine to stave off any bacteria and infections; and any breaks in this machine can hamper the effectiveness of your immune system.

Hence why it’s important to ensure that you’re providing your body with all the necessary ingredients to build a strong and hearty immune system. These ingredients are a healthy lifestyle, balanced diet, exercise and enough sleep so you can function at the optimum level. But, with our busy schedules, we might need a little help.

So, fill the gaps and ensure that you’re consuming all the necessary nutrients with the help of Nutrilite supplements. With a vast range of supplements and health products, you can count on Nutrilite to have your back when it comes to building immunity.

Check out more immunity-building Nutrilite supplements here 

Also, stay tuned for our next article on how maintaining and strengthening a healthy immune system is crucial to your health and wellness!