Top nutrients to enhance your nutrition client’s immunity

Between the common cold, seasonal flu, and COVID-19 variants, germs seem to be everywhere and immunity can be compromised. So, what can you do to give your nutrition client’s immune system the boost it needs? Here are some of the top nutrients to enhance your client’s immune system.

If your client is feeling under the weather (either from the common cold, seasonal flu, or a COVID-19 variant), they may gravitate towards vitamin C rich foods to boost immunity. While this may be a poster child for immunity, there are other important nutrients that offer just as many health benefits.

As a nutrition professional, you should keep up with the latest research to give your clients the best advice on protecting their immunity. Lifestyle changes (such as physical activity, stress, and sleep habits) all play a role in immune function, but diet is also a key player. Before discussing certain nutrients to support your client’s immunity, let’s first understand what the immune system is and how it works.

Understanding the immune system

Your body is working around the clock to keep harmful pathogens (such as bacteria, fungi, and viruses) out with defense mechanisms like immune cells and antibodies.

There are many factors that can disrupt the immune system, including [1]:

• Environmental pollutants
• Bacteria
• Fungus
• Innate toxins within food (such as lectins in beans and carotoxins in carrots)

When the immune system encounters a pathogen, it creates an immune response that triggers antibodies to directly attack and destroy it [1]. Antibodies are proteins which help battle infection by distinguishing your own tissue from foreign particles [1]. Once an antibody has been produced, a copy remains in the body so that you can fight it off faster if you encounter that same pathogen again.

What causes a weak immune system?

If your client has a weak immune system, they are more prone to infection from harmful pathogens, and it becomes increasingly difficult for the body to fight them off. External factors like stress and lack of sleep can significantly reduce the body’s ability to fight infection. Additionally, medical conditions like obesity, pneumonia, bronchitis, certain cancers, and HIV also contribute to a weakened immune system [1].

Important nutrients for immunity

While you can work with your clients to reduce stress, increase physical activity, and improve sleep habits, you can also include a variety of nutrients in their personalized meal plans to boost their immune system. Here are some of the best nutrients to support immunity.

Vitamin A

Vitamin A resides in the digestive tract and plays a strong role when it comes to supporting your immune system. The lining of your digestive tract is constantly coming into contact with microbes and toxins, so when a toxic or pathogenic microbe reaches it, your cells respond to reduce the impact of the pathogen.

When there is a lack of vitamin A, a type cell called an effector T cell can cause an autoimmune response and inflammation [2]. However, when there is enough vitamin A stored within the cells, your body produces T regulatory cells that can combat inflammation [2]. Since inflammation and immunity are closely related, it’s important to make sure that your client has an adequate amount of vitamin A in their diet to boost their immune health.

The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for adults 19 years and older is 3,000 IU/day for men and 2,300 IU/day for women [2]. Depending on the level of deficiency or individual needs, this can be met with supplementation or food sources, such as beef liver, sweet potato, spinach, carrots, ricotta cheese, and cantaloupe.

Vitamin D

Recent research has found that vitamin D plays important roles in improving immune function, reducing inflammation, and modulating growth and development [4]. The evidence shows that multiple types of cells within the body, including your immune cells, contain enzymes that can convert the circulating form of vitamin D into the active form, calcitriol [4]. Since this process is essential to immune response, a vitamin D deficiency can cause an increased risk of infections and higher rates of autoimmune disease [4].

The RDA for vitamin D for people between the ages of 1 and 70 is 600 IU/day, and for adults over 70 the RDA is 800 IU/day [5]. Depending on the level of deficiency or individual needs, this can be met with supplementation, daily sunshine exposure, or food sources, such as trout, salmon, mushrooms (exposed to UV light), fortified milk (diary or plant-based), fortified cereal, eggs, and beef liver [5].

Vitamin C

Vitamin C has long been considered the holy grail of immune support, and for good reason! This nutrient is crucial to keep your immune defenses up and running, as it helps stimulate the production of white blood cells to help ward off harmful pathogens. Moreover, evidence shows that vitamin C supplementation can significantly reduce the duration, severity, and symptoms of the common cold [1].

The recommended daily amount (RDA) for adults is 65 to 90 mg/ day, yet it’s been found that doses between 200 and 2,000 mg/day may reduce the duration of cold symptoms. [6]. Depending on the level of deficiency or individual needs, this can be met with supplementation or food sources, such as bell pepper, citrus, kiwi, broccoli, tomato, and strawberries [6].

Vitamin E

Vitamin E has an important role in the differentiation of immature T cells (immune cells) and it has been found that a deficiency hinders the differentiation of these young T cells [7]. It also helps the body to fight off invading bacteria and viruses, thus enhancing an immune response.

The RDA for vitamin E for pregnant women and people over 14 years old is 22 IU/day, with lactating women having slightly elevated needs at 28 IU/day. [8]. Depending on the level of deficiency or individual needs, this can be met with supplementation or food sources, such as wheat germ oil, sunflower seeds and oil, almonds, safflower oil, and peanut butter [8]. If your client is older, research suggests that vitamin E supplementation can improve decreased cellular immunity within the aging population [7].

Iron

Research shows that iron has a role in the production of interferons, which prevent viral replication in the human body [1]. Iron binding proteins can stop the growth of pathogens and can attract other immune cells, so having an iron deficiency can decrease an immune response and leave your body wide open to infection [1].

The RDA for iron is 8 mg/day for men and non menstruating women; 18 mg/day for menstruating women 19-50 years old (15 mg for women 18 years old); 27 mg/day for pregnant women; and 9 mg/day for lactating women 19-50 years old (10 mg if 18 years old) [9]. Depending on the level of deficiency or individual needs, this can be met with supplementation or food sources, such as oysters, white beans, beef liver, lentils, spinach, tofu, and chickpeas [9]. However, women, athletes, and those who follow a vegetarian or vegan diet may benefit from additional supplementation.

Zinc

Zinc is a powerhouse of immunity, as it fights off invading bacteria and viruses, and helps with the development of neutrophils (white blood cells) and natural killer cells to boost an immune response. In the case of a zinc deficiency, it has been shown that function of T lymphocytes, antibodies, and immunoglobulin G are compromised, thus increasing the risk of infection and a decreased immune system [10].

The RDA for zinc is 11 mg/day for men over 9 years old and 8 mg/day for women, with slightly higher recommendations for pregnant and lactating women at 11 mg/day and 12 mg/day, respectively [11]. Depending on the level of deficiency or individual needs, this can be met with supplementation or food sources, such as beef, crab, lobster, pork chop, pumpkin seeds, and baked beans [11].

Summary

Whether it’s through supplementation or dietary choices, you can help your clients boost their immune system with a variety of different nutrients (such as vitamin A, iron, and zinc). However, sleep habits, stress levels, and physical activity also play a role in immune health, so in addition to creating personalized meal plans, you can also encourage your clients to implement some other healthful routines into their daily lives.

We are always working toward bringing you the best nutrition content, so we welcome any suggestions or comments you might have! Feel free to write to us at info@nutrium.com.

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References

1. Marcos, A. (2021). Editorial: A review of micronutrients and the immune system—working in harmony to reduce the risk of infection. Nutrients, 13(11), 4180. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13114180
   
   
2. Vitamin A: The key to a tolerant immune system? Clinical Education. (n.d.). Retrieved January 7, 2022, from https://www.clinicaleducation.org/resources/reviews/vitamin-a-the-key-to-a-tolerant-immune-system/
   
   
3. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Office of dietary supplements - vitamin A. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. Retrieved January 7, 2022, from https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminA-HealthProfessional/
   
   
4. Prietl, B., Treiber, G., Pieber, T., & Amrein, K. (2013). Vitamin D and immune function. Nutrients, 5(7), 2502–2521. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu5072502
   
   
5. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Office of dietary supplements - vitamin D. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. Retrieved January 7, 2022, from https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminD-HealthProfessional/
   
   
6. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Office of dietary supplements - vitamin C. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. Retrieved January 7, 2022, from https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminC-HealthProfessional/
   
   
7. Moriguchi, S., & Muraga, M. (2000). Vitamin E and immunity. Vitamins & Hormones, 305–336. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0083-6729(00)59011-6
   
   
8. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Office of dietary supplements - vitamin E. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. Retrieved January 7, 2022, from https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminE-HealthProfessional/
   
   
9. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Office of dietary supplements - iron. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. Retrieved January 7, 2022, from https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Iron-HealthProfessional/
   
   
10. Shankar, A. H., & Prasad, A. S. (1998). Zinc and immune function: The biological basis of altered resistance to infection. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 68(2). https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/68.2.447s
    
    
11. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Office of dietary supplements - zinc. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. Retrieved January 7, 2022, from https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Zinc-HealthProfessional/