What Is the Relationship Between Stress and the Immune System?

The immune system plays a role in immune surveillance, defense, and regulation. This system consists of immune organs (bone marrow, spleen, lymph nodes, tonsils, small intestinal collection lymph nodes, appendix, thymus, etc.), immune cells (lymphocytes, monocytes, neutrophils, basophils, eosinophils, Mast cells, platelets (because there are IgG in platelets), and immune-active substances (antibodies, lysozyme, complement, immunoglobulin, interferon, interleukin, tumor necrosis factor and other cytokines). The immune system is divided into innate immunity (also called non-specific immunity) and adaptive immunity (also called specific immunity). Among them, adaptive immunity is divided into humoral immunity and cellular immunity.

The immune system (immune system) is an important system for the body to perform immune responses and immune functions. It consists of immune organs, immune cells and immune molecules. The immune system has the ability to recognize and exclude antigenic foreign bodies and coordinate with other systems in the body. Functions to jointly maintain the stability and physiological balance of the body ^[1]

The human body has three lines of defense:

First line of defense

It is composed of skin and mucous membranes. Not only can they prevent pathogens from invading the body, but their secretions (such as lactic acid, fatty acids, stomach acids and enzymes) also have a bactericidal effect. There are cilia on the mucous membrane of the respiratory tract, which can remove foreign bodies.

2. Second line of defense

Are germicidal substances and phagocytes in body fluids

This

Normal human blood,

In real life, people tend to get sick easily when there is a lot of work pressure, heavy psychological burden, and emotional stress. What is the reason? Experts believe that this is how the animal's nervous system affects the immune system. When the animal's nervous system is dysfunctional, the immune system will become dysfunctional, and various refractory diseases will appear.

For example, normal parasympathetic nerve activity can promote saliva, gastric juice,

Immune system and viral hepatitis

Everyone has their own natural defense system, the immune system. The immune system removes dangerous foreign substances that enter the body, such as hepatitis virus. People with low immune function have difficulty removing the virus from the body after exposure to the virus, while people with good immune function rarely develop chronic infection.

When discussing the immune system, two important terms that are frequently used are antigens and antibodies. It can be imagined that the antigen is a foreign substance (such as: hepatitis virus), and the antibody is a soldier fighting the antigen in the immune system. When an antigen (such as hepatitis B antigen) infects the body, the immune system produces corresponding antibodies, namely hepatitis B antibodies. Antibodies bind to the antigen and remove it from the body, so the body is immune to hepatitis B virus.

Specific hepatitis antigens and antibodies can be detected by special tests. These tests indicate that in order to determine whether a patient's liver-related abnormalities are caused by viral hepatitis, it is important to have a hepatitis serology performed. ^[5]

1798: Jenner tries to inoculate and opens the door to immunology;

1881-1885: Pasteur defends

Immunity refers to the body's ability to resist external invasions and maintain the stability of the internal environment. The air is full of a variety of microorganisms: bacteria, viruses, mycoplasma, chlamydia, fungi, and more. In the case of insufficient human immunity, they can all become pathogens that sense early shifts. Although the human body will produce corresponding antibodies to different pathogens to prevent re-infection, the antibodies are specific and time-limited. For example, streptococcal antibodies can only protect the body from re-invasion by streptococci for a short period of time. Can not resist infection by other viruses. A person with low immunity cannot resist the attack of a cold virus at all, which is the real reason for his frequent colds. Daily diet conditioning is the best way to improve your immune system:

1. Drink more yogurt: stick to a balanced diet. If a person suffers from alcoholism, mental stress, or an imbalanced diet, it will weaken people's ability to resist disease. To correct this imbalance, you must rely on healthy bacteria, which are found in yogurt.

2, drink plenty of water: this can keep the nasal cavity and oral mucosa moist; drinking more water can also make people feel fresh and full of vitality. Studies have shown that boiled water has a very ideal physiological activity for human metabolism. Water can be easily absorbed by the body through cell membranes, which enhances the activity of lactate dehydrogenase in human organs, thereby effectively improving the body's disease resistance and immunity. Especially the first cup of warm water in the morning is particularly important.

3. Eat more seafood: Seafood is rich in iron, zinc, magnesium, selenium, copper, etc. Regular consumption can promote immune function.

4. Drink tea often: Scientists have found that tea contains a chemical called theanine. Because it can mobilize the body's immune cells to resist bacteria, fungi and viruses, it can increase the body's ability to resist infection by more than 5 times.

5. May wish to drink red wine: Most alcoholic beverages can inhibit the body's immune system, but red wine is just the opposite. Some of the antioxidants it contains are good for boosting immune function and also protecting the heart.

6. Eat some animal livers: Animal livers contain folic acid, selenium, zinc, magnesium, iron, copper, and vitamins B6 and B12. These substances help promote immune function.

7. Studies have found that Cordyceps sinensis can effectively increase the number of immune system cells and tissues, promote the production of antibodies, increase the number of phagocytic and killer cells, and can reduce the function of certain immune cells. It is the first choice to enhance human immunity.

8. Appropriate iron supplementation: Iron can enhance immunity; however, excessive iron intake is harmful to the body and cannot exceed 45 mg per day.

9. Glutamine supplement: It is an indispensable non-essential amino acid for the human body, and it can be called one of the "weapons" for strengthening the immune system. People who often have a cold or diarrhea can add glutamine powder to fruit juice or cold water.

10, supplement arginine: sea cucumber, catfish, loach, cuttlefish and yam, black sesame, ginkgo, tofu skin, frozen tofu, sunflower seeds, hazelnut are rich in this substance, eat more to help enhance immunity.

Research progress

For the first time, scientists have determined the exact conditions under which infection may trigger autoantibody. This is the first time that a loophole in the immune system has been found.

After the body's immune response to specific infectious microorganisms (antigens), autoimmune diseases such as rheumatic fever and Guillain-Barre syndrome (the body produces antibodies that attack the heart and peripheral nerves, respectively) may occur. But we haven't been able to explain the cause of autoimmune, nor do we understand why the body cannot avoid this situation.

Our immune cells (such as effector B cells that produce antibodies) correctly identify themselves when they first form to avoid attacking themselves. Generally, this formation process is reliable, smooth and controlled. However, B cells also go through more complex developmental stages when the body resists disease or infection.

In order to be able to cope with the countless microorganisms introduced into the body, B cells have evolved a special ability to make their antibody genes randomly mutate until one of them can effectively bind the invader. At this point, the "successful" B cells continued to proliferate, flooding the entire immune system with these new antibodies. In the special environment of the lymphatic system, this "high affinity antibody" is produced very quickly. Most of the time, the germinal center works normally, helping us fight disease and build an arsenal for future infections. However, problems sometimes occur. The antibodies that are used to defend against invaders (or antigens) can also match themselves, resulting in autoimmune attacks.

Researchers have developed complex mouse models to study the mechanisms of autoimmunity. Studies have found that when antigens flood the entire immune system, B cells capable of producing autoantibodies are eliminated to avoid autoimmune reactions. In contrast, when the target antigen exists only in local tissues or organs far from the germinal center, B cells capable of producing autoantibodies can survive to produce high-affinity autoantibodies. ^[6]