IMMUNITY
Impact of sugar on our immune systems
Sugar and Immunity
It’s the season of Christmas! A season of celebration, a season of gathering with family and friends. As much as there is so much to celebrate and to be thankful for this season, one particular additive tends to go hand in hand with these celebrations… SUGAR! Cookies, fudge, pastries, alcohol… all tend to be part of our Christmas gatherings. We all understand high volumes of sugar are bad for our bodies. But, have you ever given thought to how sugar can compromise your body’s ability to fight off pathogens?.
It’s December, we know that December in Michigan is a part of what is considered ‘Flu season’ – a time of the year where a lot of people are getting sick due to less time outside, limited Vitamin D and limited exposure to other people and to our environments. All of these factors considered, this time of year is also a time where people tend to consume higher levels of sugar than what is within their norm which can also play a role in their tendency to catch a cold or come down with flu-like symptoms.
“Flu Season” is not a season
Less Sun exposure = decreased
vitamin d levels
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Cold Weather
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Less Active
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Sugar Sugar Sugar
Sugar simply put is a simple form of carbohydrate. There are several types of sugars, including sucrose- in table sugar, fructose, the sugar found in fruit, corn syrups, maple syrup, honey, artificial sweeteners, etc. Consumption of sugar of any kind is going to spike the blood sugar and cause what we call a Glycemic Response, where insulin is released into the bloodstream to lower blood glucose levels by bringing these sugars into our cells. That said, not all carbohydrates/sugars affect the body in the same way. For example, if we were to compare a sweet potato with say with one of the cookies that we are often surrounded by this season, their overall impact on insulin production and blood sugar levels would look quite different. A Christmas cookie contains on average about 15 grams of sugar that will spike blood sugar levels and the body’s insulin response. Sweet potatoes on the other hand contain almost twice that volume of carbohydrates per serving. However, in addition to a high volume of carbohydrates, sweet potatoes also contain fiber and vitamins and minerals that help to combat blood sugar spiking, and slow down the digestion process, enabling the body to digest and utilize energy from this food over a longer period of time.
So, then the question remains, how does refined sugar consumption affect our immune system? First of all, sugar increases systemic inflammation, or inflammation throughout the body. High inflammation throughout the body greatly decreases the body’s ability to fight off pathogens, greatly compromising immune system function. Sugar also decreases the function of Interleukin 6, a hormone that plays a large role in the body’s immune response and further suppresses the function of Protein Kinase C, an enzyme that attacks pathogens in the body. Increased inflammation throughout the body also stimulates a sympathetic ‘fight or flight response.’ This is going to cause the body to enter a state of stress, which further inhibits its ability to fight off infection.
This all said, how do we then take this information into consideration this holiday season where our celebrations also come hand in hand with sweets and foods that are high in sugar content. We are by no means promoting that you should have to avoid these foods altogether. We just want to provide you with some understanding of how these foods can affect our immune systems, and further provide you with some tools for how to combat things like an inflammatory response from sugar through other intentional behaviors. For example, foods such as pecans and several types of berries have high levels of antioxidants that can play a role in minimizing the body’s inflammatory response. Furthermore, exercise can play a huge role in our body’s ability to manage and regulate blood sugar. Therefore, incorporating these factors into this holiday season can help us to continue to be able to partake in the festivities of the season, while still minimizing the negative effects that sugar can have on our bodies and our immune system.
