How to Boost Your Immune System
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Shape shares the functions of the immune system, which focus on keeping you healthy, along with tips on how to keep yours in tiptop condition.
If someone asked you what kind of immune system you wanted, you'd probably say one that's tough as nails, a real fighting machine. But be careful what you wish for. Your self-defense system needs to be strong enough to keep bacteria and viruses from entering your body and multiplying, and to re-establish health when disease does gain a foothold. But your immune response can be too powerful.
When that happens, your immune system can mistake your own tissues for invaders, causing autoimmune illnesses (immune system disorders) like allergies or lupus. So rather than picturing your immune system as a mighty battalion of warriors fending off disease, picture it instead as a 911 dispatcher whose job is to communicate with your body's other watchdog systems, especially the hormones from your endocrine system and the brain chemicals from your nervous system.
What are the functions of the immune system?
The immune system is an intricate network of the thymus, spleen, lymph nodes, white blood cells and antibodies that wards off bacteria and viruses and helps your body cope with any invasion of disease. When that system is weakened, you're not only more susceptible to illnesses and ailments, but also less able to fight them once they get a foothold.
From what you eat to where you sleep, simple lifestyle changes can help your body develop defenses that are not too weak, not too strong, but just right.
