Vitamin C may be the most well know immune boosting nutrient but it’s time we shed some light on something a little more out of the ordinary: bacteria. From the moment we are born bacteria influence our immune system. In fact, without bacteria our ability to fight off germs would be limited.
Boost immunity with kefir:
- Start your day with kefir to increase the number of beneficial bacteria
- Consume kefir after a course of antibiotics
- Eat a diet rich in vegetables and fruits
This article explores the role of the microbiome in immunity and suggests ways to enhance it.
The microbiome is a collection of microorganisms, mainly made up of beneficial bacteria, that live in the gut, nose, reproductive organs and on the skin. Every human is thought to harbour up to 100 trillion beneficial microbial cells and the surprising part is they are essential for good health.
When a baby is born, he or she is introduced to beneficial bacteria during natural birth. From this stage onwards, these advantageous microbes educate the child’s immune system and help to keep germs out by forming a shield against them. Fast forward a few years to adulthood and studies are still highlighting the role gut bacteria in regulating and even enhancing the immune system.
What we also know is when the populations of these beneficial microorganisms dip, the risk of germs getting in goes up. Concerns such as inflammatory bowel disease, urinary tract infections and thrush can all be linked with a lower number of good bacteria and/or invasion by bad bugs.
Studies on the common cold, an upper respiratory tract infection, where subjects were given a supplement containing beneficial bacteria reported fewer episodes of illness and even those that got a cold suffered for a reduced number of days.
Based on this evidence, boosting populations of beneficial bacteria may be a good immune sup-porting measure and this is where our kefir comes in. Kefir has been shown to assist with increasing the populations of beneficial microorganisms and our traditionally made kefir boasts billions of advantageous microbes per bottle.
We recommend you start your day on at least 150ml of kefir and try a 30-day course if supporting immunity is your main aim. Kefir is also safe for children and babies that are 6 months or older, making it a good family-wide maintenance product. You can read more about the benefits of kefir for kids here (link to kefir and kids article).
Kefir will go some way to boost the populations of beneficial bacteria but what depleted them in the first place is also worth considering. Antibiotics are one of the biggest culprits, because they work by wiping out both the good and bad bacteria. You can read about antibiotic recovery protocol here (link to kefir and antibiotics article).
A diet high in sugar and low in fibre can also have a detrimental effect since good bacteria ferment fibre as their main source of food. Not feeding them correctly, for example not having enough fibre resulting from low fruit and vegetable intake, can have a negative impact.
Similarly, toxins from excess alcohol consumption, over the counter medications such as pain killers and periods of stress can reduce their populations.
