It’s a sunny day in the middle of winter. You bask in the sunlight outside during lunch.
You’re getting your daily dose of vitamin D, right?
Maybe not.
Tag Archives: immune system
Vitamin C and Colds: New Beginning
“Don’t waste clean thinking on dirty data.”
For decades we have been trying to understand the effects of vitamin C on the immune system. Linus Pauling wrote Vitamin C and the Common Cold in 1970, and sometimes it feels like we haven’t made any progress.
The best and most comprehensive analysis of the data at hand, collected from decades of research studies, shows that vitamin C has some effect on the common cold – but it is very limited.
This has led many to conclude that taking vitamin C to ward off a cold just isn’t worth it. Is this the final word on the subject?
Short answer: not even close.
Vitamin D, Blueberries, and Grapes: Partners in the Immune System?
Part of a healthy immune system involves responding to bacterial invasion. The body has many mechanisms to combat bacteria, including the white blood cells or leukocytes.
Several types of white blood cells produce small strings of amino acids (that are typically referred to as ‘peptides’) that can target invading bacteria. Through a variety of mechanisms, these peptides can associate with a bacterial cell membrane, breaking the cell open and driving it toward death. Collectively, these are known as “antimicrobial peptides”.
Here’s where vitamin D gets involved:
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