Nutrition. Vitamins. You.
Understanding the Complexity of Asthma Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND As I mentioned in my prior blog today I will be talking about a well-known respiratory condition. That condition is Asthma. Let’s take the time to go over just how common it is, shall we? …
MY PLATE~OUR DIET GUIDELINE AND FOUNDATION FOR HEALTH By: Allie Might, FMC, INHC, ATT March is National Nutrition Month so I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to go back to basics. We all remember when we were growing up and learning about …
Immunity Hx
Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND
I wanted to do my product highlight on what I consider to be the cornerstone of immune heath. In fact Immune is in its very name, Immunity Hx! Immunity Hx is a combination of vitamin C, vitamin D3 and Zinc! Immunity Hx has 500 mg of vitamin C, 2000 IUs (50mcg) of vitamin D3 and 30mg of zinc. Each of these nutrients has numerous studies showing how they can benefit our immunity.
Let’s start with vitamin C. Vitamin C is called an essential nutrient because it is a key nutrient for different pathways in our body yet our body is unable to make it. In other words we must get vitamin c in either our diet or in supplement form. In fact in western populations studies have found that vitamin c deficiency is common and in fact is the fourth leading nutrient deficiency in the US. Vitamin C deficiency may be caused by poor diet, drug or tobacco use, alcohol use, various chronic disease and even by pollution. There are four aspects of our immune system that are positively affected by vitamin C. These are the epithelial barriers, phagocytes, lymphocytes and inflammatory mediators. Please see the attached Table for all the ways vitamin c affects these parts of the immune system. (1)
Table 1
Role of vitamin C in immune defense.
| Immune System | Function of Vitamin C | Refs. |
| Epithelial barriers | Enhances collagen synthesis and stabilization | [30,31,32,33,34,35] |
| Protects against ROS-induced damage 1 | [36,37,38,39,40] | |
| Enhances keratinocyte differentiation and lipid synthesis | [41,42,43,44,45] | |
| Enhances fibroblast proliferation and migration | [46,47] | |
| Shortens time to wound healing in patients | [48,49] | |
| Phagocytes (neutrophils, macrophages) | Acts as an antioxidant/electron donor | [50,51,52,53] |
| Enhances motility/chemotaxis | [54,55,56,57,58,59,60,61,62,63] | |
| Enhances phagocytosis and ROS generation | [64,65,66,67,68,69,70,71] | |
| Enhances microbial killing | [54,55,57,58,70,72] | |
| Facilitates apoptosis and clearance | [71,73,74] | |
| Decreases necrosis/NETosis | [73,75] | |
| B- and T-lymphocytes | Enhances differentiation and proliferation | [62,63,76,77,78,79,80,81,82] |
| Enhances antibody levels | [78,83,84,85] | |
| Inflammatory mediators | Modulates cytokine production | [75,77,86,87,88,89,90,91,92,93,94] |
| Decreases histamine levels | [56,61,95,96,97,98,99,100,101] |
1 ROS, reactive oxygen species; NET, neutrophil extracellular trap. Note that many of these studies comprised marginal or deficient vitamin C status at baseline. Supplementation in situations of adequate vitamin C status may not have comparable effects.
Vitamin C has been found in studies to help fight different viral infections. (2) Other studies have found that vitamin C can cut the length of a cold in half. Additionally other studies have found vitamin C can help to prevent pneumonia. Studies have even found that vitamin C can help with tetanus. (3)
The next nutrient in Immunity Hx is vitamin D3. While most people think of D3 as just being for bone health there really is much more that D3 does for our health. Studies have indicated that having low vitamin D can increase the risk of infections. Vitamin D3 is interesting because unlike vitamin C it can be made by the body. (4) However, in my clinical experience reading over blood work I have found many people to have lower than optimum D levels that would suggest they would benefit from a D3 supplement. A number of studies have found an association between low levels of D3 and higher rates of infections such as the flu, vaginosis and HIV. (4) In one study vitamin D supplementation was found to decrease rates of seasonal influenza in school children. (5) Studies looking how vitamin D3 works have found that vitamin D3 is able to stimulate antimicrobial genes to activate. Thus vitamin D works to stimulate antimicrobial proteins and helps the body to fight off infections. (6) Overall vitamin D is an important supplement for our overall immunity. (4)
The last nutrient in Immunity Hx is zinc. Several studies have found that using zinc within 24 hours of catching a cold can decrease the length and severity of the cold symptoms. (7) Zinc like vitamin C is considered to be an essential nutrient for our health. Zinc deficiency like vitamin C is more common than we would expect and in fact it appears that as many as up to 2 billion people in the developing world may have a zinc deficiency. (8) Zinc deficiency has been found to affect multiple parts of the immune system. When zinc is deficient there’s parts of the immune system that are comprised and we become vulnerable to disease. (9) Overall studies have concluded that zinc is essential for our immune system to work to prevent illness. (1)
Overall the studies on vitamins C, D and zinc have one major thing to say. And that is these nutrients are all important for building our immune system and thus they all help us fight pathogens. Personally I like the Immunity Hx because it contains all 3 important nutrients in 1 supplement!
Our next blog will be something you may have heard of, Asthma!
Sources:
RSV- Respiratory Syncytial Virus Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND I wanted to begin our series on respiratory health by talking about something that has been all over the news lately. And that is RSV. But what exactly is RSV? RSV stands for Respiratory Syncytial Virus. …
Reds Hx… for our heart! Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND I wanted to talk about Reds Hx next because it’s really the perfect partner to Greens Hx. Since Reds Hx is so full of heart healthy nutrients I am going to jump right into things …
MACA ROOT: THE LIBIDO BOOSTER
By: Allie Might, FMC, INHC, ATT
Maca Root is a very interesting nutrient that many people aren’t familiar with but is incredibly versatile. It can be found in a powder, in a capsule form (Maca Root) or even as part of a formulation (Menopause Hx Advanced and Men’s Edge Advanced). Let’s take some time to discuss some of the benefits this nutrient has to offer.
Let’s start at the beginning and discuss aphrodisiacs, as this is always a hot topic particularly during certain times of the year (like Valentine’s Day). An aphrodisiac is something, maybe a scent or food that is said to increase libido and “get you in the mood”. Most commonly, this is associated with such things as the scent of roses or jasmine (these are commonly used in perfumes and colognes), and such foods as chocolate, oysters or sometimes and nice glass of wine or champagne. However, there are also spices or herbs that fall into this category, such as ginger, ginseng and ginkgo….these have a tendency to be warming and slightly raise body temperature. In this category is also Maca Root which is one of my favorites. That is due to Maca being versatile in that it can be used as a supplement or can be used in recipes and smoothies all while tasting good and I don’t get that spicy taste that other herbs and spices tend to offer.
So what exactly is Maca? Simply put, Maca is a plant that is found in the Andes Mountains in South America. It is believed to be helpful for healthy sexual function, increased libido, and support for the brain and may even be helpful as an anti-inflammatory. This is also a nutrient that is helpful for both men’s and women’s health.
When it comes to men’s health, Maca is often a go-to choice. Studies mentioned in Medical News Today suggest that Maca can be helpful for men dealing with erectile dysfunction as well as offering a boost to the libido. It is also helpful with increasing energy and endurance. The Maca Root found in the Men’s Edge formula is a great addition to a regimen to support men’s health issues.
Maca can be equally beneficial for women’s health. It can be particularly helpful for women experiencing menopause. Due to the hormonal changes during this time, many women suffer from a variety of issues including, but not limited to, changes in mood, weight gain, hot flashes and of course low libido. Menopause Hx Advanced is a way to help address a variety of the issues effecting women, as it is a comprehensive formula that includes Maca Root.
Maca Root can also be beneficial for other health concerns. Studies published by the National Library of Medicine -National Center for Biotechnology Information discuss some of these issues. It is believed that Maca can assist in significantly lowering blood pressure. This can have a positive impact on one’s health, lower the risk of stroke and helping to maintain healthy circulation. Maca has also shown to be helpful in balancing mood and can be used by those suffering with mood disorders such as depression.
Maca is also shown to be a very safe nutrient to take by almost everyone. It has shown to have little to no interactions with medications and is a great compliment to those that have been prescribed conventional medication by their doctor.
As you can see, Maca Root is a safe, versatile and impactful nutrient to have in any healthy lifestyle plan. I want to encourage you to add this to your daily supplement regimen and please let us know how you are using this amazing and often forgotten nutrient.
www.webmd.com/sex-relationships/sex-aphrodisiac-foods
www.botanicalinstitute.org/maca/
www.webmd.com/diet/health-benefits-maca
www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/322511#ten-benefits
www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/all-about-sex/201104/is-maca-aphrodisiac
www.pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24931003/
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4411442/
www.medlineplus.gov/druginfo/natural/555.html
