The human immune system is responsible for fighting off germs and viruses that can attack our body at any time.
We encounter any number of these microscopic invaders as we go about our daily lives, from the person sitting next to us on the bus to the door handles that we have to touch to get to our offices, and through our errands and on our telephones.
They are on the computer keyboard that we keep meaning to disinfect - germs are everywhere.
In most cases, you touch these germs and transfer them from the surface to your hand.
You touch your face, especially your nose or mouth, and they are now inside of you.
If you have a healthy and strong immune system, a number of different cells will be launched to kill off the invader.
Small white cells called lymphocytes are the main part of the immune system and travel through the blood as well as through the lymphatic fluid.
Lymphocytes are split into categories, including B cells and T cells.
The difference between the two types of cells is in how they handle dealing with invaders (antigens).
B cells ambush antigens but cannot actually penetrate them, while T cells bind to the target cells and then trigger other components of the immune system, namely the NK cells and phagocytes.
NK cells are the natural killer cells which will attack anything that they perceive as a threat and the phagocytes are larger white cells that will swallow up and digest the foreign body.
T and B cells will also become memory cells, which will allow for permanent immunity to a particular disease - the body will now be protected from the same antigen should it be encountered again.
During the course of a lifetime, the body builds and rebuilds its number of lymphocytes, with the excess cells dying off.
It is not necessary to try to build a "super immunity" against diseases since your body is pretty remarkable in doing all of this on its own, however, there are some diseases where the immunity itself is attacked (AIDS being the most common of these), leaving the body open to opportunistic infections of all kinds.
There are also diseases that cause the body to turn on its own self.
These autoimmune diseases include lupus and scleroderma, among others.
There are several steps that you should take to keep the immune system running the right way.
These include receiving better nutrition, getting enough vitamins, relaxing with friends, getting enough exercise, getting enough sleep and getting a flu shot.
There are a number of shaky products that claim to help you to boost your immune system, but in the end it is your overall health and well being that is most important.
Just as you cannot lose weight in only one area of your body, you cannot work on just one area of the immune system and think that you will benefit in any way.
The Building Blocks to Good Health: Good Nutrition Good nutrition is like a house - it needs to have a solid foundation in place before you can start adding the walls and the roof.
No matter what kind of diet plan you want to follow, whether it be vegan, vegetarian, meat and potato or another, you have to know the foundation - the three major building blocks of all diets.
Every food that you consume, from the good (wilted Swiss chard with balsamic vinegar and walnuts) to the not so good (molten chocolate cakes with whipped cream topping), can be classified as one of the three macronutrients.
All foods are comprised of a fat, a carbohydrate or a protein.
Some foods will have components of several of these but will eventually be broken down and treated as one or the other in the body.
Regardless of what popular fad diets will tell you, there are none of these three that you can live without, at least not well and not for long.
You need healthy fats in the diet.
You need good, complex carbohydrates in your diet.
You need lean proteins in your diet.
They all work together in the body to keep it running at top condition, so it is important to learn what they are, what they do and why you need them.
Fats -- Fats are broken down by the body and will be stored as fat but also play other roles in the body as well.
First, they serve as a secondary energy source for the body.
Second, good fats work to decrease the body's inflammatory response.
Bad fats, on the other hand, increase this reaction.
The inflammatory response is a major contributor to obesity.
Good sources of fat include salmon, tuna and other fatty fish, nuts and nut oils, olive and olive oil and avocados.
Bad sources of fat include any fat that is solid at room temperature as well as any fat that includes the word "hydrogenated".
Carbohydrates -- There are two kinds of carbohydrates, simple and complex.
The main role of both types of carbs is to provide energy for the body.
Each carb is broken down in the body and then used as fuel.
The simple carbs are the ones that are broken down quickly, leaving the body flooded with blood glucose.
In response, the body releases too much of the hormone insulin, which will shuffle all of the blood glucose into storage as fat.
Complex carbohydrates, on the other hand, are digested much more slowly and do not cause the blood sugar level to spiral out of control.
They are then used for energy and if needed, the excess will be stored as well.
Good carbohydrates include the whole grain foods.
Proteins -- Protein comes from two sources, plants and animals.
All animal protein is complete because it provides all eight of the essential amino acids that the body cannot make on its own.
On the other hand, only soy protein is complete, with all other plant proteins being incomplete because they are lacking one or more of the essential amino acids (leucine, isoleucine, valine, methione,threonine, phenylalanine, tryptophan and lysine).
A vegetarian diet will still get enough protein to be a healthy one if there is enough variety to make up for each of the different amino acids that are lacking.
Protein from lean meats and low-fat dairy products are a good way to get animal proteins as well.
Protein supplements may also be a good way to get enough protein and can be used as a meal replacement if they have enough calories or as a between-meal snack.
Protein is vital to the immune system and some proteins are shown to boost the immunity and give solid immune system support.
Whey protein is rich in glutathione, an antioxidant that is needed to support a healthy immune system.
It also contains the antimicrobial property, lactoferrin.