Vitamins and Minerals For Immune Support

At the first sign of a cold, I always boost my vitamins. From my experiences, it is really obvious that a good mineral and vitamin supplement can help with recovery from a cold or virus. Especially when we are feeling depleted or under chronic stress.

B12 is important for immune cell replication and a deficiency will lower the number of white blood cells. The first cells that are influenced by an early deficiency are rapidly dividing cells like red blood cells and immune cells. We can pick up on this with a complete blood count and look for an elevated MCV trending towards 90-100. This test is found on all major blood tests but it is often not flagged until the values get to 100. Taking a preventative approach we want to get this valued in the optimal range rather than wait for a major deficiency. Another test for B12 is homocysteine and taken together we can get a good idea if B12 is low. B12 is also important for energy production and can be very supportive for fatigue associated with a cold or viruses like shingles. B12 may be hard to absorb over the gut. Chewable tablets or B12 injections can get around absorption issues. The best vegan source is nutritional yeast but ultimately animal meat is the most bioavailable. Those on a vegan diet may be at more risk of a B12 deficiency.

Selenium is an antioxidant that is abundant in brazil nuts. Selenium and the amino acid cysteine come together to make our master antioxidant glutathione! We normally can’t absorb glutathione in our gut so making sure we have a good supply of these two nutrients is important. Glutathione is important for liver detox and cleaning up cellular damage after a virus etc. So boosting glutathione through selenium can be very restorative when hit with a cold.

Vitamine E is a fat fat-soluble antioxidant so is actually goes into the cell walls and makes cells more stable. It is more abundant in immune cells to protect from damage while fighting infections. Sources of vitamin E are almonds and other nuts, avocados, and green veggies like spinach.

There are so many more vitamins and minerals that influence our immune health and so keep an eye out for more in future posts.

Next, I will be looking at the role of hormone dysfunction, cortisol and the HPA axis on immune wellness.

References

Vitamin B12 or folate deficiency anaemia https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamin-b12-or-folate-deficiency-anaemia/causes/

WebMD Nutritional Yeast: Is It Good for You? https://www.webmd.com/diet/nutritional-yeast-good-for-you

Glutathione! Joseph Pizzorno, ND, Editor in Chief 26770075

Regulatory role of vitamin E in the immune system and inflammation: 30501009

The Nutrition Source Vitamin E. Harvard School Public Health. https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/vitamin-e/