Immunity is our friend
Our bodies have an elaborate tag-team immune system which instinctively protects our bodies from malevolent pathogens, and three scientists who uncovered important keys to how it works won a Nobel Prize. It’s been since last Wednesday I’ve even thought about my own immune system. It might have been the week before. Nevertheless, immunity has been on duty, and there are plants we can consume that lend a hand.
But first, science. Organs and tissues in our bodies know to react to unfamiliar microbes which might cause us harm. This is our immunity from disease. Bone marrow creates cells that become white blood cells, lymphocytes or other specific entities that instinctively know to attack suspicious, possibly malevolent pathogens that might cause colds, influenza, tumors and evil whatnot. Amazing!
Our blood carries lymph – a fluid full of alert immune system components – to tissues throughout the body, and that’s a good thing. The thymus is a gland behind the sternum where cells mature into pathogen detectors. Your spleen filters out pathogens as blood flows through on every heartbeat. Skin is another protective barrier that keeps out malicious cells. Stomach fluids are acidic enough to destroy some nasty pathogens, and fever makes for a difficult environment for bacteria and viruses, plus it boosts the immune response.
It’s a remarkable community of body parts and functions that never stops watching out for our health. However, scientists and clever fifth graders have wondered how the components of the immune system that attack suspected evildoers know which cells to keep and which are invaders. Mary E. Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell and Shimon Sakaguchi were acknowledged by the Nobel Committee for years of research into how immune cells can tell the difference.
I am not the only one who does not deserve a Nobel Prize, but I appreciate the contributions from plants I grow toward fortifying my immune response to evil, wicked, mean, bad pathogens.
Scientists tout compounds called flavonoids for their antioxidant properties that stand tall against scurrilous precursors to heart disease and tumors. Flavonoids also protect their host plants from pests and environmental stress. High on the flavonoid list are red onions because of red anthocyanins – it’s all about antioxidants that scurry through our bodies like pathogen hunters. Kale and broccoli get high grades for flavonoid content.
A curious side note is cloves, the spice in winter favorite mulled wine, which contains the highest content of flavonoids per 100 grams according to a research team who really liked mulled wine.
Elderberries rank highly because they contain the considerable punch of a flavonoid called rutin, which combines quercetin and another compound that chase after free radicals intent on misbehavior, and neutralizes them.
Quercetin is a pigment that we are told moderates blood sugar levels, nurses a bruise, does housekeeping in your heart and even stares down cancer cells. Impressive! Other familiar plants with plenty of quercetin include tomatoes, asparagus, oregano, blueberries and apples.
I planted a three-inch pot of oregano in 2010. I now have almost 30 square feet of oregano – a bounteous amount of antioxidants! I harvest some for spicing up beans and soups, and it’s easy to dehydrate for later. You can also fill capsules with the dried herb and take a dose of quercetin daily.
From tomatoes we get sauce, salsa, soup and lycopene, the bright red organic compound known to be a strong antioxidant. College-educated people claim lycopene moderates blood pressure and contributes to the immune response against free radicals. Immunity comes in many colors.
Parsley is full of zinc, vitamins A and C plus flavonoids, which are potent for immunomodulating. Vitamins in peaches boost immunity by facilitating the production of white blood cells. It’s gratifying to know folks will spend years figuring out things like this about peaches. Immunity has many colors…
… including red wine which contains flavonoids such as quercetin. Just saying.
Bottom line is immunity grows in your garden, and, like compassion and fairness, immunity is our friend.