How to improve immunity?

[The Racing Driver]

I've lost count of how many times I was sick last year. Over the last few months, it felt like every couple of weeks or months I came down with flu like symptoms such as a sore throat and runny nose, along with the usual fatigue.

I workout several times a week, have a visible 6-pack, eat clean, don't smoke or drink. Yet I find myself falling sick more often than people who don't even do 1/10 of the stuff I do for health and fitness.

I saw in MJ's GoalSumo.com list, one of his daily tasks is to drink a Health Elixer. Could you guys share any tips or habits that have helped you improve your overall immunity?

Right now I've started drinking lemon water first thing in the morning and taking a Centrum multivitamin with zinc tablet daily before bed.

 

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[Bounce Back]

For me personally I've tried a few things and I can say the typical exercise, clean diet, etc. seems to prevent longer term health issues but doesn't have a crazy impact on shorter term sickness like a cold or whatever. (Anecdotal I know).

I seem to just get sick after periods of a few weeks/months of very high effort/stress from something followed by a sudden rest (like a trip or time off). Not sure why but have seen the pattern.

 

[Vntonio]

Stress. That's it.

I do the same as you to prevent any sickness, I don't even drink coffee anymore.
Still, I managed to have some brain problems this week which caused me serious head pains, also I still get the flu from time to time. However, any sore throat or fever passes in a few days, rather than weeks as I saw from others. Also, I take some supplements and lots of natural plant tea. +immunity supplements

Again, my take on this is stress is the biggest enemy. Also, your actions to preserve your body in good health are just to reduce the time of inflammation or have a minimal effect on you (flu, other viruses, etc)

 

[The Racing Driver]

Stress. That's it.

I do the same as you to prevent any sickness, I don't even drink coffee anymore.
Still, I managed to have some brain problems this week which caused me serious head pains, also I still get the flu from time to time. However, any sore throat or fever passes in a few days, rather than weeks as I saw from others. Also, I take some supplements and lots of natural plant tea. +immunity supplements

Again, my take on this is stress is the biggest enemy. Also, your actions to preserve your body in good health are just to reduce the time of inflammation or have a minimal effect on you (flu, other viruses, etc)

You perfectly explained what I'm feeling.

I seem to get sick during periods of high stress more often, which I've been facing recently due to studies and pilot exams.

Nowadays, I also almost always recover from illnesses way faster (in days not weeks) compared to when I was younger and unfit. I'm going to continue taking the immunity supplement and see how that goes. Also stress management techniques are something I need to learn and get better at.

 

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[StefanCole11]

I had the same problem as you, and I changed things in my life, so I am not sure which made a difference or which didn't.
So here is a sum:
-Make sure that the place where you spend most of your time always has fresh air(open your window at least 2 times per day, 5-10 minutes no matter what)
-Keep your diet well and sleep schedule.
-Cold showers(Learn how and when to do them from Wim Hof).
-Take some citrus fruit in the morning.
-Training daily(or at least take an walk).
-Clean your rooms more often than you do now. (If you don't see the dust it does not mean it's not there)

 

[Jon822]

Despite what supplement companies want you to think, your immune system works perfectly fine by default. There aren't things that you need to do to improve it -- it's about avoiding things that weaken it. Poor quality or duration of sleep, being cold or blowing cold air into your face while you sleep, and eating poorly will weaken your immune system.

 

[socaldude]

I haven’t gotten sick in the last 2 years with the exception of December I got a little bit of a cough but nothing bad.

Some supplements I take that help:
-50 billion CFU probiotic
-3 grams of N-acetyl cysteine
-2 grams of garlic

If you have fatigue with clean diet and
exercise you have some other issue like a dormant virus. Taking lots of garlic can help kill the virus. Or you have adrenal fatigue cortisol resistance from stress. Take ashwaganda or rhodiola rosea.

 

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[heavy_industry]

This is not health advice, and please be responsible:

I would check out the Wim Hof method and/or start going to the sauna.

And as @Jon822 said, most supplements are complete garbage - unless you're actually deficient in a specific vitamin or mineral.

 

[StrikingViper69]

Having a very low body fat %%% can lead to you becoming sicker than normal people.

Maybe you need a large pizza once a week.

 

[seb077]

I've lost count of how many times I was sick last year. Over the last few months, it felt like every couple of weeks or months I came down with flu like symptoms such as a sore throat and runny nose, along with the usual fatigue.

I workout several times a week, have a visible 6-pack, eat clean, don't smoke or drink. Yet I find myself falling sick more often than people who don't even do 1/10 of the stuff I do for health and fitness.

I saw in MJ's GoalSumo.com list, one of his daily tasks is to drink a Health Elixer. Could you guys share any tips or habits that have helped you improve your overall immunity?

Right now I've started drinking lemon water first thing in the morning and taking a Centrum multivitamin with zinc tablet daily before bed.

Nose breathing is a very essential part of most airway issues that we "modern people" have. Try breathing through your nose 90% of the day and breathe less (obviously enough but don't hyperventilate). Breathing more doesn't equate to having more oxygen available in your blood stream. Breathing through the nose warms the air and, with the right tongue posture, makes your face look better and triangular. (I don't want to dive too much into looks and stuff but these are, among others, the benefits of nose-breathing.

 

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[smackenzie]

I used to be sick all the time. Here's the things I've changed since 2020 that have made me feel far better.
Sleep is super important, not getting enough good sleep will mess you up.
Walking outside in fresh air. I do this every morning (about 5000 - 8000 steps) and again every night as a minimum.
A good, varied, healthy diet should do most of what supplements do unless you have a medical deficiency.
These two may sound a little woo woo, but:
Gratitude. I've found the more I am thankful for the things and people I have in my life, the better I feel.
Meditation. Taking some time each day to breathe and release the stress.

All the best,
Scott

 

[MitchC]

Nose breathing is a very essential part of most airway issues that we "modern people" have. Try breathing through your nose 90% of the day and breathe less (obviously enough but don't hyperventilate). Breathing more doesn't equate to having more oxygen available in your blood stream. Breathing through the nose warms the air and, with the right tongue posture, makes your face look better and triangular. (I don't want to dive too much into looks and stuff but these are, among others, the benefits of nose-breathing.

Came here to post this!

TAPE YOUR MOUTH CLOSED WHEN YOU SLEEP

That's all.

Haven't been sick in the 2 years since I started doing this.

I was doing ice baths, wim hoff etc all that stuff prior, but this was the one that made an insanely noticeable difference

I can not sleep without it now.

Just use 3M surgical tape.

 

[The Racing Driver]

Thank you everyone for all the suggestions!

I never ever would have thought of the following suggestions, but it seems like breathing techniques and exercises have helped a few people here.

Came here to post this!

TAPE YOUR MOUTH CLOSED WHEN YOU SLEEP

That's all.

@MitchC Reading more into this. I'm going to give it a try.

I would check out the Wim Hof method and/or start going to the sauna.

If you have fatigue with clean diet and
exercise you have some other issue like a dormant virus. Taking lots of garlic can help kill the virus. Or you have adrenal fatigue cortisol resistance from stress. Take ashwaganda or rhodiola rosea.

@socaldude I love adding garlic to almost everything. I think my adrenal fatigue has been catching up with me. When I look at past photos vs current selfies, I can see the difference stress has been causing to my appearance. I'll look into Ashwaganda or Rhodiola rosea.

 

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[okmail]

I've lost count of how many times I was sick last year. Over the last few months, it felt like every couple of weeks or months I came down with flu like symptoms such as a sore throat and runny nose, along with the usual fatigue.

I workout several times a week, have a visible 6-pack, eat clean, don't smoke or drink. Yet I find myself falling sick more often than people who don't even do 1/10 of the stuff I do for health and fitness.

I saw in MJ's GoalSumo.com list, one of his daily tasks is to drink a Health Elixer. Could you guys share any tips or habits that have helped you improve your overall immunity?

Right now I've started drinking lemon water first thing in the morning and taking a Centrum multivitamin with zinc tablet daily before bed.

After I got cancer years ago I went down a health rabbithole.
Since then I've only been sick a few times in the last 10 years. There are many factors in health, so try not to beat yourself up over it or compare yourself to others too much.

Here's what comes to mind that helped me:

1. Immune System Booster Visualization
Take time everyday, even 2 minutes, to do an immune system booster visualization. Try Paul McKenna's Radiant Health guided meditation / hypnosis. Or by yourself do the following:

• Lay on your bed or sit back on a confortable chair
• Put your phone on silent & clear interruptions
• Put on calming nature sounds &/or instrumental music
• Breathe slower & deeper
• Imagine things that help you relax: walking on a beach, driving in the desert bumpin tunes, gandalf laughing in the shire, lol anything
• Now just tense your toes & release
• Tense your legs & release
• Tense your abs & release... work all the way to up
• Drop your shoulders, relax your jaw, around your eyes & forehead
• Now visualize a golden light filling your body healing all your cells [alternatively: imagine cockpit control panel, push the gears up to boost your immune system /or/ a sheild charging around you & your health bar going up]
• Lastly, thank the deep intelligence in your body for always healing it self and sincerely say "I will do my best to stop getting in the way and creating stress"

See attached audio file as a track to get you relaxed & started (How to Heal Yourself - Thich Nhat Hanh Wisdom).
And of course meditation and conscious breathing in general.
Here's another to watch a few times (then close your eyes and the music alone will help):

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2t0_Dgm_tRw


2. Whole Food Plant Based Diet
I know diet can be a contentious issue but even when I eat poorly, I really feel that eating exclusively plant-based sets an amazing foundation for me to sustain my health.

My simple morning shake:
- 1/2 to 1 cup - frozen wild blueberries
- 1/4 tsp - turmeric
- pinch - black pepper
- 1 cup - raw spinach (& or kale)
- 2 tbsp - walnuts (& or flax seeds)

A few other notes:

If your mind is ever racing and your can't seem to stop. Direct it toward every single person you know in life and thank them, be grateful about specific things about them that make you happy, person by person.

Check out the bluezones lifestyle: Power 9® - Blue Zones

Remember your body is designed to constantly heal itself.

Good luck and good health.

 

[Kevin88660]

Stress, Sleep, hydration and personal hygiene…. No one is killing everything perfectly.

 

[The Racing Driver]

If your mind is ever racing and your can't seem to stop. Direct it toward every single person you know in life and thank them, be grateful about specific things about them that make you happy, person by person.

Thank you for the tips! I admit I used to do some visualisation and keep a gratitude journal but fell off. The mental aspect of this cannot be underestimated.

 

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[okmail]

Thank you for the tips! I admit I used to do some visualisation and keep a gratitude journal but fell off. The mental aspect of this cannot be underestimated.

I feel you man, I'm getting back into it now myself.

I haven't meditated in a while but starting back today.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

I saw in MJ's GoalSumo.com list, one of his daily tasks is to drink a Health Elixer.

My daily drink...

Tumeric
Black pepper
Soluble fiber (acacia usually)
Resveratrol
Spirulina (the biggest ingredient)
Ashwaganda
Vitamin D drops
Fisetin

I continue to add to it as long as I can stomach it.

All of this is mixed up in a base of prebiotic dragon-fruit, pomegranate juice and electrolytes with water-- one hellish taste! Actually I don't mind it, although it makes my wife want to vomit.

 

[AceVentures]

Could you guys share any tips or habits that have helped you improve your overall immunity?

So many dietary suggestions have been made so far and nobody has mentioned the sun.

Member when they taught you how plants use water and sunlight to produce energy at the cellular level?

Here's what they didn't teach you:

I can talk about this for days.

But I don't have the time for it. So I'll just send you the plug to learn as much as you want on the topic of water+sunlight=energy.

My biggest tip is to get sunlight every day.

* Watch the sunrise and sunset every day.
* Walk at least 30 minutes every day.

Build a solar callus with dusk/dawn light as it's lower in UV rays.

Progressively build your tolerance.

By the time summer roles around, you'll be able to withstand >1h midday exposure.

If you're too busy to watch the sunrise, watch the sunset, and walk peacefully for 30 minutes a day, you're dead already and no vitamin will save you.

 

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[StrikingViper69]

So many dietary suggestions have been made so far and nobody has mentioned the sun.

Member when they taught you how plants use water and sunlight to produce energy at the cellular level?

Here's what they didn't teach you:

I can talk about this for days.

But I don't have the time for it. So I'll just send you the plug to learn as much as you want on the topic of water+sunlight=energy.

My biggest tip is to get sunlight every day.

* Watch the sunrise and sunset every day.
* Walk at least 30 minutes every day.

Build a solar callus with dusk/dawn light as it's lower in UV rays.

Progressively build your tolerance.

By the time summer roles around, you'll be able to withstand >1h midday exposure.

If you're too busy to watch the sunrise, watch the sunset, and walk peacefully for 30 minutes a day, you're dead already and no vitamin will save you.

Are you arguing that haemoglobin needs sunlight because it has a similar shape to chlorophyll? I totally agree that sunlight (with restraint) is great for the immune system (and health in general), but I don’t understand purpose of the diagram

 

[AceVentures]

Are you arguing that haemoglobin needs sunlight because it has a similar shape to chlorophyll? I totally agree that sunlight (with restraint) is great for the immune system (and health in general), but I don’t understand purpose of the diagram

No not that.

Was trying to be cute about the connection between water and sunlight as it relates to biology.

Just read the book.

 

[Robdavis]

My daily drink...

Tumeric
Black pepper
Soluble fiber (acacia usually)
Resveratrol
Spirulina (the biggest ingredient)
Ashwaganda
Vitamin D drops
Fisetin

I continue to add to it as long as I can stomach it.

All of this is mixed up in a base of prebiotic dragon-fruit, pomegranate juice and electrolytes with water-- one hellish taste! Actually I don't mind it, although it makes my wife want to vomit.

@MJ DeMarco,
Couldn't you replace the pomegranate juice with something like tomato juice to make the taste better?

I know that the pomegranate probably isn't what tastes bad, but tomato is quite a strong flavour and so can mask other not so nice flavours.

Just a suggestion...

 

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[StrikingViper69]

No not that.

Was trying to be cute about the connection between water and sunlight as it relates to biology.

Just read the book.

Looks like pseudo science, going to pass. can’t find a concise explanation of what his book is about, only marketing, which screams nonsense.

 

[AceVentures]

Looks like pseudo science, going to pass. can’t find a concise explanation of what his book is about, only marketing, which screams nonsense.

Gerald Pollack | UW Bioengineering

UW Bioengineering - Core Faculty - Gerald Pollack, Professor

bioe.uw.edu

Pollack Laboratory | EZ Water | University of Washington

EZ Water, sometimes called Fourth Phase Water was identified by Dr. Gerald Pollack and his laboratory.

www.pollacklab.org

In addition to your inability to read, you can't even do a basic search on the author.

"pseudoscience" is what you do when you read a wikipedia article to shape your opinions instead of studying facts.

When I said I can talk about this for days it's because I've read dozens of his papers, followed up with the reference papers, watched documentaries on it, and devoured at least a dozen books on the topic.



The worst part about this interaction is that you missed the point I made to begin with: go outside and use the sunlight to improve your immune response.

But you decide to argue with me about shit you don't know anything about.

 

[MitchC]

Gerald Pollack | UW Bioengineering

UW Bioengineering - Core Faculty - Gerald Pollack, Professor

bioe.uw.edu

Pollack Laboratory | EZ Water | University of Washington

EZ Water, sometimes called Fourth Phase Water was identified by Dr. Gerald Pollack and his laboratory.

www.pollacklab.org

In addition to your inability to read, you can't even do a basic search on the author.

"pseudoscience" is what you do when you read a wikipedia article to shape your opinions instead of studying facts.

When I said I can talk about this for days it's because I've read dozens of his papers, followed up with the reference papers, watched documentaries on it, and devoured at least a dozen books on the topic.

View attachment 54742

The worst part about this interaction is that you missed the point I made to begin with: go outside and use the sunlight to improve your immune response.

But you decide to argue with me about shit you don't know anything about.

Is there anything else that’s practically applicable that we should be doing other than getting sun and drinking water?

Reminds me of wim hoff and James Nestor’s books, interesting, heaps of science and research, but at the end of the day the only thing you can do after reading them is tape your mouth do the breath work and cold exposure.

I’ll listen to any practical advice you’ve gotten from that research but I really don’t feel like reading it all if I don’t have to. Maybe I will, I did enjoy reading about Wim and James research and experiments.

 

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[AceVentures]

Is there anything else that’s practically applicable that we should be doing other than getting sun and drinking water?

Reminds me of wim hoff and James Nestor’s books, interesting, heaps of science and research, but at the end of the day the only thing you can do after reading them is tape your mouth do the breath work and cold exposure.

I’ll listen to any practical advice you’ve gotten from that research but I really don’t feel like reading it all if I don’t have to. Maybe I will, I did enjoy reading about Wim and James research and experiments.

That's a fair point. My interest in it goes beyond biohacking, which is why I've been in the weeds with a lot of the research.

The practical advice is to stop wearing sunscreen and to embrace the sun as if you were a plant.

But the rabbit hole implicates the entire concept of metabolism, the role of ATP and how cells ultimately remain alive.

Standard biochemistry, atop which the entire health/medicine is built upon, doesn't recognize that water is structured inside cells.

So the practical advice, as you see, is a little more complicated.

If this basic-most element of life, water, is not properly modeled for in "modern" biochemistry, how much of the science of health is quackery?

That's the question that keeps me reading WW2-era colloidal science textbooks or Gilbert Ling's association induction hypothesis.

Through the 1900s there were many debates and discoveries which shaped the orthodox model of cell physiology.

There was another branch of cell physiology which was poo-poo'd by establishment gatekeepers.

It was the protoplasmic, or colloidal, or liquid-crystallin model of life.

I'm looking for answers - so I continue to educate myself.

 

[StrikingViper69]

Gerald Pollack | UW Bioengineering

UW Bioengineering - Core Faculty - Gerald Pollack, Professor

bioe.uw.edu

Pollack Laboratory | EZ Water | University of Washington

EZ Water, sometimes called Fourth Phase Water was identified by Dr. Gerald Pollack and his laboratory.

www.pollacklab.org

In addition to your inability to read, you can't even do a basic search on the author.

"pseudoscience" is what you do when you read a wikipedia article to shape your opinions instead of studying facts.

When I said I can talk about this for days it's because I've read dozens of his papers, followed up with the reference papers, watched documentaries on it, and devoured at least a dozen books on the topic.

View attachment 54742

The worst part about this interaction is that you missed the point I made to begin with: go outside and use the sunlight to improve your immune response.

But you decide to argue with me about shit you don't know anything about.

And rather than deliver an explanation/summary of the book that you asked me to read, you jumped to insulting me and demanding that I research the book you recommended.

 

[Bounce Back]

That's a fair point. My interest in it goes beyond biohacking, which is why I've been in the weeds with a lot of the research.

The practical advice is to stop wearing sunscreen and to embrace the sun as if you were a plant.

But the rabbit hole implicates the entire concept of metabolism, the role of ATP and how cells ultimately remain alive.

Standard biochemistry, atop which the entire health/medicine is built upon, doesn't recognize that water is structured inside cells.

So the practical advice, as you see, is a little more complicated.

If this basic-most element of life, water, is not properly modeled for in "modern" biochemistry, how much of the science of health is quackery?

That's the question that keeps me reading WW2-era colloidal science textbooks or Gilbert Ling's association induction hypothesis.

Through the 1900s there were many debates and discoveries which shaped the orthodox model of cell physiology.

There was another branch of cell physiology which was poo-poo'd by establishment gatekeepers.

It was the protoplasmic, or colloidal, or liquid-crystallin model of life.

I'm looking for answers - so I continue to educate myself.

What would be the best book for someone not up to speed to catch up with what you are presenting? Would it be that Fourth Phase of Water book?

I understand it is only semi-related but I've done light reading on terrain theory before and while I found it fascinating ( as others are saying when you are already rather alert about what you are putting in your body and operating within the confines/constraints of your life on things like physical exercise, time outdoors, etc.) it can feel like it doesn't have much effect to learn more. I suppose unless you stumble upon something really suppressed/hidden/intentionally ignored/not disseminated or whatever you want to call it.

 

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[MTF]

Build a solar callus with dusk/dawn light as it's lower in UV rays.

Progressively build your tolerance.

By the time summer roles around, you'll be able to withstand >1h midday exposure.

UVB doesn't penetrate the atmosphere unless the sun angle is above 50 degrees. Many places in the world have several months when the sun doesn't go above 50 degrees. This includes places where people think you can tan year round like California or Miami.

Consequently, solar exposure in the morning or in the late afternoon does nothing to build up your tolerance. You need to expose yourself to the sun when it's above 50 degrees.

I always use this tool (I picked Miami as an example but it gives data for every place in the world):

Sunrise and sunset times in Miami

Calculations of sunrise and sunset in Miami – Florida – USA for April 2024. Generic astronomy calculator to calculate times for sunrise, sunset, moonrise, moonset for many cities, with daylight saving time and time zones taken in account.

www.timeanddate.com

On March 16, sun angle is above 50 between 11:30 am and 3:30 pm. To build up tolerance, you can start for, say, 10 minutes per side (front and back) at 11:30 am and then add a minute or so every day. Or ideally, you can start exactly when the sun is the highest (around 1:29 pm) and do just 2-3 minutes per side and take it from there (that's my preference - less time but in more intense sun).

I've been sunbathing for years and always tan using this tool and this rule. I use it both for timing when and for how long to tan as well as when to avoid the sun to avoid sunburn (this is what causes most serious damage, not just sunbathing).

I tested sunbathing at angles between 45-50 and it doesn't work. It has to be above 50.

And of course, the higher the sun angle (the closer to the tropics you are), the more you'll tan and the more vitamin D you'll get.

After almost 6 months of living in Barbados (where the highest sun angle is 90, the highest possible) and tanning daily my vitamin D levels were 174 ng/ml. I built up to being able to withstand more than an hour in the strongest tropical sun where most white people would have serious sunburns within minutes.

After tanning the entire summer in Poland (where the highest sun angle is merely 61 for my city) my vitamin D levels were only 80 ng/ml. I could tan for 2-3 hours of the strongest sun and have zero reaction.

There are some extra factors that I pay attention to when sunbathing such as:

• humidity (I've found that lower humidity means a higher risk of a sunburn due to dryness),
• elevation (UV radiation increases with elevation),
• reflection (being by the water or any reflective surface like white tiles will increase UV radiation),
• air quality (higher pollution = less UV penetrating),
• cloud cover (some light cloud cover can reflect UVs and actually increase the radiation).

 

[AceVentures]

What would be the best book for someone not up to speed to catch up with what you are presenting? Would it be that Fourth Phase of Water book?

I understand it is only semi-related but I've done light reading on terrain theory before and while I found it fascinating ( as others are saying when you are already rather alert about what you are putting in your body and operating within the confines/constraints of your life on things like physical exercise, time outdoors, etc.) it can feel like it doesn't have much effect to learn more. I suppose unless you stumble upon something really suppressed/hidden/intentionally ignored/not disseminated or whatever you want to call it.

I'm not familiar with terrain theory.

The Fourth Phase is one of my favorites to start with because the language is so accessible and the book is well-illustrated which helps in developing an intuition for water dynamics.

You can also read his papers and understand without much difficulty because of the simple nature of the experimental designs.

Imo studying water is the best way to explore biophysics because water dynamics is inseparable from cell physiology.