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Holiday Survival Guide – 8 Immunocompromised? How to Easily Boost Your Immune System

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Are you immunocompromised, or worried about becoming immunocompromised?

According to the CDC, in 2013, it is estimated that 2.7% of the U.S. population was immunocompromised[i], however, the study stated that 4.2% the precipitants claimed they were told by a health care professional they were immunocompromised[ii]. This was based on self-reporting through the National Health Interview Survey. Discover the easy steps to cope with a compromised immune system. Immunosuppression surprisingly prevalent in adults[iii]. However, the total burden of immunosuppressive conditions in the United States, including those receiving emerging biologic therapies, remains unknown[iv]. As recently as 2020 it is estimate that over 6% of the US adult population is immunocompromised. Among 542,105 people hospitalized for Acute Respiratory Illnesses (ARI), 32% of patients had immunosuppressive conditions[v].

The Potential Benefits of High-Quality Beta Glucan Supplementation.

Beta-glucans, or commonly referred to as β-glucans in medical literature, are both soluble and insoluble fibers that come from the cell walls of bacteria, fungi, yeasts, and plants. Depending on these sources determines their soluble and insoluble ability, as well as their potential health benefits[vi]–[vii].

Beta glucan has over 1,500+ general research papers ranging across 40 years. A majority of this health related research has been completed at some of the most prestigious institutions in the world, including Harvard Medical School, Tulane University, National Cancer Institute, Department of Defense and the Department of Agriculture, just to name a few. These studies have been performed on literally every health condition/disease known to humanity, and time and time again it has proven itself to be second to none. It has also been shown to provide beneficial effects in the sports/athletic health fitness field.

Beta glucan, properly extracted, has been shown to be completely safe and non-toxic. This substance is extracted from many sources, however the cell wall of Baker’s yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae), a food source, appears to be the most effective immune enhancing supplement. Baker’s yeast and their extracts have been given a GRAS rating. This is one of the highest–if not the highest—safety rating a substance can achieve. The specifications for this rating can be found in 21CFR184.1983 — Sec. 184.1983.

Specific Potential Benefits;

  • Mental Stress: Women reported fewer cold symptoms, which included sore throat, nasal congestion, and cough. An increase in vigor (physical energy, mental sharpness, and emotional well-being) also improved by 41%[viii].
  • It has been shown to reduce Cortisol release [ix],
  • Increases white blood cell count[x],
  • Anti-inflammatory effects[xi]
  • Wound healing[xii]–[xiii]–[xiv]
  • Reduces Illness[xv]–[xvi]–[xvii]
  • Mental Health[xviii]–[xix]–[xx]
  • Immune Balance. A high-quality Beta Glucan has been shown to have immunomodulatory effects. It balances the immune system[xxi]-[xxii]–[xxiii].

Other potential Benefits of a High-quality Beta Glucan Products are Radiation protection[xxiv]–[xxv] and biological warfare agent threats[xxvi].

To learn how to identify a high quality beta glucan supplement click here.

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Ciatations

[i] Harpaz R, Dahl RM, Dooling KL. Prevalence of Immunosuppression Among US Adults, 2013. JAMA. 2016;316(23):2547–2548. doi:10.1001/jama.2016.16477
[ii] Harpaz R, et al 2016
[iii] https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/871290
[iv] Patel M, Chen J, Kim S, Garg S, Flannery B, Haddadin Z, et al. Analysis of MarketScan Data for Immunosuppressive Conditions and Hospitalizations for Acute Respiratory Illness, United States. Emerg Infect Dis. 2020;26(8):1720-1730. https://doi.org/10.3201/eid2608.191493
[v] Patel M, et al (2020)
[vi] Boutros JA, Magee AS, Cox D. ‘Comparison of structural differences between yeast β-glucan sourced from different strains of saccharomyces cerevisiae and processed using proprietary manufacturing processes’. Food Chemistry. 2021 Jul 28; 367:130708.
[vii] Mirończuk-Chodakowska I, Kujawowicz K, Witkowska AM. Beta-Glucans from Fungi: Biological and Health-Promoting Potential in the COVID-19 Pandemic Era. Nutrients. 2021 Nov 6;13(11):3960. doi: 10.3390/nu13113960. PMID: 34836215; PMCID: PMC8623785.
[viii] Talbott S, Talbott J. Effect of BETA 1, 3/1, 6 GLUCAN on Upper Respiratory Tract Infection Symptoms and Mood State in Marathon Athletes. J Sports Sci Med. 2009 Dec 1;8(4):509-15. PMID: 24149590; PMCID: PMC3761532.
[ix] Khan, Saniya & Khan, Sheraz & Khan, Inamullah & Hashim, Narmeen. (2020). β-1,3-glucan Attenuated Chronic Unpredictable Mild Stress-induced Cognitive Impairment in Rodents via Normalizing Corticosterone Levels. Central Nervous System Agents in Medicinal Chemistry. 20. 10.2174/1871524920666200810142359.
[x] Ostadrahimi A, Ziaei JE, Esfahani A, Jafarabadi MA, Movassaghpourakbari A, Farrin N. Effect of beta glucan on white blood cell counts and serum levels of IL-4 and IL-12 in women with breast cancer undergoing chemotherapy: a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial. Asian Pac J Cancer Prev. 2014;15(14):5733-9. doi: 10.7314/apjcp.2014.15.14.5733. PMID: 25081694.
[xi] Bacha U, Nasir M, Iqbal S, Anjum AA. Nutraceutical, Anti-Inflammatory, and Immune Modulatory Effects of β-Glucan Isolated from Yeast. Biomed Res Int. 2017;2017:8972678. doi: 10.1155/2017/8972678. Epub 2017 Aug 23. PMID: 28913359; PMCID: PMC5587958.
[xii] Talbott SM, Talbott JA, Talbott TL, Dingler E. β-Glucan supplementation, allergy symptoms, and quality of life in self-described ragweed allergy sufferers. Food Sci Nutr. 2013 Jan;1(1):90-101. doi: 10.1002/fsn3.11. Epub 2014 Jan 8. PMID: 24804018; PMCID: PMC3951572.
[xiii] Delatte SJ, Evans J, Hebra A, Adamson W, Othersen HB, Tagge EP. Effectiveness of beta-glucan collagen for treatment of partial-thickness burns in children. J Pediatr Surg. 2001 Jan;36(1):113-8. doi: 10.1053/jpsu.2001.20024. PMID: 11150448.
[xiv] Vlassopoulou M, Yannakoulia M, Pletsa V, Zervakis GI, Kyriacou A. Effects of fungal beta-glucans on health – a systematic review of randomized controlled trials. Food Funct. 2021 Apr 26;12(8):3366-3380. doi: 10.1039/d1fo00122a. PMID: 33876798.
[xv] Feldman, Samantha & Schwartz, Howard & Kalman, Douglas & Mayers, Athena & Kohrman, Hannah & Clemens, Roger & Krieger, Diane. (2009). Randomized Phase II Clinical Trials of Wellmune WGP® for Immune Support During Cold and Flu Season. J Appl Res. 9.
[xvi] F, Meng. (2016). Bakers Yeast Beta-Glucan Decreases Episodes of Common Childhood Illness in 1 to 4 Year Old Children during Cold Season in China. Journal of Nutrition & Food Sci
[xvii] De Marco Castro E, Calder PC, Roche HM. β-1,3/1,6-Glucans and Immunity: State of the Art and Future Directions. Mol Nutr Food Res. 2021 Jan;65(1):e1901071. doi: 10.1002/mnfr.201901071. Epub 2020 Apr 27. PMID: 32223047; PMCID: PMC7816268. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32223047/
[xviii] De Marco Castro E, Calder PC, Roche HM. β-1,3/1,6-Glucans and Immunity: State of the Art and Future Directions. Mol Nutr Food Res. 2021 Jan;65(1):e1901071. doi: 10.1002/mnfr.201901071. Epub 2020 Apr 27. PMID: 32223047; PMCID: PMC7816268. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32223047/
[xix] Talbott S, Talbott J. Effect of BETA 1, 3/1, 6 GLUCAN on Upper Respiratory Tract Infection Symptoms and Mood State in Marathon Athletes. J Sports Sci Med. 2009 Dec 1;8(4):509-15. PMID: 24149590; PMCID: PMC3761532.
[xx] Talbott SM, Talbott JA. Baker’s yeast beta-glucan supplement reduces upper respiratory symptoms and improves mood state in stressed women. J Am Coll Nutr. 2012 Aug;31(4):295-300. doi: 10.1080/07315724.2012.10720441. PMID: 23378458
[xxi] De Marco Castro E, Calder PC, Roche HM. β-1,3/1,6-Glucans and Immunity: State of the Art and Future Directions. Mol Nutr Food Res. 2021 Jan;65(1):e1901071. doi: 10.1002/mnfr.201901071. Epub 2020 Apr 27. PMID: 32223047; PMCID: PMC7816268.
[xxii] Zhong X, Wang G, Li F, Fang S, Zhou S, Ishiwata A, Tonevitsky AG, Shkurnikov M, Cai H, Ding F. Immunomodulatory Effect and Biological Significance of β-Glucans. Pharmaceutics. 2023 May 29;15(6):1615. doi: 10.3390/pharmaceutics15061615. PMID: 37376063; PMCID: PMC10302218.
[xxiii] H. A. Zabriskie, J. C. Blumkaitis, J. M. Moon, B. S. Currier,R. Stefan, K. Ratliff, P. S. Harty, R. A. Stecker, K. Rudnicka,R. Jager, M. D. Roberts, K. Young, A. R. Jagim and C. M. Kerksick, Yeast Beta-Glucan Supplementation Downregulates Markers of Systemic Inflammation after Heated Treadmill Exercise, Nutrients, 2020, 12, 1144.
[xxiv] Cramer DE, Allendorf DJ, Baran JT, Hansen R, Marroquin J, Li B, Ratajczak J, Ratajczak MZ, Yan J. Beta-glucan enhances complement-mediated hematopoietic recovery after bone marrow injury. Blood. 2006 Jan 15;107(2):835-40. doi: 10.1182/blood-2005-07-2705. Epub 2005 Sep 22. PMID: 16179370; PMCID: PMC1895628.
[xxv] Boutros JA, Magee AS, Cox D. ‘Comparison of structural differences between yeast β-glucan sourced from different strains of saccharomyces cerevisiae and processed using proprietary manufacturing processes’. Food Chemistry. 2021 Jul 28; 367:130708.
[xxvi] Kournikakis B, Mandeville R, Brousseau P, Ostroff G. Anthrax-protective effects of yeast beta 1,3 glucans. MedGenMed. 2003 Mar 21;5(1):1. PMID: 12827062.
[xxvii] http://www.elc.org.uk/pages/healthimmunesystem.htm
[xxviii] Appleton, Nancy Ph.D., Fructose is No Answer For a Sweetener, https://hammernutrition.com/blogs/endurance-library/fructose-corn-syrup-is-no-answer-sweetener
[xxix] Oaks Z, Patel A, Huang N, Choudhary G, Winans T, Faludi T, Krakko D, Duarte M, Lewis J, Beckford M, Blair S, Kelly R, Landas SK, Middleton FA, Asara JM, Chung SK, Fernandez DR, Banki K, Perl A. Cytosolic aldose metabolism contributes to progression from cirrhosis to hepatocarcinogenesis. Nat Metab. 2023 Jan;5(1):41-60. doi: 10.1038/s42255-022-00711-9. Epub 2023 Jan 19. Erratum in: Nat Metab. 2023 Feb 8;: PMID: 36658399; PMCID: PMC9892301.
[xxx] Alexandrine During*, Meira Fields, Charles G. Lewis and J. Cecil Smith, Phytonutrients Laboratory and 2Nutrient Requirements and Functions Laboratory, USDA-ARS, Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center, Beltsville, Maryland 20705, USA
[xxxi] http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A29434-2004Aug24.html
[xxxii] https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/09/200917180414.htm