Whether you are looking to prevent colds and flus, worried about COVID-19, or you just have a compromised immune system, many people ask this question. What vitamins boost my immune system or what vitamins can it take to boost my immune system? In this article will look at the role of certain vitamins and nutrients on the immune system. We will also look at what the research and evidence says about taking those vitamins to boost the immune system. We will also look at some of my personal favorite things that I (personally) use and recommend to patients for immune function. Some people are concerned about COVID-19 and others just don’t want to be sick as much with seasonal cold and flu season. At some point most people asks, what vitamins can I take to boost my immune system. We want to look at what the science has to say about the role of vitamins and nutrients in the immune system.
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The vitamins and nutrients we will look at include:
Vitamin E, Zinc, Omega 3- fatty acids, Probiotics, Vitamin D
Before we jump into the details we should give a little general context about the role of vitamins and nutrients on the immune system. There is certain level of vitamin nutrients and general nutrition that is needed for all cells to function at their optimal level. Things like the RDA (recommended daily allowance) establish a minimum amount to prevent disease states from inadequate levels. This would be like scurvy, berri berri, rickets and things like that. However, just because you have enough to meet the RDA, does not always mean that your tissues and cells are in the optimal range for them to be functioning at their peak levels.
For many vitamins we don’t know what that “optimal level” is. This is where we get into some of the controversy. We also don’t know the effect of pushing vitamins and nutrient levels well above adequate levels. With that said we’re going to look at what we do know what the research says about using these vitamins and supplements on boosting the immune system. Some of this information is coming from a review article (see link) that goes into a lot of detail on the role of vitamins boosting immune function.
Here is a quote from that research article. “In all the bodily systems and tissues, appropriate supply of different types of nutrients is essential for maintaining cell homeostasis and performing respective function. While the immune system is no exception, its specific defense functions determine what immune cells may be particularly sensitive to the status of certain nutrients and food components. A primary task for nutritional immunology research is to identify which dietary factors and to define their optimal intake in terms of maintaining immunological balance and strengthening defense against pathogens.” Vitamin D has been shown to have a protective effect against getting infections when adequate levels of vitamin D are maintained. Adequate levels are defined as 20 ng/ml or above for 25 hydroxy vitamin D 3. The effect of vitamin D on the immune system is clearly shows that it enhances the particular parts of the immune system called the innate immune system. It has a stimulatory effect on the cells of the innate immune system. These are cells like macrophages, neutrophils, and monocytes and they will proliferate and increase in number when incubated in the presence of vitamin D. Vitamin D clearly has a stimulatory effect on immune cells and a protective effect against getting infections when it’s maintained above what’s considered adequate levels.
The role of vitamin d and the adaptive immune function like the T cells and the B cells is less clear. Like many vitamins taking above the adequate amount may not have much effect for the immune system. My personal opinion on this is to maintain 25 hydroxy vitamin D around 45 ng/ml per ml. This is a safe range but anything above that may not be safe. As the laboratory notations suggest anything above you are at increased risk for hypercalcemia.
