So, how does it work to support the immune system?
Your Immune system
The immune system is often undervalued and not considered in pathology of disease. The immune system is made up of white blood cells that are made in our bone marrow. They regulate the body’s resistance and fighting ability to invading pathogens and internal disturbances.
Every day we are bombarded with possible causes for infection. White blood cells, which permeate every tissue in the body, neutralize these dangers and produce antibodies to hinder future invasion of the same pathogen.
The immune system is not only responsible for the removal of external pathogens but also plays a role in the clean-up of cells after apoptosis (cell death) and the removal of ‘abnormal’ cells.
Our immune system, like any army, has limits. It can only fight off a certain number of pathogens before there is a high chance of defeat. Luckily, the body has a built-in safety mechanism to aid the immune system at this time. Surprisingly, this safety mechanism is an increase in systemic temperature called pyrexia, hyperthermia or more commonly known as fever.
During a fever, the functionality of the immune system is stimulated, while the growth of bacteria and viruses are forced to slow down. The production of white blood cells, the primary agents of the immune system is increased as is the rate of their release into the blood stream. The generation of antibodies speeds up, as does the production of interferon, an anti-viral protein that also has powerful cancer-fighting properties.
The fever activates the immune system dramatically and also creates heat shock proteins on the surface of malignant cells. This effect makes the cancer visible and vulnerable to the increased amount of immune cells. The increased blood flow and oxygenation during the process helps to detoxify the body at the same time.