Gormish Chiropractic & Rehabilitation Describes the Role of Vitamin C for a Healthy Immune System
The immune system is a hard working system. Like any organ or machine, it needs fuel to keep working hard. The fuel for the immune system is an extensive list of micronutrients, the most discussed being vitamin C, and for good reason. Vitamin C plays an influential role in an immune system that works well. In addition to spine pain care, Gormish Chiropractic & Rehabilitation asks our Carrolltown chiropractic patients to notice their body’s fuel levels of nutrients like vitamin C. Nutrition is important!
LOW VITAMIN C LEVELS
Researchers studied what factors add to low vitamin C status and learned that vitamin C levels are impacted mostly by dietary intake. Diet can be affected by cultural aspects like traditional cooking methods with traditional staple foods like grains which have little vitamin C to offer. Environmental factors play a role like geographic region, season, climate, and pollution. Demographic factors like age, race, sex, and socioeconomic factors like deprivation, education, institutionalization, and social class. Health factors like smoking, body weight, pregnancy/lactation, genetic variants, as well as diseases like serious infection or cardiovascular disease or cancerinfluence C levels. Quite a few issues seem to contribute to vitamin C levels and need to be thought about when creating global recommendations for dietary intake. (1) Vitamin C levels are not studied well enough around the world especially in low- and middle- income countries. Completed studies have shown that vitamin C deficiency is common in low-, middle- and even in subgroups of people in high-income settings. (2) Gormish Chiropractic & Rehabilitation may not be able to fix the vitamin C levels of those around the world, but we are here for our Carrolltown chiropractic friends!
ROLE OF VITAMIN C IN IMMUNE FUNCTION
Vitamin C is a well-recognized essential factor in immune function and epigenetic inflammatory modifications. Vitamin C is optimally obtained by consistent dietary intake. 41.8% of participants in the 2003-2005 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) has deficient levels of vitamin C. Insufficient vitamin C plasma levels were found in males, adults aged 20-59, Black and Mexican Americans, smokers, those with higher BMI, and those with middle and high poverty to income ratio and food insecurity. These folks are at greater risk for inflammatory driven disease with little or no signs of low vitamin C levels. (3) Gormish Chiropractic & Rehabilitation encourage our Carrolltown chiropractic patients know if they are at risk for low nutrient levels and address those to be as healthy as possible!
IMMUNE SYSTEM
Health and well-being is a careful balance of many issues, one being a good functioning immune system. Researchers have established intake levels of micronutrients like vitamins A, C, D, E and zinc, yet many people are low. Deficient levels of such nutrients damage the immune system and weaken its response when it is most needed. In a study of 26,282 adults over age 19 in the 2005-2016 NHANES study, a “prevalence of inadequacy” was found for all of these:
- 45% for vitamin A
- 46% for vitamin C
- 95% for vitamin D
- 84% for vitamin E
- 15% for zinc
Supplementation is described as beneficial while a call for better understanding of the interactions of multiple nutrient deficiencies on the immune system is also made. This would help identify optimal levels of intake for at-risk people. (4) Gormish Chiropractic & Rehabilitation is ready to check the vitamin C levels of our Carrolltown chiropractic patients and assist them in adjusting it as needed.
CONTACT Gormish Chiropractic & Rehabilitation
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. James Cox on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he illustrates the role chiropractic may play in immune system health along with how The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management works.
Make your Carrolltown chiropractic appointment soon. Together, we can delve into just how well you are fueling your body to keep the immune system working optimally!
