How Age Influences Your Immune System

Learn how age influences the immune system, and what you can do to support the immune system as you age. 
 
Timestamps
0:10 Why your risk of infection increases with age 
1:27 The thymus gland and immunity 
2:55 Medications and the immune system 
3:41 Vitamin D and healthy aging 

In this video, we’re going to talk about what happens to your immune system as you age. As you age, your risk of viral and bacterial infections increases dramatically. 

This can happen because your microbiome changes. Your microbiome refers to all of the microbes living in your body. These microbes make up a great majority of your immune system, but they do a lot of other things as well. 

As you age, you have less diversity of your microbiome, and you have more pathogenic bacteria. So, now you have a situation where you have more pathogens and less friendly bacteria. This can make you more susceptible to getting infections. You also won’t make a good quantity of butyrate, which is involved in helping support healthy blood sugars and a healthy immune system. 

It’s very important as you age to maintain your gut flora. You may even want to consider taking a high-quality probiotic supplement. 

Another thing is that your thymus gland shrinks as you age. The thymus is the key lymph gland that has to do with protecting and supporting the immune system. You may want to take zinc to help support the thymus gland and possibly a thymus extract as well to help boost the immune system. 

As people get older, they typically start taking more medications. The medication that really destroys the microbiome is antibiotics. But, antacids, metformin, SSRIs, laxatives, and corticosteroids can have a negative impact on your microbiome as well. 

As you age, you also have a more difficult time absorbing vitamin D. Vitamin D is one of the most important immune modulators, which helps control the immune system. 

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Dr. Eric Berg DC Bio:
Dr. Berg, 56 years of age is a chiropractor who specializes in Healthy Ketosis & Intermittent Fasting. He is the author of The New Body Type Guide and other books published by KB Publishing. He has taught students nutrition as an adjunct professor at Howard University. He no longer practices, but focuses on health education through social media.

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Disclaimer:
Dr. Eric Berg received his Doctor of Chiropractic degree from Palmer College of Chiropractic in 1988. His use of “doctor” or “Dr.” in relation to himself solely refers to that degree. Dr. Berg is a licensed chiropractor in Virginia, California, and Louisiana, but he no longer practices chiropractic in any state and does not see patients so he can focus on educating people as a full time activity, yet he maintains an active license. This video is for general informational purposes only. It should not be used to self-diagnose and it is not a substitute for a medical exam, cure, treatment, diagnosis, and prescription or recommendation. It does not create a doctor-patient relationship between Dr. Berg and you. You should not make any change in your health regimen or diet before first consulting a physician and obtaining a medical exam, diagnosis, and recommendation. Always seek the advice of a physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.

Thanks for watching! I hope this video helps you better understand how age influences the immune system.