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Your immune system is like your body’s security guard. It protects you from illness and infection, making it possible for your body’s other systems to function. There are many contributing factors that may lead to a weakened or impaired immune system, including stress, nutrition, and immune disorders. Thankfully there are naturopathic immune health solutions to help strengthen your immune system and improve its overall function. Although many associate acupuncture with the musculoskeletal system, it actually offers many more potential benefits. Acupuncture can help your immune system function by promoting healthy immune cells, reducing the inflammation caused by stress and anxiety, and offering immunomodulatory effects. Before we dive into all there is to know about acupuncture and its role in supporting your immune health, let’s look at what causes a weakened immune system in the first place. What Causes A Weakened Immune System? Your immune system plays the important role of fighting off foreign pathogens, including parasites, bacteria, viruses, and other infection-causing microbes. White blood cells, also known as leukocytes, are immune cells responsible for protecting against infection. There are many factors that may weaken your immune health and leave you vulnerable to things like infections, frequent colds, and allergies. Poor stress management, poor nutrition, and poor sleeping habits may be impacting your body’s ability to prevent and fight off infection and illness. Additionally, you may have an immune-related condition leaving you with a declining immune system, such as the following: Asthma Allergies Hepatitis Multiple sclerosis HIV/AIDS Common cold Psoriasis Chronic fatigue Cancer Once compromised by one of these factors, you are more likely to experience frequent and reoccurring infection and illness. What Is Acupuncture? Acupuncture is a treatment originating in Traditional Chinese Medicine that involves the insertion of thin needles along certain points of your body, called acupoints. These points are along channels, or meridians, that flow across your body. By stimulating your nerves, connective tissue, and muscles, these needles help relieve inflammation and tension, and restore balance to your body. Some may get nervous at the idea of needles, but acupuncture needles are incredibly thin and not considered painful. In fact, many find acupuncture very relaxing and soothing. Although acupuncture is often used as a pain management technique, it is also beneficial for many other conditions. How Can Acupuncture Help With Immune System Function? Whether you’re suffering from an immune disorder, you experience frequent illness or infection, or you’re just looking to boost your immune health, acupuncture is a great option to help improve the function of your immune system. There are many immune benefits of acupuncture. First, it can help regulate your body’s immune response and speed up healing and recovery post-infection by stimulating acupoints along your autonomic nervous system. It is an immunomodulator, meaning it is a therapy that modifies your body’s immune response, which is good when it comes to fighting and preventing infection. Acupuncture also raises your body’s interferon levels, which is a signaling molecule your immune system uses to communicate. Because there are many factors affecting your immune health, it can be difficult to diagnose and deal with a specific cause. However, acupuncture’s wide-ranging benefits mean this treatment can address a variety of causes. Anxiety is a common trigger for immune deficiencies, causing negative outcomes including a decrease in leukocytes (white blood cells). A study found that acupuncture decreased anxiety and its related immune symptoms, helping improve immune function and restoring overall immune health. This study involved 34 female patients between the ages of 30 and 60, all suffering from anxiety. The most beneficial effects on immune function were observed 72 hours after the acupuncture session and persisted one month after completion of treatment. Immune cell numbers and function, markers of overall immune health, may suffer for a variety of reasons. Ensuring your body has sufficient leukocyte and lymphocyte levels is important in achieving good immune health. Acupuncture may impact your white blood cell count, as noted in this study on acupuncture’s immunomodulatory effects. From promoting immunoglobulin production and white blood cell production, acupuncture may help support your immune system’s natural function of fighting infection and rejecting virally infected cells. Acupuncture’s modulation of immune cells has been studied in rats, with results showing electroacupuncture (a common form of acupuncture involving a small electric current) enhanced the level of immune cytokines and other immune cells. Cytokines (including interferon) are signaling molecules in your immune system that serve to regulate inflammation, immunity, and hematopoiesis, which is the production of blood and blood plasma. So overall, acupuncture treatment can have a significant impact on the health of your immune system. A Word On COVID-19 Immunity At the time of this writing, we’re in the midst of a state of emergency here in Ontario as a result of COVID-19, and I hope that, if you aren’t an essential worker, you’re taking the proper social distancing precautions. As well, at the time of this writing, there is no credible evidence of any treatment or preventative measure for COVID-19 infection, other than the hygiene and social distancing measures set out by the WHO. To be clear, there is no evidence that acupuncture can improve your immunity to COVID-19. What it can do, however, is help restore immune function, regulate the production of hormones and immune cells, stimulate immune response, and encourage healing from infection, illness, and inflammation. Acupuncture is something to consider once the social distancing rules are relaxed to make that possible. Book An Appointment With Nardini Naturopathic There are many reasons why you may want to ensure your immune system is functioning as it should. You may be suffering from an immune disorder or wanting to prevent future illness or infection. Your entire body relies on your immune system to stay strong and well. Acupuncture is one of many natural tools you can incorporate into your routine to support and encourage the health of your immune system. For more information on acupuncture and other naturopathic solutions for immune health, contact me, Dr. Pat Nardini at Nardini Naturopathic. I would love to work with you on a treatment plan that works for you and your lifestyle. I’m a naturopathic doctor in Toronto with a special interest in immune conditions and immune health. Book an appointment with Nardini Naturopathic today.