"Until about 1960, the biggest killer of children under the
age of fifteen in America was accidents, but now it is cancer.
Most cases of immune deficiency begin during childhood with
the first glass of pasteurized cow's milk and the first bowl of processed cereal sprinkled
with white sugar. The overall physical and mental health of American children has been
declining at an alarming rate and the primary reason for this is their diet.
In adulthood, the debilitating effects are compounded by
alcohol, drugs (medicinal as well as recreational), contaminated beef, artificial fats and
other factors. Let's take a quick look at some of the most
immunosuppressive elements that
people routinely allow to enter the inner sanctum of their bodies.
Refined white sugar triggers the release of insulin from
the pancreas. With daily consumption of sugar, the bloodstream is always laced with
insulin, which suppresses secretion of growth hormone from the pituitary. Growth hormone
is a prime regulator of the immune system.
Hydrogenated vegetable oils
An ingredient in virtually all processed foods, baby
formulas, non-dairy creamers, salad dressings etc., these artificial
oils rapidly oxidize
in the human system, releasing a deadly barrage of free radicals which destroy cells and
cause genetic damage. They impair the immune activity of white blood cells and have been
conclusively linked to increased risks of cancer.
Beef and cow's milk
Steroid hormones, antibiotics and other drugs routinely fed
to cattle are absorbed by the people who consume the meat and milk of such contaminated
animals, throwing the endocrine system off balance and impairing immunity.
Malnutrition
Malnutrition is a primary cause of immune deficiency
throughout the world, not only where people are starving. The most glaring deficiencies in
modern diets are essential amino acids and essential fatty acids, both of which are
required in the production of immune factors such as white blood cells and antibodies. The
thymus gland and lymph tissues for example, immediately begin to shrink and atrophy when
these nutrients are absent from the diet.
Heavy metals
Toxic heavy metals such as cadmium, lead, mercury and
aluminum suppress all branches of the immune system, inhibiting T-cells, B-cells and
antibodies and depressing bone-marrow function. Cadmium also blocks assimilation of zinc,
which is an essential element required by the body to manufacture the potent antioxidant
enzyme superoxide dismutase, one of the body's most important immune factors. Heavy metals
enter our bodies in tap water, contaminated fish, polluted air, fresh produce grown with
synthetic fertilizers and cigarette smoke.
Antibiotics
These commonly prescribed drugs are powerful
immunosuppressors and also destroy the friendly lactobacteria in our intestinal tracts,
thereby permitting candida and other harmful yeast's to proliferate throughout the system,
where they further inhibit immune functions.
Recreational drugs
Coffee, alcohol, tobacco, opiates,
barbiturates, amphetamines and other popular drugs, when used to
excess, severely inhibit immunity by releasing toxic by-products
into the bloodstream and suppressing liver function.
Coffee has been specifically linked
to increased risk of pancreas cancer; the offending agent is not
caffeine, but other elements contained in coffee beans. When coffee
is consumed with refined sugar and no-dairy creamer, the immune
system gets battered with a triple blow.
Immune deficiency can be prevented and cured by first
eliminating as many immunosuppressant elements as possible from your diet and lifestyle,
then taking some or all of the following immunity-boosting foods and supplements daily."
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Source: Daniel Reid, The Tao of
Health, Sex and Longevity.
Food and supplements.
