In a time like this, all people can think of is how they can improve their health. The whole world is unified and it’s trying to comprehend what’s going on and how serious the situation is. What they also may wonder about is whether they could do something to prevent such a serious situation.
Since the situation came out of nowhere and it has surprised people all over the globe, it’s normal that you are trying to find an explanation for something unexpected. Since the situation is so unexpected and urgent, the answers are pretty urgent too.
All sorts of research are being conducted and people are starting to learn more.
Does Exercise Have an Impact on Your Immunity?
When it comes to the connection between exercising and immunity, there have been some positive results. If the new coronavirus outbreak has frightened you, the situation may not be bad for you at all.
The latest science suggests that if you do exercise regularly, as a result, your body can fight off the germs more successfully. Even if you don’t exercise as often, you’ll experience this benefit of being active, but if you do it on a daily basis, you are improving your immune system significantly.
How Does Exercise Affect Your Immunity?
There are a lot of things that affect your immunity. Some of them are good hygiene, quality sleep, and nutrient food. They are all very important for your immune system and they make your body stronger.
What's great is that there are other things that can affect your immune system too. One such thing is exercise. It's great, knowing that you can do so much to help your body fight the germs and the bacteria.
Of course, it’s not enough to just work out. What’s very important is how you work out and when you work out. It’s even important where you work out.
For instance, it can’t possibly be the same exercising in a park on a sunny day as to doing the exercises in your local gym. The first is filled with fresh air, healthy rays, and overall positive vibes, while the latter may be filled with germs and some tension due to the closed space.
The fight with the germs is what you want to avoid and because of that, it seems obvious that exercising outdoors is much better for your health. It’s also important how long you are exercising.
Doing a couple of pushups and having a proper workout session is completely different when it comes to improving your immune system.
Cycling, for instance, is one of the great ways to improve your immune system. Cycling is an outdoor activity that will allow you to flush bacteria out of the lungs and airways more easily.
The Myths and the Truth
It is part of human nature to try and explain things. Whatever happens, people will try and rationalize it. They will look for the connections and similarities, for causes and consequences.
Even though this is a rather positive quality, people can sometimes go too far and start claiming things that aren't scientifically backed.
This is exactly how many of the myths about all sorts of things come to life. People think that they start seeing patterns and they start believing in that. They even start spreading the word, even though they haven’t really checked the thing in question.
As in all of the other spheres of human life, this is a field where you could encounter some myths too. For instance, people used to claim that exercising actually damages your immune system.
There are still people that will tell you how exercising leaves you open to pathogens and illness. This myth comes from the marathon runners.
Namely, they would frequently report the problems they had with their health after the races. They would feel the infection symptoms not for days, but for the weeks. The problem was that this wasn’t scientifically backed.
To be more specific, the runners would self-diagnose themselves. That couldn’t help much because it wasn’t objective or professional. On the other hand, some more serious experiments have brought different results.
In experiments done in the laboratories, a small number of runners proved to have respiratory conditions. What most of them had were airway irritations or some similar non-infectious conditions. This has proved that the myth wasn’t true and that the truth was much better.
Some Other Experiments
The experiment with the runners was just the first in the sea of the following experiments. Since it was proven that physical activity doesn't affect the immune system in a negative way, there was a lot more to be done.
One particularly interesting experiment was the experiment with the rodents. This was a series of experiments held in 2005. The result of the experiment was that the rodents that were physically active were more likely to survive the rodent influenza than the rest of the rodents.
At the same time, some research showed that intense workout can temporarily diminish the immune responses right afterward. This slight possibility is often referred to as the “open window” theory.
This theory shows that immune cells of animals and humans flooded our bloodstream immediately after an exercise session, but then abruptly disappeared. The scientists came to a conclusion they died as a result of the exercise stress.
This sudden disappearance of immune cells seemed to have had a huge impact. It caused a reduction of levels of the cells that recognize and fight pathogenic intruders. In other words, this disappearance offered germs an open window for incursions in a way.
Experiments With Rodents
However, as it always is, some other, more sophisticated experiments offered a different view and explanation of what actually happened there. There have been some experiments with rodents done.
The scientists have marked some of their immune cells with phosphorescent dye and then they had them run to the point of complete exhaustion. And the results that came out led them to a very interesting conclusion.
What the scientists noted was that the levels of glowing cells in their bloodstream spiked and then suddenly plummeted. That part of the result was expected, but there was also something else they found.
The scientists also discovered that few of those cells that died actually traveled to some other animals’ organs such as lungs, guts, and other vital organs. They instantly flew to all the organs that are potentially most vulnerable to germ invasion during exercise.
After their "ork has been done, most of them simply returned to the bloodstream, where they used to be. This is where they are stabilizing immune cell levels.
In other words, this experiment showed that their immune vigilance had never declined. It simply refocused and went where it was needed the most at that time.
Experiments With Mice
There has also been a similar case to this one. In a recently published study, a specific experiment was done on a group of mice. Fit, exercise-trained mice were injected with germs immediately after an intense run.
The experiment showed that these mice fought off the infection they were given better than sedentary animals. Also, additional molecular analysis showed how this was possible.
Namely, these mice’s immune cells were mainly homed and clustered around the pathogens, which needed the protection from the germs. On the other hand, those inactive animals’ immune cells were scattered in the tissue and simply weren’t able to protect the vital organs from the infection.
So, generally speaking, what does this research tell us? It tells us that there is no reliable evidence that says the exercise can directly increase our chances of developing any kind of globally spread infection.
There is no proven correlation between the two, which is a good sign. In other words, it is completely safe to exercise, despite the ongoing coronavirus and concerns people have about it. In fact, regular exercise might even help lessen the risk of catching the infection in the first place.
In the 2005 studies with mice and influenza, a separate group of animals that ran strenuously for weeks developed somewhat more severe and longer-lasting symptoms than the mice that ran moderately before their infections, although the differences were slight.
Exercise, But Don’t Go Overboard
However, caution cannot be ignored. In case you haven't been exercising for a certain amount of time already, this might not be the best time for you to start an extremely ambitious and intense new workout routine.
These studies with mice and influenza, where there was a separate group of animals that ran continuously throughout weeks, developed more severe and longer-lasting symptoms than the animals who ran moderately before the infection.
Even though the differences weren't that huge, they were still noticeable. It's important to keep in mind that a sudden increase in exercise duration or intensity, especially with those who are new to a regular exercise regime, might end up having more negative effects on their immune system.
That is why, if you’re thinking about starting a more regular exercise regime, knowing how to approach it is very important. Exercising is important for both our physical and mental health, but you should never go overboard, especially if you are a beginner.
As we already mentioned, regular exercise is very beneficial for our overall health. It promotes cardiovascular health, lowers blood pressure, helps control body weight, and above anything else, keeps our bodies safe from various diseases.
Being physically active will also improve your blood circulation significantly. This will allow your immune system cells to move through the body more freely. So if your body ever gets attacked by a virus, your immune cells will be able to do their job faster and more effectively.
Even though scientists are still looking for solid evidence for the link between exercise and the immune system, it is already pretty much reasonable to presume there is a correlation between them and that moderate exercise can prevent diseases by improving our overall health.
However, it is important to remember not to overdo it. Intense exercise can cause inflammation in the body. And that may send the immune system into overdrive. Instead of pushing yourself past your limits, take baby steps instead.
Start by doing easy at-home workout routines, and then build up the intensity as you go. You shouldn’t be taking things overboard, especially during the viral virus outbreak.
Fuel Your Body With Healthy Food
Though exercise is beneficial for your health, treating your body with nourishing and healthy food is just as important. Not only will it keep you healthy, but it will also fuel your body so that your body can be prepared for your daily exercises.
Try to eat as many protein-packed food, veggies, and fruits. Try to avoid consuming heavily processed food. Also, you might want to consider fuelling your body before and after your workout routine so that your body can easily recover after exercising.
For this matter, one of the best cures you could give to your body would be a protein shake packed with WPC powder and other nutrients that your body needs to stay healthy while you’re physically active.
Don’t Forget About the Basics
Lastly, don't forget basic hygiene and common sense. Exercise can protect you from this disease to a certain extent, but maintaining your hygiene is just important. Make sure you wash your hands regularly and properly, especially before and after exercise.
Listen to your body. If you feel unwell, shorten or skip workouts.
Also, consider rubbing a sanitizing wipe over gym equipment before you use it. The surface of gym equipment is where many germs can stay for a long period of time, so be careful and clean them before you start using them.
Conclusion
In conclusion, exercise can immensely improve your immune system and help your body fight the virus in a very effective way.
However, it is very important that you are properly informed about how it actually helps your body what you can do to get the best out of it so that you can be sure you are healthy and protected even during the coronavirus outbreak.
