Immunity Boosting—Part 6

Immunity boosting series finally arrived to the last two classes of chemicals I was planning to discuss. These are so commonly present in our every day life, we have to be aware of them. They affect our health in so many negative ways, so it’s not like I “saved the best for last.”

BISPHENOL A (BPA)

BPA has been more recently suspected to cause alterations of the immune function, therefore additional, active research is being done. You may be familiar with this name as it’s often mentioned in news articles, because previous research linked it to other negative health effects:

• endocrine disruptor
• hypertension
• obesity
• diabetes

BPA is used in:

• polycarbonate plastic containers with (recycling code #7)
• baby bottles and sippy cups—made from this until not long ago
• food containers (frequently from frozen dinners)—warming up the food in these will better allow the BPA to leach
• plastic food wrap is often made with BPA

BPA-free is not necessarily safer, because that product can contain BPS (bisphenol S), phthalates or others.

• epoxy resins that line cans for foods and drinks are also made with BPA. Because it’s used as a lining, not a chemical bond with the material the cans are made of, it can easily seep into the foods
• thermal paper used for cashier receipts—applied in a free form that easily gets through the skin.
• compact discs
• eyeglasses lenses

Avoiding BPA

Anything likely to contain Bisphenol of any kind that comes in contact with something that we eat or drink, I don’t buy or use. There are replacements for just about anything. Here is what I did and you can decide to do it as well:

• say no to anything packed in plastic #7 (I’ve seen organic salad in a bag that had this recycling code on it!)
• no plastic food wrap, I use brown paper instead—followed by placing the item in a ziplock bag if needed
• instead of buying canned foods, opt for the same items in glass jars
• you can find foods in BPA-free cans—usually not suitable for acidic foods
• tomato paste, sauce, juice, pasta sauce made with tomatoes, or other acidic foods can only be packed in cans lined with BPA. Remember to look for glass jars or bottles for all these!
• buy juices and other drinks in glass bottles instead of cans (aluminum or tin cans are lined with BPA)
• avoid handling store receipts for too long and wash hands with soap right away; wet wipes are not a good idea because wet hands (without the soap), only make it easier for the BPA to cross through the skin

PHTHALATES

They can affect the immune response, with some studies suggesting increased risk of respiratory infections as well as asthma and other allergic reactions in children exposed to phthalates early in their life.

Boosting immunity by avoiding these chemicals appears the sensible thing to do. Also worth knowing that some phthalates were banned because their link to cancers. Those still in use interfere with some of our hormones (endocrine glandular system).

Under the disguise fragrance, phthalates are found in:

• cosmetics
• laundry and cleaning products
• candles
• air fresheners

Phthalates are used to soften plastics and vinyl, thus present in:

• • plastic food wrap
  • shower curtains
  • floor coverings
  • soft plastic toys
  • medical equipment
  • coating for medication capsules

If you’ve been suffering from migraine headaches, as I have, you’d be even more interested in the two classes from this post and a few others. You can download the FREE report and see what helped me tremendously.

As a brief overall review, the chemicals discussed in this six-post series can affect all types of immune cell lines, immunity mediators (called cytokines), and affect antibodies production.

All these can impair our capacity to fight infections, but they could also derail the immune system to produce autoantibodies, leading to autoimmune diseases.

Moreover, researchers state that “Developmental exposures that lead to an immune system with a diminished capacity to fight infection may also reduce the body’s ability to detect and destroy tumor cells, thereby increasing risk of cancer.”

Thus, avoiding them will not only help boosting immunity for infections, diminish our chance to develop autoimmune diseases, but decrease the likelihood of developing cancers too.