Immune health has become especially popular in 2020 due to the emergence of SARS-CoV-2, which is the name of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19. The immune system has both pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory functions that are executed by immune cells based on the stressors we all face on a daily basis.

Normally, we have no idea that our immune system is working; it takes care of us in a silent fashion. We find out that our immune cells are behaving in a pro-inflammatory fashion when we feel sick. For example, if you are sick in bed with cold or flu symptoms and a fever, it is because your immune system is activated and pumping out an excess of inflammatory chemicals.

Many other symptoms manifest when the immune system is pro-inflammatory even when we are not sick with a cold or flu, such as chronic pain, headaches, fatigue, anxiety, depression, brain fog, and malaise. It turns out that nutrition is a key factor that determines immune activity. A high calorie diet that is rich in refined sugar, flour, and oils, which leads to obesity and high blood glucose levels, causes immune cells to behave in a pro-inflammatory fashion. In addition to the symptoms mentioned above, these same people are at a much greater risk for developing severe cold and flu symptoms, and severe cases of COVID-19.