Nutrient therapy may help alleviate environmental allergies

Better Nutrition (1989-90), April, 1989 by Deborah Seymour Taylor

Nutrient Therapy May Help Alleviate Environmental Allergies

For nearly four million years, the earth has remained relatively stable. As primitive man learned to create fire, the makeup of the air changed and 10,000 years ago with the invention of farming, eating habits were altered. Each of these evolutions happened gradually, over thousands of years, allowing the human body time to adapt. But in the last half of this century, environmental changes have begun taking place at an unprecedented rate.

Today, new chemical compounds are created and released into the environment at a staggering rate of one per minute. Suddenly man is under assault by his own planet. And one of the most deadly environments may well be his own home. As a matter of fact, the 1987 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) report ranked indoor pollution such as radioactive radon gas, formaldehyde in carpets and furniture, and airborne chemicals from cleaning solvents, paints, perfumes, glues, waxes and heating fuels, at the top of the list of environmental risk factors.

Depending on individual sensitivity, allergic reactions to these man made pollutants may include red, burning eyes, sneezing, asthma, sore throats, headaches, recurrent infections, chronic fatigue and a host of psychological problems ranging from hyperactivity to severe depression.

Most healthy human beings are protected from this chemical avalanche by the immune system. Unfortunately, according to the "allergy threshold concept" one can go beyond his threshold of tolerance. Once this happens, the immune system weakens and chemical sensitivities develop. According to Alan Levin, M.D. and Merla Zellerbach, authors of The Type 1/Type 2 Allergy Relief Program, chemical sensitivities are the result of an immune system weakened by repeated infectious diseases, continuous stress and/or cumulative exposure to toxic chemicals. "The most extreme manifestation is universal reactivity to everything in the external environment, and even to the body's own tissues and organs," they said.

The immune system is made up of three types of white blood cells: B-cells, T-cells and macrophages. The B-cells produce antibodies. When B-cells encounter a foreign substance, or antigen, they begin to produce highly specific antibodies which attach, like keys into a lock, to the antigens to form "immune complexes." Once these complexes are formed, amoeba-like macrophages engulf and destroy them.

T-cells control the action of the B-cells. Left to their own devices, B-cells would form antibodies to anything from harmless dust to nutrient-rich proteins. If a harmless substance enters, T-cells signal the B-cells to suppress antibody production. When a harmful substance enters, they signal the B-cells to go to work.

According to Dr. Levin, this T-cell control system is how vaccinations and allergy shots work. "T-cells can be programmed through vaccination or immunization to allow antibody production to previously unfamiliar but harmful antigens such as smallpox. Conversely, allergy shots. . . can program T-cells to recognize harmless antigens and to suppress production of their antibodies."

But, said Dr. Levin, chemical sensitivities can arise when the number of T-cells is reduced or their ability to function is impaired. B-cells begin to form antibodies against both harmless and harmful substances. As immune complexes flood the bloodstream, a range of allergic symptoms from minor reactions to rheumatoid arthritis are produced.

Most experts agree that certain vitamins and minerals strengthen this immune response. One of the most potent immune stimulators is vitamin A. Often called the anti-infection vitamin, vitamin A strengthens the immune system by stimulating the thymus glands where immature T-cells are programmed for their role in the immune response. Vitamin A also is essential for the health of the skin and epithelial tissues. It helps maintain cell membrane structure and is needed for the maintenance of teeth, nails, eyes, hair, bones and glands. Vitamin A occurs in two principal forms: Retinol, found in animal sources such as milk and liver, and Carotene, found in yellow and orange vegetables. The RDA for vitamin A is 800 micrograms (ug) for females and 1,000 ug for males.

Another powerful immune booster, vitamin C helps thymic hormones change immature, inactive T-cells into mature cells to battle disease. According to Benjamin Siegel, Ph.D., Department of Pathology, University of Oregon at Eugene, vitamin C may increase the metabolism of some types of white blood cells, allowing them to react more quickly. Researchers in Belgium discovered that 500 mg of vitamin C administered daily through intramuscular injection for one month significantly bolstered the immune system in a group of healthy volunteers over 70. The group receiving the placebo shot showed no improvement. Those receiving the vitamin injections had better skin test responses to tuberculin antigens and in the test tube, their lymphocytes were found to be more active when exposed to a stimulating substance. Researchers concluded that vitamin C should be considered a "successful, non-toxic and inexpensive means of improving the immunity."