
March 4, 2020
How the Ketogenic Diet Protects Against Influenza & Supplements to Enhance the Immune System – High Intensity Health with Mike Mutzel
Check out the High Intensity Health Episode Page & Show Notes
Key Takeaways
- In animal models, the ketogenic diet upregulates innate immune system activity in lung tissue. Because of this:
- The ketogenic diet may offer protection against influenza (and the coronavirus)
- The ketogenic diet may be a viable treatment method for chronic Lyme disease
- To further improve immune system health:
- Get enough sleep (Our latest @SleepDiplomat’s Interview with Chris Kresser Here for tips)
- Use the sauna and expose yourself to cold temperatures
- Supplement with vitamin A & vitamin D (2,500-1000 IU/day) as well as zinc (25 mg/day)
- Supplement with a strain-specific probiotic; Mike recommends Myxoscience’s Probio Supreme
Intro
- This is a solo episode with Mike Mutzel (@MikeMutzelMS) containing a lecture on how to improve immune system health and why the ketogenic diet may offer protection against influenza
Low-Carb, High-Fat Diets May Offer Protection Against Infectious Disease
- What kind of infectious disease?
- Chronic & lingering Lyme disease or something acute, like the coronavirus
- New studies out of Yale University indicate a ketogenic-style diet may offer immunity against the influenza virus
- Specifically, the ketogenic diet upregulates a critical type of T helper cell (gamma-delta T cells) in the mucosal barriers within lung tissue (i.e., the ketogenic diet upregulates innate immune system activity in lung tissue)
- Mike cuts to some audio from his recent appearance at the Metabolic Health Summit, where he was on a panel with Robb Wolff, Dr. Dom D’Agostino, and other top scientists. One quote from the clip stands out:
- “The LDL particle has a protein called LPS-binding protein. LPS is a bacterial fragment that can be very inflammatory when it makes its way into vertebrate circulatory systems … Somebody that has higher lipoproteins will be able to clear something like LPS out of the system much more effectively.” – Robb Wolff
How to Improve Immune System Health
1. Get Enough Sleep
- Because your immune system is very active while sleeping:
- “If you’re short-changing your body on sleep, you may not be getting the regenerative effects within your immune system” – Mike Mutzel
2. Use the Sauna
- Just one sauna session is enough to beneficently change your immune cell profile (e.g., monocytes, macrophages, T helper cells, etc.)
3. Expose Yourself to Cold Temperatures
- In one study, daily cold showers were found to reduce the incidence of sick days
4. Use Supplements
- “Vitamin D and vitamin A—I can’t speak highly enough about these two nutrients for the immune system … I suggest somewhere around 2,500-5,000, upwards of 10,000, IU per day of each.” – Mike Mutzel
- Vitamin D is fat-soluble, so take it with fat to increase absorption
- If you feel like you have a cold coming on, load up on both vitamin A & D (take between 50,000-100,000 IU of each on consecutive days)
- Take 25-50 mg/day of zinc, a deficiency of which has been found to compromise the immune system
- (Zinc is found in organ & muscle meats—if you’re eating high amounts of these, neglect this point)
- If you’re stressed, running on little sleep, and traveling, Mike recommends taking upwards of 75-100 mg for a few consecutive days
Take a Strain-Specific Probiotic
- Probiotics improve immune system health by upregulating phagocytosis (the ability of the immune systems to seek & destroy pathogens)
- If you’re looking for a good brand, Mike speaks highly of Myxoscience’s Probio Supreme; some of its benefits include:
- It’s encapsulated in acid-resistant vegetable capsules, enabling the probiotic strains to survive the caustic agents of the gastrointestinal tract
- Shelf-stability
- (Many probiotics are packaged in plastic bottles, allowing for exposure to moisture and oxygen, and over time, a loss of stability)
- Exact individual strain quantifications
- (Many probiotics bundle cheap and stable/expensive strains together in a “proprietary blend,” so you don’t know how much of each strain is included)