Using Your Nervous System to Enhance Your Immune System

Name: Using Your Nervous System to Enhance Your Immune System
Uploaded: 2021-11-01T12:00:26.000Z
Duration: 4 h 32 s

The Immune System and the Nervous System

In this section, Andrew Huberman introduces the topic of the immune system and how it can be controlled by the nervous system. He also mentions a recent study on acupuncture that was published in "Nature".

The Mind-Immune Connection

The mind can control activation of the immune system.

There are dozens, if not hundreds of quality peer-reviewed studies on how the nervous system can control activation of the immune system.

A recent study published in "Nature" from Qiufu Ma's lab at Harvard Medical School explored how acupuncture can reduce inflammation in the body.

Fascia and Healing

Fascia surrounds our muscles and has a pathway leading out of that fascia directly to an organ called the adrenal medulla that could liberate particular chemicals that had a potent anti-inflammatory effect.

By stimulating the fascia in a particular location on the body, there's a pathway leading out of that fascia directly to an organ called the adrenal medulla, which could liberate particular chemicals that had a potent anti-inflammatory effect.

Healing with Mind

In this section, Andrew Huberman talks about healing with mind in a non-mystical sense.

Introduction to Healing with Mind

Today we're going to be talking all about healing with mind in a completely non-mystical, non-abstract sense.

Sponsorship Message - ROKA Glasses

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ROKA eyeglasses and sunglasses are particularly nice because they're very lightweight, so I often forget that they're even on my face.

Conclusion

In this section, Andrew Huberman concludes the podcast.

Conclusion

This podcast is separate from Andrew Huberman's teaching and research roles at Stanford. It is part of his desire and effort to bring zero cost to consumer information about science and science-related tools to the general public.

Why I Take Athletic Greens

In this section, the speaker talks about why he takes Athletic Greens and how it helps him cover all of his basic nutritional bases.

Benefits of Athletic Greens

Allows the speaker to cover all of his basic nutritional bases.

Contains vitamins and minerals that ensure the speaker is covering all of his micronutrient bases.

Contains probiotics which are essential for a healthy gut microbiome.

Provides a year supply of vitamin D3K2 which is important for many biological functions related to human health.

How to Take Athletic Greens

Mix with water and add some lemon or lime juice for taste.

Drink once early in the day and once again later in the afternoon.

InsideTracker: Personalized Nutrition Platform

In this section, the speaker talks about InsideTracker, a personalized nutrition platform that analyzes data from your blood and DNA to help you better meet your immediate and long-term health goals.

Benefits of InsideTracker

Provides quality blood tests that can analyze many things that impact your immediate and long-term health.

Offers an easy-to-use dashboard that tells you where your numbers are high or low or on target.

Suggest very specific dietary intervention, supplemental interventions, and behavioral interventions based on your numbers.

How to Get Started with InsideTracker

Visit InsideTracker.com/Huberman to get 25% off any of InsideTracker's plans using code "Huberman" at checkout.

The Immune System and the Nervous System

In this section, the speaker talks about how the immune system and nervous system interact and how you can control your immune system to serve you better.

Boosting Your Immune System

Discusses tools that can help boost or enhance the function of your immune system.

Acknowledges that getting adequate sleep is the foundation of all mental and physical health.

Lists off a few things that set us up to be healthier than we would be if we didn't do these things.

Introduction to Immune System and Health

In this section, the speaker discusses the importance of sleep, sunshine, exercise, nutrition, social connection, and hydration for mental and physical health. The speaker also introduces the concept of leveraging the nervous system to enhance immune system function.

Foundational Elements of Health

Sleep is important for health.

Sunshine helps set our rhythm into a regular state so that genes in all cells can be expressed at correct times.

150 to 180 minutes of zone two cardio per week is recommended for cardiovascular exercise.

Good nutrition means different things to different people but avoiding processed foods is important.

Social connection and hydration are important for overall health.

Leveraging Nervous System for Immune System Function

In this section, the speaker discusses how to leverage the nervous system to enhance immune system function.

Understanding Immune System Basics

The immune system has three main layers of defense: physical barriers (e.g., skin), innate immunity (e.g., white blood cells), and adaptive immunity (e.g., antibodies).

Skin is an important aspect of the immune system as it acts as a primary barrier through which harmful substances are kept from entering the body.

When there is a breach in the skin's boundary due to a cut or wound, swelling around that area occurs along with accumulation of white blood cells called puss.

Eyes are one of the primary sites of potential infection due to their exposure to external environment.

The Immune System: First Line of Defense

This section discusses the first line of defense in the immune system, which is the physical barriers that prevent harmful substances from entering our body.

Physical Barriers

Our body is a series of tubes that extract nutrients from the outside environment.

Mucus lines our nose, mouth, and digestive system to filter and trap bacteria and viruses.

Mucus is constantly being turned over to ensure certain things don't make it into our system while allowing other things to move through.

The Immune System: Second and Third Lines of Defense

This section discusses the second and third lines of defense in the immune system, which are the innate immune system and adaptive immune system.

Innate Immune System

The innate immune system is a rapid response when something enters our body that our body doesn't recognize as food or clean air.

White blood cells, neutrophils, macrophages, natural killer cells actively go to the site of invasion and try to surround and kill whatever invader is present.

Compliment proteins exist in the blood and mark invaders for being engulfed by white blood cells.

How Cells Kill Invaders

This section explains how cells kill invading bacteria, viruses or parasites.

Engulfing Invaders

Cells engulf invading bacteria, viruses or parasites by surrounding them.

Compliment proteins put a chemical tag onto invaders that allows white blood cells to identify them as something they need to kill.

The cells then wrap the invaders in a body bag and send them off.

The Three Layers of Immune System

This section explains the three layers of the immune system and how they work together to protect the body from invaders.

Innate Immune System

The innate immune system is the first line of defense against invaders.

It includes skin, mucus lining, microbiome, and innate immune cells like neutrophils, macrophages, natural killer cells, and white blood cells.

Compliment proteins in blood help by tagging certain things with an "eat me" signal.

Damaged or infected cells release cytokines that call for help.

Adaptive Immune System

The adaptive immune system creates antibodies against specific invaders.

It shows up at the site of invasion or infection by following cues like cytokines.

Creates an imprint of the shape of whatever invader happens to be there and uses it to create antibodies that are specific to recognize that invader should it ever come back again.

Hematopoietic stem cell can give rise to red blood cells and white blood cells.

Immunity

The basis of immunity is the ability to combat certain types of infections.

Antibodies created by adaptive immune system recognize specific invaders and create a memory so that these antibodies can be made anytime that same invader comes back again.

Introduction to the Immune System

This section introduces the immune system and its two main components: innate and adaptive responses. It also explains how antibodies are created.

The Innate and Adaptive Responses

The immune system has two main components: innate and adaptive responses.

The innate response is a general response that tries to contain and combat an infection or invader.

The adaptive response generates antibodies, starting with IgM, which tends to come on earlier, followed by IgG, which is the more stable form of the specific antibody that recognizes a given invader.

Antibodies

Antibodies are created as part of the adaptive immune response.

Antibodies sometimes come in the form of IgM and IgG. "Ig" stands for immunoglobulin.

How Infections Enter Our Body

This section explains how infections enter our body through various pathways such as cuts, mucus membranes, or sexually transmitted diseases.

Pathways for Infection Entry

Infections can enter our body through various pathways such as cuts, mucus membranes, or sexually transmitted diseases.

Sexually transmitted diseases come in through the mucus membranes that are on or in the genitalia.

Airborne disease gets into the mucus somehow gets into the bloodstream.

Maintaining a Healthy Microbiome

This section discusses how maintaining a healthy microbiome can help keep our three defense systems against infection tuned up.

The Importance of a Healthy Microbiome

Maintaining a healthy microbiome can help keep our three defense systems against infection tuned up.

The mucus lining needs to turn over quite often and be the correct chemistry to be a trap for bad stuff and permeable to nutrients.

We have a microbiome in our eyes, mouth, nasal passages, digestive tract, urethra, and vagina that promotes health.

Ways to Maintain a Healthy Microbiome

There are three main ways to maintain a healthy microbiome: structural/mechanical, chemical, and biological.

Breathing through your nose is better than breathing through your mouth because the nasal microbiome is particularly good at scrubbing bacteria.

Breathing, Immune System and Microbiome

In this section, Dr. Matthew Walker discusses the importance of breathing through your nose to dilate sinuses and combat infections. He also talks about the nasal microbiome and how it can help fight off infections. Finally, he explains how a healthy gut microbiome can enhance the body's immune system.

Nose Breathing

Nose breathing is important for dilating sinuses and combating infections.

Mouth breathing increases susceptibility to infections.

Nasal microbiome has species that are good at fighting off infection.

Oxygenation of nasal environment by breathing through nose enhances its function as a filter.

Eye Health

Avoid touching eyes after touching other people or surfaces to prevent entry of bacteria and viruses.

Eyes are primary entry point for many bacteria and viruses.

Gut Microbiome

Eating fermented foods helps reduce activity of certain cytokines in the body.

A healthy gut microbiome leads to fewer cells being infected from outside infections, which reduces cytokine activity in the body.

This transcript is only a small part of a larger video.

Introduction to Immune System and Sickness Behavior

In this section, the speaker introduces the immune system and sickness behavior. The speaker explains that not all interleukins are inflammatory, some are anti-inflammatory. The concept of sickness behavior is introduced as a suite of responses that we tend to undergo when we are feeling sick.

Interleukins

Not all interleukins are inflammatory, some are anti-inflammatory.

Sickness Behavior

Sickness behavior is a suite of responses that we tend to undergo when we are feeling sick.

It involves a slowing of our usual levels of activity, loss of grooming, and loss of appetite.

It is actually a motivated state designed to accomplish certain things such as harboring more resources for repair.

Slowing circulation when ill can increase lymphatic system activity which carries immune-related cells and fluids.

Sickness Behavior

In this section, the speaker discusses how sickness behavior is a motivated state that creates a vulnerable state in individuals who want to be taken care of. The speaker also explains how sickness behavior mimics major depression and involves inflammatory cytokines being very active.

Sickness Behavior

About 50% of people report or describe seeking help and support when they are sick.

Another 50% of people seem to have the opposite response when they're sick, creating a stay away from me attitude.

Regardless of what species they are, it's about 50/50.

Sickness behavior is a motivated state designed to slow circulation of the blood, increase circulation of the lymph and other killer cells in the body, reduce the probability of infecting others by reducing diarrhea and vomit but also breathing on others and interacting with others.

Sickness behavior provides a bridge between the immune system and nervous system.

Similarity Between Major Depression And Being Sick

Both sick individuals (from bacterial or viral infection) and people with major depression show robust increases in interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor alpha levels.

The similarity between major depression and being sick can point us in a direction for interventions that could help us either prevent illness or move through illness more quickly.

Healthy Behavior

Healthy behavior points to a clear bridge between the nervous system and immune system.

There are two other features of sickness behavior

Iron and Appetite

This section discusses the recommended daily intake of iron for men and women, the toxicity of high levels of iron in the blood, and how a reduction in appetite may be an attempt to reduce iron intake specifically.

Iron Intake Recommendations

Men should consume about 8 milligrams of iron per day.

Women should consume anywhere from 18 to 27 milligrams per day depending on whether or not they're pregnant, lactating or menstruating.

Reduction in Appetite

Reduction in appetite is actually an attempt to reduce iron intake specifically.

High levels of iron in the blood can cause many bacteria and other forms of infection to thrive.

Loss of Appetite

Loss of appetite is typical for people with major depression and sickness behavior.

Sickness behavior and major depression have certain core features in common such as loss of libido or interest.

The Vagus Nerve Pathway

This section explains how being sick influences our perception, impact our appetite, whether or not we want to be cared for more or less. It also discusses the vagus nerve pathway that connects the body and brain signals to particular brain sites to engage this category of motivational state that we call sickness behavior.

Infection Signaling

When we have an infection someplace in our body, it could signal through a known pathway called the vagus nerve.

The vagus nerve connects the body and brain signals to particular brain sites to engage this category of motivational state that we call sickness behavior.

Vagus Nerve Functionality

The vagus nerve is a very extensive nerve pathway that comes out from the back of the brainstem into the body.

It branches out extensively to innervate or connect many organs including lungs, heart, gut etc.

Vagal stimulation actually creates more arousal and alertness, although it does have multiple pathways.

The vagus nerve is the fast pathway by which an infection in the body is signaled to the brain.

Hypothalamus

Infection signals are sent to a particular location in the brain called the hypothalamus.

The hypothalamus harbors many different types of neurons including neurons in the preoptic area that increase body temperature and fever.

The Physiology of Sickness Behavior

This section discusses the physiological mechanisms behind sickness behavior, including fever, inflammation response, and photophobia.

Pyrogens and Fever

Injecting lipopolysaccharide into the belly causes an inflammation response in the gut that leads to a fever.

The vagus nerve sends signals to the hypothalamus to heat up the body as a functional and adaptive response to kill off invaders.

Taking drugs to lower fever limits the body's response to kill off invaders.

Photophobia

The vagus nerve also sends input to areas of the brain that change perception of the outside world, leading to photophobia during sickness.

Bright lights trigger a thalamic nucleus called anterior nucleus of thalamus which projects up to meninges causing headache and photophobia.

Sickness Behavior

Multiple pathways are activated during sickness behavior such as avoiding light, reducing activity levels, and promoting sleep.

Humoral factors in blood mediate slow pathway during infection for many hours or days.

Humoral Factors in Blood During Infection

This section discusses how humoral factors in blood mediate slow pathway during infection for many hours or days.

Slow Pathway During Infection

Humoral factors such as cytokines IL1B, TNF-alpha, IL6 are released into bloodstream during infection.

These cytokines activate receptors on endothelial cells lining blood vessels in brain leading to production of prostaglandins which activate the hypothalamus to produce fever.

Cytokines also activate vagus nerve leading to sickness behavior.

The Role of Microglia in Sickness Behavior

This section discusses the role of microglia in sickness behavior.

Microglia and Inflammation

Microglia are immune cells in the brain that play a key role in inflammation response during sickness.

During infection, cytokines activate microglia which release more cytokines and chemokines, leading to further inflammation response.

Chronic activation of microglia can lead to neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

The Gut-Brain Axis

This section discusses the gut-brain axis and its role in sickness behavior.

Gut-Brain Communication

The gut communicates with the brain through various pathways including the vagus nerve, cytokine signaling, and microbial metabolites.

Dysbiosis or imbalance of gut microbiota can lead to chronic inflammation and contribute to various diseases including depression and anxiety.

Probiotics may have potential therapeutic effects on mental health by modulating gut microbiota.

Introduction to Choroid and Sickness Behavior

In this section, the speaker introduces the choroid, a tissue in the brain that responds to inflammatory cytokines during sickness. This response leads to changes in inflammation and cognition, resulting in sickness behavior.

Choroid and Sickness Behavior

The choroid is a fluffy tissue that sits in the ventricles of the brain.

During sickness, the choroid releases inflammatory cytokines that cause changes in inflammation and cognition.

These changes lead to sickness behavior, which is similar to depression.

Sickness behavior is characterized by poor memory and cognition. It is usually transient but can be severe during deep sickness.

Enhancing Immune System Function for Healing

In this section, the speaker discusses ways to enhance immune system function for healing during illness or injury.

Rest Component

Getting enough rest is crucial for enhancing immune system function during illness or injury.

Sleep plays an important role in enhancing immune system function. Slow-wave sleep early on helps elevate serotonin levels in the brain, which can help combat infection.

Consuming foods high in tryptophan or taking supplements like 5-HTP can also enhance serotonin levels and improve immune system function during illness or injury.

Other Ways to Enhance Immune System Function

Exercise has been shown to improve immune system function by increasing circulation of white blood cells throughout the body.

Meditation and mindfulness practices have also been shown to improve immune system function by reducing stress levels and promoting relaxation responses.

The Glymphatic System

In this section, the speaker discusses the glymphatic system and its importance in clearing debris from the brain during sleep.

What is the Glymphatic System?

The glymphatic system is a system in the brain that clears out debris that accumulates under conditions of neuroinflammation and inflammation of the body.

It is extremely important for recovery from infection of any kind, traumatic head injury, and psychological trauma.

Brain imaging reveals that it is very active during deep sleep.

Elevating your heels by about 12 degrees while sleeping can increase activity of the glymphatic system.

Serotonin and Glymphatic System

Augmenting the serotonin system through supplementation of tryptophan or 5-HTP or even serotonin itself might potentially lead to more rapid recovery from injury and illness and ramp up activity of the immune system.

Check with a doctor before testing out this hypothesis on your own.

Increasing Activity of Glymphatic System

In this section, the speaker discusses ways to increase activity of glymphatic system under normal circumstances.

Elevate Your Feet

Elevating your feet by putting maybe a rolled pillow or two pillows underneath your feet while sleeping can increase activity of glymphatic system.

If you have to be awake, consider elevating your feet above your head for short naps during the day.

Relaxation and Glymphatic System

In this section, the speaker discusses how deep states of relaxation can be used to improve pain management and transition time to sleep.

Self-Hypnosis

Deep states of relaxation can be used to improve pain management and transition time to sleep.

Reverie is a cost-free app for Apple and Android that involves deep relaxation and can be used to achieve these outcomes.

The script for sleep with feet elevated can increase activity of glymphatic system.

Sleep, Serotonin, and the Glymphatic System

This section discusses how sleep can help repair the immune system related inflammation. It also explores the 5-HTP approach for increasing serotonin levels and its connection to treating major depression. Additionally, it delves into the glymphatic system and its link to iron deposition in the brain.

Sleep for Immune System Repair

States of sleep can help repair immune system-related inflammation.

The 5-HTP approach is a milder approach than prescription drugs for increasing serotonin levels.

The glymphatic system is a fascinating system that has been linked to iron deposition in the brain.

Increasing Serotonin Levels

The typical protocol for taking 5-HTP is 300 to 500 milligrams taken about 30 to 60 minutes before going to sleep.

Increasing serotonin levels is one typical approach for treating major depression.

Ingesting 5-HTP might augment heightened levels of serotonin during specialized sleep related to sickness behavior.

Glymphatic System and Iron Deposition

The glymphatic system has been tied to iron deposition in the normal aging brain.

Increasing activity of the glymphatic system could lower iron levels below typical intake during periods of infection, enhancing its efficacy.

Sauna Sessions and White Blood Cell Profiles

This section discusses how sauna sessions can increase white blood cell profiles and adjust cortisol levels beneficial for combating infection.

Effect of Sauna Sessions on Health

A study found that just one 15-minute sauna session could increase white blood cell profiles and adjust cortisol levels in ways that were beneficial for combating infection.

Heating up can help combat infection, which makes sense based on what we said before about fever.

Sauna and Immune System

In this section, the speaker talks about how sauna can help boost the immune system.

Sauna for Boosting Immune System

Sauna can help boost the immune system by increasing body temperature.

However, it is important to note that getting into a sauna when already running a fever could be dangerous.

If you don't have access to a sauna, taking a very hot bath or shower can also be beneficial.

To maximize the effects of sauna, it is recommended to do a 15-minute heating period followed by a five to ten-minute cooling period before getting back into the heat.

"Feed a Fever, Starve a Cold"

In this section, the speaker discusses the phrase "feed a fever, starve a cold" and its possible origins.

The Origins of "Feed a Fever, Starve a Cold"

The phrase "feed a fever, starve a cold" may have originated from the adaptive function of fever in increasing body temperature to make it challenging for intruding viruses and bacteria to survive.

Feeding does cause an increase in body temperature through the thermogenic effect of food which could explain why feeding during fever makes sense.

However, there is no logical reason why one should starve during cold.

Fasting and Immune System

In this section, the speaker talks about how fasting can affect adrenaline levels in our bodies and its impact on our immune system.

Fasting for Boosting Immune System

Fasting, particularly prolonged fasts, can increase adrenaline levels in the brain and body.

Adrenaline has a powerful effect on various inflammatory cytokines and the immune system in general.

A behavioral protocol that anyone can use to enhance their immune system is discussed next.

Attenuation of the Innate Immune Response in Humans

In this section, Dr. Rhonda Patrick discusses a study published in PNAS that explores the effects of a breathing protocol on the innate immune response in humans.

Study Overview

The study was published in PNAS, which is a prestigious peer-reviewed journal.

The study exposed human subjects to an endotoxin (E. coli) and compared controls that did basic meditation versus people that did intense breathing followed by some breath holds.

Doing a particular pattern of breathing allowed an anti-inflammatory cytokine to be turned on, whereas that was not the case in the subjects that did not do this particular breathing protocol.

Levels of proinflammatory cytokines were lower in the intervention group, while levels of anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 increased after endotoxin administration.

Mechanistic Basis

The sympathetic nervous system is associated with epinephrine release in the brain and adrenaline release in the body. It's active when we are wide awake and generally leads to a heightened state of arousal and alertness.

The innate immune system is activated when an infection enters the body and there's a rapid response of increasing inflammation. This is also about the time you first feel lousy.

The reason why doing this particular pattern of breathing works is because it activates the sympathetic nervous system, which triggers an increase in epinephrine and adrenaline. This leads to an increase in anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 levels while lowering proinflammatory cytokines such as TNF-alpha, interleukin-6, and interleukin-8.

The Science Behind Wim Hof Breathing

In this section, Dr. Huberman explains the science behind Wim Hof breathing and how it can enhance the immune system.

Activation of Stress Response

Wim Hof breathing involves a behavioral protocol that activates the sympathetic nervous system, which enhances immune system function.

This breathing technique causes the release of adrenaline and epinephrine in the brain and body, allowing our body to resist invading infections.

Cyclic Hyperventilation

Wim Hof breathing involves 20 to 30 deep inhales and exhales through the mouth followed by a breath hold.

This is repeated for several rounds with lungs empty until one feels the impulse to breathe again.

Exhaling deeply blows off carbon dioxide, delaying the trigger to breathe normally activated by increases in carbon dioxide in our blood.

Physiological Changes

Blood oxygenation drops due to hyperventilation and exhaling of carbon dioxide.

There is an increase in cortisol levels during retention periods, which can have anti-inflammatory effects.

The study showed a reduction in inflammatory cytokines and an increase in anti-inflammatory cytokines after practicing Wim Hof breathing.

Conclusion

Practicing Wim Hof breathing can enhance immune system function by activating stress response pathways and inducing physiological changes.

The Benefits of Breathing

In this section, the speaker discusses how breathing can increase alkalinity in the body and reduce inflammation.

Alkalinity and Breathing

Drinking alkaline water cannot shift the overall alkalinity of your body.

Ingesting high alkaline water is not going to shift your overall alkalinity.

Doing a pattern of breathing greatly increases pH levels from 7.4 to 7.6, which is a significant increase in alkalinity.

As pH levels go up, you become more alkaline.

Epinephrine and Inflammation

It's not the shift in pH or carbon dioxide levels that reduces inflammation but rather the release of epinephrine.

Adrenaline or epinephrine can activate your immune system by way of the nervous system to combat infections and reduce inflammation.

Stress and combating infection are not one unique system; it's the same stress system used to combat psychological stress.

Behavioral Intervention for Immune System Function

The pattern of breathing described is a useful tool for enhancing immune system function and reducing inflammation.

The speaker uses this pattern of breathing when experiencing early symptoms of getting sick or feeling run down.

This behavioral intervention has been shown to enhance immune system function at zero cost.

Conclusion

In this section, the speaker concludes by discussing important points that haven't been discussed elsewhere.

Key Takeaways

The pattern of breathing described is a concrete example of a zero cost tool that bridges the activation of the nervous system through breathing with the immune system by way of releasing adrenaline and thereby reducing inflammation.

Stress and combating infection are not one unique system; it's the same stress system used to combat psychological stress.

The Wim Hof Method

In this section, the speaker discusses the Wim Hof method and provides a cautionary note.

The Wim Hof Method

The Wim Hof method involves doing 25-30 breaths followed by a breath retention.

Caution should be taken when practicing the Wim Hof method. It should not be done near water or while driving as blackouts can occur.

Three rounds of 25-30 breaths with breath hold retentions in between is considered to be the ideal protocol.

Catecholamine Concentrations

In this section, the speaker discusses catecholamines and their effects on the body.

Catecholamine Concentrations

Catecholamines are chemicals in the nervous system and body that promote states of alertness, dopamine, epinephrine, norepinephrine.

Epinephrine showed robust increases compared to the control group after three rounds of 25-30 breaths with breath hold retentions in between.

Norepinephrine also showed significant increases in the breathing group.

Asya Rolls' lab has shown that motivational state and mindset have a powerful impact on various aspects of the immune system that were thought to be independent of brain and mind thinking.

Mindset Impact on Immune System

In this section, the speaker discusses how certain mindsets impact the immune system.

Mindset Impact on Immune System

Asya Rolls' laboratory has shown that when the reward system associated with dopamine and norepinephrine is activated, there are incredible effects including highly significant reduction in tumor size in cancers.

Mindset impacts the immune system through specific biological pathways and protocols related to mindset.

A paper published in "Science" last year described psychogenic stress and fever, asking if there are areas of the brain that actually underlie this notion that we can worry ourselves sick. They discovered a new pathway and were able to both activate this pathway independent of worry and stress and see illness occur.

Corticolimbic and Hypothalamic Pathways

This section discusses the corticolimbic pathway, which is a pathway that connects the cortex to areas of the brain that control basic physiological processes. The hypothalamus is identified as one of these areas, and its role in temperature regulation and sickness-related behavior is discussed. The dorsal peduncular cortex (DP/DTT) is introduced as a top-down corticolimbic hypothalamic pathway that allows thoughts and emotions to influence physiological processes.

Corticolimbic Pathway

The cortex is involved in thinking, sensation, perception, learning, and memory storage.

Information from the hippocampus (initial site of learning and memory) is passed off to the cortex for long-term storage.

The corticolimbic pathway allows thoughts and prior experiences to feed down onto areas of the brain that control basic physiological processes.

The hypothalamus controls temperature regulation and sickness-related behavior.

Dorsal Peduncular Cortex (DP/DTT)

DP/DTT is a top-down corticolimbic hypothalamic pathway that originates insights associated with thinking, emotion, and prior history.

It feeds directly into an area of the brain involved in subconsciously controlled physiological processes.

Thinking about something can change something core about our physiology.

Thoughts into Illness

This section discusses how psychological stress can activate neural pathways in the brain that create fever-like symptoms. A study by Kataoka provides concrete evidence for this phenomenon.

Psychological Stress

Psychological stress can activate neural pathways in the brain that create fever-like symptoms.

Subjects were exposed to a stressful real event and cued through associative learning.

Sickness-inducing stimuli were used to identify the neural pathway responsible for creating fever-like symptoms.

Neural Pathway

There are dedicated pathways in the mammalian brain that allow us to turn thoughts into illness.

Certain stations along this neural pathway can be blocked to prevent this effect.

Thoughts into Health

This section discusses how a sense of hope is associated with the dopamine system, which is involved in reward, motivation, movement, and thinking about the future. Stimulation of the dopamine pathway can lead to improved rates of recovery in cancer patients and people suffering from debilitating injuries.

Sense of Hope

A sense of hope is associated with thinking about the future.

Stimulation of the dopamine pathway can lead to improved rates of recovery in cancer patients and people suffering from debilitating injuries.

Using Neurotransmitters to Enhance Immune Function

In this section, the speaker discusses how augmenting the dopamine system can increase the rate of healing and accelerate recovery from injury. The dopamine system, when activated, can accelerate healing and recovery from injury of all kinds.

Augmenting Dopamine System

L-tyrosine is a dopamine precursor that can increase dopamine levels.

Mucuna pruriens contains L-dopa, which is the immediate precursor to dopamine.

These supplements may lead to a crash in certain individuals and should not be taken by people with bipolar or mania or schizophrenia.

Increasing neurotransmitter levels can also be done behaviorally through exposure to cold water or breathing in a particular way.

Cold Water Exposure

Immersing oneself in cold water up to the neck for 3 to 10 minutes has been shown to lead to significant increases in baseline dopamine levels and epinephrine levels that last for several hours.

This may be why people do cold showers or ice baths followed by getting into a sauna as a way to augment these neurotransmitters.

Activation of Immune System

Catacholamines such as noradrenaline, dopamine, and norepinephrine are able to deploy larger amounts of immune cells.

They are the bridge of activation for the immune system and nervous system.

Addressing Symptoms

Over-the-counter medications like Sudafed prevent or reduce congestion because they cause release of epinephrine.

Spirulina as an Alternative to Decongestants

In this section, the speaker discusses how decongestants can interfere with sleep and cause dehydration. The speaker then introduces spirulina as an alternative choice for reducing rhinitis.

Spirulina as an Alternative Choice

Low adrenaline levels during REM sleep is a signature of the REM sleep state which is vital for emotional and physical repair.

Decongestants can inhibit sleep, cause dehydration, make people feel lightheaded and jittery.

Spirulina has potent effects in reducing congestion of the nose and inflammation of the nasal passages.

Two studies on humans showed significant decreases in nasal obstruction, improved ability to smell, improved sleep, reduction in inflammatory cytokines and reduction in nasal itching after taking two grams of spirulina.

Spirulina inhibits the formation and/or activity of histaminergic mast cells which are responsible for swelling and inflammation.

Mechanism Behind Spirulina's Effects

Mast cells contain histamine that causes swelling and inflammation when there is injury or irritant to the skin or internally.

Anti-histamines are taken to deal with seasonal allergies by blocking histamine receptors.

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