Food-based antioxidants vastly extend your lifespan by keeping your immune system young

(NaturalNews) Biologists know that the thymus gland shrinks rapidly after puberty, but they have been unable to explain why this important gland turns to fat so quickly as people age. New research suggests that most people's thymuses are missing some very important food-based antioxidants. If given the right amount of antioxidants, including Vitamin C and the enzyme catalase, the thymus can age more gracefully, keeping the immune system young and strong.

The thymus gland, which can be found in front of the electromagnetic heart and in between the lungs, is a central intelligence hub for the immune system and is responsible for creating T-cells to help fight infections. These T-cells (white blood cells) protect the body from bad bacteria and viruses that have made their way past the body's first-line defenses. Once the T-cells are mature enough, they are transported via blood vessels to the spleen and lymph nodes, where they work together to mediate cell immunity. A specific protein in the T-cell membrane called the T-cell receptor is in charge of responding to any antigens that provoke an immune response.

The thymus is also a powerful force in the endocrine system, responsible for producing hormone-like proteins that help T-lymphocytes mature and differentiate. These hormones increase immune responses, giving the T-cells the ability to recognize differences in bacteria and viruses.

In this intelligence, three classes of T-cells may be generated. Helper T-cells are created to accelerate the production of antibodies by empowering B-cells. Cytotoxic T-cells are created in the thymus to specifically take out antigens. Regulatory T-cells are made to suppress B-cell response to specific antigens.

Exercising the thymus and giving it the right nutritional components gives it the capability to fight off pathogens into old age

This natural immunity response is weakened when it is not used and exercised. Today, children are exposed to as many as 49 vaccine doses before they turn six years old. It's not surprising that people's thymus glands are shrinking more quickly today. The gland is simply not facing the world of pathogens the way nature designed it to. By the laws of nature, when something with an intended purpose is not used the way it was designed, it becomes weak and devolved. The humoral defense system of the human body is being bypassed as more and more vaccines retrain human immune systems.

Instead of retraining the immune system using synthetic vaccine chemicals and lab-grown viruses, healthy people can exercise their internal organs against all pathogens. They can let their intelligent natural defenses within their own thymus gland go to work. Research shows that if the thymus is given the right food-based antioxidants, it can thrive, keeping people's immune systems young and strong as they age.

Simple food-based Vitamin C showed the most promise in the study. Vitamin C prevented the thymus from shriveling, keeping the gland on top of its game for producing those all-important T-cells. This shows how valuable simple nutrition is for protecting both the young and the old as they face evolving pathogens.

"We provide, for the first time, a link between antioxidants and normal immune function, opening new avenues for potential treatment strategies that could improve immune defences in the ageing population," says lead scientist Dr. Howard Petrie from the Scripps Research Institute in San Diego, California. He affirms that the thymus "ages more rapidly than any other tissue in the body" which can "diminish the ability of older individuals to respond to new immunologic challenges."

Petrie's research also shows how "reactive oxygen species" chemicals wreak havoc on cell membranes while scrambling DNA. The research found that food-based anti-oxidants- specifically an enzyme called catalase -- protected against this negative effect. The researchers found that as the thymus aged, it became deficient in catalase, allowing for increased oxidative damage. In experiments, the researchers gave mice elevated levels of catalase. Throughout the experiment, their thymus glands did not shrivel compared to controls. In fact, the glands were not only preserved in the presence of catalase, but they were also preserved in the presence of vitamin C.

Sources for this article include:
DailyMail.co.uk
Biology.About.com