When cold and flu season hits, you probably think about boosting your vitamin D and zinc. But there’s a very important immune system organ most of us don’t give a second thought…
You’ve probably heard of T-cells, those powerful disease-fighters we all need.
But have you ever wondered why they’re called “T” cells and not “B” or “F” cells?
The “T” stands for thymus, a small gland located in the chest, between the lungs and behind the breastbone.
Your thymus is the organ that produces those powerful T cells and “trains” them to recognize invaders, like bacteria or viruses, and not to attack your body — which otherwise could lead to autoimmune disease.
But for a long time, the thymus has not been considered important in adult life…
Convention has held that it begins to shrink into adulthood and by the time you’re 65, it’s pretty much “done for” — the result of an aging immune system.
But when researchers looked at the gland in older Swedes, they found it may be possible to head off this degeneration — giving us an opportunity to revive the little gland that’s key to a lifetime of good health…
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Fatty thymus reflects aging of the immune system
The SCAPIS study (Swedish cardiopulmonary bioimage study) examined CT scans of the thymus gland in 1,000 Swedish individuals aged 50 to 64.
At the same time, they analyzed cells in their blood and saw that individuals with fatty degeneration of the thymus showed lower T-cell regeneration.
Dr. Mårten Sandstedt of the Department of Medicine and Health Sciences at Linköping University described certain conditions that made fatty degeneration of the thymus more likely to occur — and they’re the same factors that lead to fat in other areas of the body…
“We saw a huge variation in thymus appearance,” he says. “Six out of ten participants had complete fatty degeneration of thymus, which was much more common in men than in women, and in people with abdominal obesity.
“Lifestyle also mattered. Low intake of fibers in particular was associated with fatty degeneration of thymus.”
Professor Lena Jonasson of the Department of Medicine and Health Sciences at Linköping University, says that this finding presents an opportunity to support our thymus before it’s too late.
“This association with T-cell regeneration is interesting. It indicates that what we see in CT scans is not only an image, it actually also reflects the functionality of the thymus.
“You can’t do anything about your age and your sex, but lifestyle-related factors can be influenced. It might be possible to influence immune system aging,” she says.
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Slim down your thymus
Clearly, adding some fiber to your diet can only help your immune system. It can also support your health in a multitude of other ways — but most importantly it can help you avoid the abdominal fat associated with a fatty thymus.
One study showed that for every 10 additional grams of fiber people eat, their visceral fat (the type that collects deep within the belly) shrinks.
There are a few other things you can do to support an aging thymus so hopefully, it can keep supporting your immune system…
- Get more antioxidants. One study found that antioxidants — including vitamin C — can protect the thymus from free radical damage and some of that age-related thymus shrinkage.
- Reduce wheat in your diet. Research has shown that a chemical in wheat called wheat germ agglutinin (WGA) contributes to thymus shrinkage.
- Supplement zinc. It’s the most important mineral your thymus needs. Correcting a zinc deficiency may prompt the thymus to grow and start generating T cells again.
- Avoid artificial sweeteners. Studies have found artificial sweeteners like sucralose shrink the thymus gland in rats.
- Try tapping. Tapping your chest over your thymus gland may stimulate a sluggish immune system. Try tapping the center of your chest, below your collarbone, for 15 to 20 seconds a few times a day. Hum as you do for even better results.
Sources:
Immune system aging can be revealed by CT scan — Science Daily
Complete fatty degeneration of thymus associates with male sex, obesity and loss of circulating naïve CD8+ T cells in a Swedish middle-aged population — Immunity & Ageing
How the immune system’s key organ regenerates itself — Medical Express