The Immune System is More Capable than You Realize

I know I've been absent for a while, but in my defense, I did explain. And it's not for lack of wanting to post. Plenty has happened that I would love to blog about. But I tell you, I spend every spare moment I possess in front of this computer writing, writing, writing. I don't stop at night until weariness claims my eyelids and I wake every morning full of ideas and anxious to get back in front of my computer. It's a sick obsession. Hi, my name is Rachel Kelly and I'm a write-aholic.

That is not what this post is about though. At the moment, I am taking a short break from my other writing by writing. Ha! Somebody save me! Anyhow, the subject of this post is something I caught on the news. I have to say, I ABHOR the news. I think watching it is a huge waste of time. That's not to say that there aren't, on rare occasions, snippets of news that are worth watching. But I would venture to say that 99% of it is pure crap that nobody needs to watch. Sorry mom and dad Kelly. I know you are big fans.

So, that being said, I was NOT watching the news, but the power went out and my DirectTV receiver reset and I had turned on the TV for Novan. I guess the default channel is channel 2 which is like CBS or something.  While I was fiddling for the remote, I heard the words "A recent study shows that acetaminophen can inhibit the immune system." These various studies that news is always airing like "Tomatoes can reduce your chances of prostate cancer" and "studies show dogs can reduce your chances of getting dementia" and "Studies show wearing flip-flops can be hazardous to your health" are one of the many reasons I hate the news. They're just so useless. They never give you any information that is actually useful. But this study, in regards to acetaminophen, caught my attention because the reporter actually made it sound like this was incredibly ground breaking news. Ok, let's face it, they always act like everything is groundbreaking news, but in this case, I laughed out loud at the sheer ridiculousness  of it, and then lamented the horrifying ignorance of the human population at large.

I realized then, that I give the human population a hard time on a regular basis about being ignorant, when everyone is really just doing the best they think they can. The problem I see is that what people "think" is the best is usually not. We can always do better. We can be doing good, but there's always doing better. That aside, I'll get back on topic. So I realized, while listening to this study, that people generally have no idea how sickness works, and they also have no idea what Tylenol does. So, me being the astute person that I am, have decided to expand your horizons if you are one of those people.

In the case of a viral infection, a foreign body is introduced into the interior of the body. Our immune system, the amazing intelligence that it is, begins it's counter-assault always in the same way. First, the respiratory system reacts by producing mucus to coat the insides of your airways and lungs in order to "trap" the foreign body. I know, having a cough or snotty nose is really annoying but it's your amazing body at work! Sometimes this simple process is sufficient to rid the body of the infection. If not, the body then raises the interior temperature to a point in order to "burn out" the foreign body. We call this a fever. Sometimes the foreign body makes it's way via mouth, into the digestive tract. What happens then is throwing up and/or diarrhea in order to "flush out" the foreign body. Gross uncomfortable stuff that is not a result of a virus but a result of your body fighting a virus. So our primary immune system does three things: trap, burn out, and flush out. And 99% of the time, this is enough.

So back to the study. Acetaminophen's primary purpose is listed as "fever reducer." So you tell me, knowing what we know of the immune system, does acetaminophen supress the immune system? Heck yeah! You don't need a study to confirm that. So would you say that if your kid has a fever, should you give them tylenol to reduce their fever? Heck no! Unless said fever gets far too high, which I have only ever had happen once in the hundred of times someone in my family has been sick. And even then, it was borderline. I always laugh when the nurses tell me after one of my kids gets a vaccine, "ok now if he gets a fever just give him a little tylenol." I always want to ask, "Uh, isn't that kind of the point of a vaccine? To stimulate the immune system?"

So what can I say? Back. Away. From. The. Tylenol. Bottle. And pretty much all of the other drugs we like to take while sick to make life a little more convenient. If you continually suppress the immune system with all that junk like fever-reducers, cough suppressants, and mucus reducers, then the immune system never gets a chance to build up. It is just like a muscle. It needs to be flexed often if it is going to build up strength. It never gets as strong as it could be if you are always doing things to counter it's effects. And then one day, when you are fifty and you get cancer, you wonder why your immune system is so weak. Immune systems fight the bigger nastier stuff like cancer too. And considering how many people die from the flu, don't you think a strong immune system could help? Knowing how fearful people are of such things, don't you think it makes sense to boost our immune system with the little stuff like colds? Getting sick like that is good for you. Annoying, but good.

So give your fever a hug and vow to not suppress your immune system anymore. It knows what it's doing... 99.99% of the time. And stop watching the news. It's hazardous to your health. =)

Comments

  1. interesting. I don't take much of that stuff. I have better stuff to take. and I don't give it to my kids often (Kaliya had a goose egg on her head the size of a golf ball. She got some then!) I only give it for a fever when it is above 103 for a couple of hours, or at night.

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