September 2021 Newsletter
The thymus gland… what is it for, and what does it do? Few know, and I think the more we know about our amazing immune system, the better. The thymus gland is a specialized organ that deals with new attacks from pathogens that invade the body. More clearly, the thymus is where the immune system sets up white blood cells (also called lymphocytes) to have the sensitivity and capacity to specialize in their ability to fight certain invaders like germs and viruses. The thymus is one part of the lymphoid system, along with the tonsils, adenoids, appendix, spleen and other various lymph nodes. Altogether, these members store, produce and process lymphocytes. There are also groups of lymphoid tissue in the lining of the gastrointestinal tract that are called Peyer’s patches and gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT). All lymphocytes originate in the bone marrow, from stem cells. The stem cells are pluripotent – that means they can become many different kinds of blood cells. They reach a certain maturity in the bone marrow and then are released into the blood stream. Somehow the body figures out what it needs more of and these cells will become whatever is needed. A bone marrow transplant is now more correctly called a stem cell transplant.
The immune system has both specific and non-specific responses. The non-specific responses are the things that happen immediately: 1) inflammation, 2) interferon, 3) natural killer cells, and 4) the complement system (which is plasma that is inactive but can be activated to attack the foreign cells plasma membranes and destroy them). The complement system is both specific and non-specific. You could say the non-specific response is the auto-pilot that is always “standing by” and ready to help. This system has a series of things that it does in pretty much the same way every time: 1) isolate, destroy or at least engulf the foreign invader, 2) remove as much of it as possible, and 3) prepare for subsequent healing and repair.
The swelling and redness that occur when you cut yourself is a prime example. The immune system uses strategies, and there are at least five main kinds of cells that are part of any of those strategies. When a doctor orders a CBC (a complete blood count), it will include a number for the following cells. Neutrophils (these are very mobile), which are phagocytic specialists and engulf unwanted invaders and destroy them. Eosinophils, which are more involved with allergic manifestations, but when they are behaving properly, they secrete chemicals that destroy invaders, including parasitic worms. And basophils, which release heparin and histamine and can also be involved with an allergic response. The thymus processes T and B-lymphocytes, enabling them to carry out their specific immune strategies. The B-cells transform into plasma cells, which secrete antibodies that indirectly cause the destruction of foreign material. The T-cells are often called “killer cells”. They involve the direct destruction of virus-invaded cells and mutant cells. The process of ‘eating up’ a harmful pathogen is called phagocytosis. It’s a multiple “attack-and-destroy-war” that is constantly happening in the body. The thymus is more significant for long term immunity. An infant has a minimal immune system. Mothers are encouraged to breast feed because some of their immunity will pass through the milk and help the baby as it builds its own set of defenses. For example, when first exposed to a measles germ, the body’s lymphocytes take the germ to the thymus, which, through many chemical processes figures out how to destroy that kind of germ. The thymus enables those lymphocytes to multiply rapidly to form a fortified and large ‘army’ to deal with those measles germs. The next time the body is exposed to that type of germ, those cells which have been designed and programmed to fight that germ can more quickly recognize and then attack it with a greater ability to kill it.
If the first exposure to a germ is very minor, a child will hardly even show signs of sickness but the thymus will still be doing its job of creating defense measures specific to that pathogen. Mothers who sterilize and disinfect too much are not letting the child have those tiny exposures, and the child won’t be able to build natural defenses as well. Studies are showing that children who are exposed to things like animals, plants, and dirt, and other types of bacteria are more able to stay healthy because of the early exposure. Their thymus has gotten a sample of the germ and built an army to defend the body from those attacks. Natural immune building is not only the best because the thymus can build that group of specialized cells, but because the strategy of fighting off that illness is also then ingrained into the entire immune system. That type of immunity is robust, durable and complete.
Originally a vaccination is supposed to expose you to a tiny killed and broken into pieces version of a germ. The three shots now available for Covid-19 are not at all like this. If you have survived Covid-19 you are better off NOT getting the shot.
When a person is young, every invader is new and the thymus is extra busy because each main invader requires a new, specialized set of cells to fight it. As time and experience goes by you will already have a specialized army of lymphocytes to battle an invader and the thymus doesn’t have to start from the beginning in order to coordinate lymphocytes that are particularly engineered to fight certain pathogens. It used to be believed that the thymus shrank with age. Now, we know that the thymus grows when it is needed and reduces in size when it is not needed so much.
When I was fighting mantle cell lymphoma, the particular problem was that my immune system had lost its ability to sense when a lymphocyte was deformed, and no longer a cell to keep around. What I needed was for my B-cells and T-cells to kick into gear and get rid of them. At first, I did everything natural to try to beat it. One of the things I did is called “visualization” - a concept and practice that most people are familiar with to some degree. With the help of a good friend and fellow acupuncturist, I made a little recording that I would listen to often. I visualized a teeny, tiny, ‘me’ going into my body and talking things over with different body areas. One of them was “Mr. Thymus”. He raised litters of different kinds of dogs. I would tell Mr. Thymus we need some very specially bred dogs that could detect a false lymphocyte. As time passed, I would picture him in a little room where he lived and I would check on the latest litter of puppies he was raising to be fighter dogs that would go through my body and fight this cancer. It was a very comforting image, and then I would picture these protective, full-grown dogs going to help me beat this cancer by grabbing these bad cells and ushering them forcefully out of my body (through the poop shoot).
What is the role of nutrition in this situation? Different processes of building the immune system require certain nutrients to function correctly. With the right ingredients, the best results can occur. For example, we’ve learned that there are three vulnerable areas in the reproduction of the covid virus. Quercetin (a supplement I’ve previously written about) will intercept two of the three areas, and thus interfere with the virus replication and at the least will slow it down. Meanwhile vitamins C, D and zinc are also part of the strategy to help the body fight off the attack. Zinc is like heavy metal poisoning to it. Vitamin C (studies by Dr. Linus Pauling, for which he won a Nobel Prize) creates solid cell wall structure and encourages vibrant health. Vitamin D should be taken in doses as high as 50,000 IU a day at the first signs of any cold symptoms, for at least 3 days (according to Dr. JJ Cannell, head of U.S. Vitamin D Council). As mentioned in previous newsletters, you can look up the Streck Report of 1937 to see research on this (that tells you this is established well known science, don’t let the media fool you).
Keep drinking enough water, get adequate sleep, and thirty minutes of fresh air, sunshine and exercise every day. That’s a good start to building a strong, healthy immune system.
The thymus gland… what is it for, and what does it do? Few know, and I think the more we know about our amazing immune system, the better. The thymus gland is a specialized organ that deals with new attacks from pathogens that invade the body. More clearly, the thymus is where the immune system sets up white blood cells (also called lymphocytes) to have the sensitivity and capacity to specialize in their ability to fight certain invaders like germs and viruses. The thymus is one part of the lymphoid system, along with the tonsils, adenoids, appendix, spleen and other various lymph nodes. Altogether, these members store, produce and process lymphocytes. There are also groups of lymphoid tissue in the lining of the gastrointestinal tract that are called Peyer’s patches and gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT). All lymphocytes originate in the bone marrow, from stem cells. The stem cells are pluripotent – that means they can become many different kinds of blood cells. They reach a certain maturity in the bone marrow and then are released into the blood stream. Somehow the body figures out what it needs more of and these cells will become whatever is needed. A bone marrow transplant is now more correctly called a stem cell transplant.
The immune system has both specific and non-specific responses. The non-specific responses are the things that happen immediately: 1) inflammation, 2) interferon, 3) natural killer cells, and 4) the complement system (which is plasma that is inactive but can be activated to attack the foreign cells plasma membranes and destroy them). The complement system is both specific and non-specific. You could say the non-specific response is the auto-pilot that is always “standing by” and ready to help. This system has a series of things that it does in pretty much the same way every time: 1) isolate, destroy or at least engulf the foreign invader, 2) remove as much of it as possible, and 3) prepare for subsequent healing and repair.
The swelling and redness that occur when you cut yourself is a prime example. The immune system uses strategies, and there are at least five main kinds of cells that are part of any of those strategies. When a doctor orders a CBC (a complete blood count), it will include a number for the following cells. Neutrophils (these are very mobile), which are phagocytic specialists and engulf unwanted invaders and destroy them. Eosinophils, which are more involved with allergic manifestations, but when they are behaving properly, they secrete chemicals that destroy invaders, including parasitic worms. And basophils, which release heparin and histamine and can also be involved with an allergic response. The thymus processes T and B-lymphocytes, enabling them to carry out their specific immune strategies. The B-cells transform into plasma cells, which secrete antibodies that indirectly cause the destruction of foreign material. The T-cells are often called “killer cells”. They involve the direct destruction of virus-invaded cells and mutant cells. The process of ‘eating up’ a harmful pathogen is called phagocytosis. It’s a multiple “attack-and-destroy-war” that is constantly happening in the body. The thymus is more significant for long term immunity. An infant has a minimal immune system. Mothers are encouraged to breast feed because some of their immunity will pass through the milk and help the baby as it builds its own set of defenses. For example, when first exposed to a measles germ, the body’s lymphocytes take the germ to the thymus, which, through many chemical processes figures out how to destroy that kind of germ. The thymus enables those lymphocytes to multiply rapidly to form a fortified and large ‘army’ to deal with those measles germs. The next time the body is exposed to that type of germ, those cells which have been designed and programmed to fight that germ can more quickly recognize and then attack it with a greater ability to kill it.
If the first exposure to a germ is very minor, a child will hardly even show signs of sickness but the thymus will still be doing its job of creating defense measures specific to that pathogen. Mothers who sterilize and disinfect too much are not letting the child have those tiny exposures, and the child won’t be able to build natural defenses as well. Studies are showing that children who are exposed to things like animals, plants, and dirt, and other types of bacteria are more able to stay healthy because of the early exposure. Their thymus has gotten a sample of the germ and built an army to defend the body from those attacks. Natural immune building is not only the best because the thymus can build that group of specialized cells, but because the strategy of fighting off that illness is also then ingrained into the entire immune system. That type of immunity is robust, durable and complete.
Originally a vaccination is supposed to expose you to a tiny killed and broken into pieces version of a germ. The three shots now available for Covid-19 are not at all like this. If you have survived Covid-19 you are better off NOT getting the shot.
When a person is young, every invader is new and the thymus is extra busy because each main invader requires a new, specialized set of cells to fight it. As time and experience goes by you will already have a specialized army of lymphocytes to battle an invader and the thymus doesn’t have to start from the beginning in order to coordinate lymphocytes that are particularly engineered to fight certain pathogens. It used to be believed that the thymus shrank with age. Now, we know that the thymus grows when it is needed and reduces in size when it is not needed so much.
When I was fighting mantle cell lymphoma, the particular problem was that my immune system had lost its ability to sense when a lymphocyte was deformed, and no longer a cell to keep around. What I needed was for my B-cells and T-cells to kick into gear and get rid of them. At first, I did everything natural to try to beat it. One of the things I did is called “visualization” - a concept and practice that most people are familiar with to some degree. With the help of a good friend and fellow acupuncturist, I made a little recording that I would listen to often. I visualized a teeny, tiny, ‘me’ going into my body and talking things over with different body areas. One of them was “Mr. Thymus”. He raised litters of different kinds of dogs. I would tell Mr. Thymus we need some very specially bred dogs that could detect a false lymphocyte. As time passed, I would picture him in a little room where he lived and I would check on the latest litter of puppies he was raising to be fighter dogs that would go through my body and fight this cancer. It was a very comforting image, and then I would picture these protective, full-grown dogs going to help me beat this cancer by grabbing these bad cells and ushering them forcefully out of my body (through the poop shoot).
What is the role of nutrition in this situation? Different processes of building the immune system require certain nutrients to function correctly. With the right ingredients, the best results can occur. For example, we’ve learned that there are three vulnerable areas in the reproduction of the covid virus. Quercetin (a supplement I’ve previously written about) will intercept two of the three areas, and thus interfere with the virus replication and at the least will slow it down. Meanwhile vitamins C, D and zinc are also part of the strategy to help the body fight off the attack. Zinc is like heavy metal poisoning to it. Vitamin C (studies by Dr. Linus Pauling, for which he won a Nobel Prize) creates solid cell wall structure and encourages vibrant health. Vitamin D should be taken in doses as high as 50,000 IU a day at the first signs of any cold symptoms, for at least 3 days (according to Dr. JJ Cannell, head of U.S. Vitamin D Council). As mentioned in previous newsletters, you can look up the Streck Report of 1937 to see research on this (that tells you this is established well known science, don’t let the media fool you).
Keep drinking enough water, get adequate sleep, and thirty minutes of fresh air, sunshine and exercise every day. That’s a good start to building a strong, healthy immune system.
