0:04

This is Open Mind. Today

0:22

we're diving into the incredible world

0:24

of polyphenols. What are

0:26

those? They're nature's powerhouse when it comes

0:28

to supporting our immune system and our

0:30

overall health. Now these mighty

0:32

compounds are found in abundance in plant

0:34

foods and they do so much more

0:36

than just nourish our bodies, right? They

0:38

help us feed our good gut bacteria,

0:41

they reduce inflammation, they strengthen our immune

0:43

defenses and they make us more resilient

0:45

to illness. Meaning we don't get sick.

0:48

Polyphenols work their magic in lots of fascinating ways.

0:50

They act as kind of mild stressors and

0:52

they trigger our bodies to ramp up their

0:54

defense mechanisms. Our process is

0:57

known as hormesis. It's

0:59

basically a stress that doesn't kill you

1:01

but makes you stronger. And this makes

1:03

ourselves stronger and better equipped to handle

1:05

oxidative stress and inflammation and lots of

1:07

other challenges. So by incorporating polyphenol rich

1:10

foods in our diet, we're essentially giving

1:12

our bodies a mini workout that

1:14

keeps us healthy and protected against chronic diseases.

1:16

In this episode, we're going to explore some

1:18

of the best sources of polyphenols like green

1:21

tea and yes, my friends, dark chocolate and

1:23

citrus fruits and how they can help you

1:25

stay ahead of the cold and flu season,

1:27

which is coming up soon to

1:30

a station near you. Now whether

1:32

it's boosting your immune system or

1:34

improving your gut health, polyphenols are

1:36

just an essential part of any

1:38

health-focused diet. So let's jump in

1:40

and discover how you can eat

1:43

your medicine and give your body

1:45

the support it needs to thrive. Hi,

1:48

I'm Dr. Mark Hyman and welcome to Health

1:50

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5:37

Let's get started by talking about

5:39

how to eat your medicine. This

5:41

is hack number one and using

5:43

polyphenols to do this. So

5:45

let's start by diving into one

5:47

of nature's most powerful and supporting

5:49

agents, polyphenols. Now, what

5:52

are those polyphenols are a type

5:54

of phytochemical, phyto means plant, chemical

5:56

means chemical or phytonutrient. And these

5:58

are found in our. diet if

6:00

we're eating an abundance of

6:02

whole, real plant foods. They're definitely not in

6:04

ultra processed food at all, which is a

6:06

real problem. And partly why we're so sick,

6:08

not just the bad stuff, but not enough

6:10

of the good stuff. So this is the

6:12

good stuff, my folks. Not

6:15

only do these polyphenols provide a trove

6:17

of benefits for health and for longevity,

6:20

but they also support our immunity and

6:22

our gut health, which is so important

6:24

for our immune system because they feed

6:26

our good gut bugs. They're literally fuel

6:28

for your intestinal microbiome. And if you

6:30

don't feed your inner garden, right, and

6:32

you don't tend it, right. It's not

6:34

going to be nice to you. It's

6:36

going to cause all kinds of issues

6:39

from chronic disease and many other things

6:41

all connected to inflammation. So polyphenols

6:44

reduce inflammation and they also are

6:46

beneficial for modulating our immune system.

6:48

So what is the impact of

6:51

polyphenols on immunity? Well, there's over

6:53

8,000 polyphenolic compounds that I've identified

6:55

today. Now many more phytochemicals, but

6:57

these are just the polyphenolic compounds.

6:59

Now these are a diverse group

7:02

of bioactive phytochemicals that have been

7:04

extensively studied for their antioxidant

7:07

and their anti-inflammatory properties. They

7:09

modulate immune cells and

7:11

they turn on our anti-inflammatory pathways,

7:13

which then helps reduce inflammation, which

7:15

is the scourge of everybody

7:17

as far as chronic disease and acute

7:20

disease. They combat oxidative stress, which leads

7:22

to rusting and aging, and they protect

7:24

against all sorts of chronic diseases. So

7:27

how do they do this? Is

7:29

this really kind of cool idea

7:31

called phytohormesis. Now, hormesis is this

7:34

stress that doesn't kill you that makes

7:36

you stronger. It's a process where a

7:38

low dose of a potentially harmful thing

7:40

like exercise or your

7:42

strength training and ripping muscle fibers

7:44

actually stimulates a positive beneficial adaptive

7:47

response, like building new muscle. Same

7:50

thing with cold therapy or cryotherapy

7:53

or asanas. There's a whole

7:55

bunch of different hormetic therapies. I talked about

7:57

these in my book, Young Forever, and they're

7:59

a key part of longevity. But what's interesting

8:01

is that these phytochemicals are

8:04

tiny little stress molecules because they're the

8:06

plant's defense systems. They're not there for

8:08

us. I mean, obviously the plant didn't

8:10

create these for us, but we've adapted

8:12

with them to use them in our

8:14

bodies to activate healing responses. It's really

8:16

amazing. So it's like a

8:18

little stress that makes them stronger and it's

8:21

very powerful. So these polyphenols, which

8:23

are actually the plant's defense mechanisms, make them

8:25

a little sort of stressful in our body.

8:27

They create a little bit of a stress

8:30

response, but that activates in response our

8:32

healing system. And it's super important to

8:34

remember because these polyphenols are rich in

8:37

plant foods, but they're richer in wild

8:40

foods. They're richer in foods that are

8:42

grown regeneratively and then organic and then

8:44

conventional. So it's sort of hierarchy because

8:46

we basically have bred these out of

8:48

our modern diet literally by breeding for

8:50

starch and for yield and

8:52

for drought resistance and for transportability

8:55

and shelf stability, but

8:58

not for nutrition. So we have a

9:00

real issue of nutrition security here. Food

9:03

security is not having enough food to eat, but nutrition

9:05

security is having enough nutrients to eat, and we are

9:07

definitely not having those. And I

9:09

think of these polyphenols as conditionally essential

9:11

nutrients. We're not seeing

9:14

deficiency diseases like scurvy or rickets if

9:16

you don't have them, but over the

9:18

long term, if you don't have them,

9:20

they actually accelerate all of our aging

9:22

processes. And by using them, they activate

9:24

our longevity pathways and switches to help

9:26

us live a long, healthy life. All

9:28

right. So what happens when we consume them, our

9:31

bodies respond by ramping up our own

9:33

defense mechanisms. They increase the production of

9:36

our own antioxidant enzymes. They enhance our

9:38

detoxification pathways. They boost our immune system.

9:40

They help our mitochondria. They help prepare

9:42

DNA. They are doing all kinds of

9:44

amazing things that help

9:47

us live longer and healthier. They basically trigger

9:49

a mini workout for yourselves, making them more

9:51

resilient to stress and damage. Now, one of

9:53

the key benefits of this

9:55

hormetic response, this hormesis I'm talking about

9:58

is the reduction of free free radicals

10:00

or oxidative stress. You know what that

10:02

is, it's rusting, it's when your apple

10:04

turns brown in the air, or

10:07

your face wrinkles from the sun, right?

10:09

These are all oxidative stress reactions. And

10:12

polyphenols can directly reduce oxidative stress

10:14

by fighting off damages caused

10:16

by these free radicals. So when you

10:19

incorporate a polyphenol rich set of foods

10:21

into your diet, you

10:23

can mitigate this damage to your

10:25

cells and the harmful, pro-inflammatory, disease-causing

10:27

effects that come with it. It's

10:30

really powerful to include these because they sort of are,

10:33

you're working with your body to activate healing

10:36

systems. So when you do

10:38

this, when you activate, enhance your body's

10:40

antioxidant defense systems, these polyphenols actually protect

10:42

our cells from the things

10:45

that cause rapid aging and

10:47

disease, inflammation and oxidative stress.

10:49

Now, what about gut

10:51

health? Now, until recently we thought, oh, you need

10:54

prebiotics, which is fiber, and you

10:56

need probiotics, which is true, but

10:59

recent discoveries have made it

11:01

really clear that polyphenols are

11:03

essential for creating a healthy

11:05

gut microbiome. And why

11:07

do you need a healthy gut microbiome? Because it

11:09

regulates everything in your body. There's probably a third

11:11

to a half of all your blood metabolites that

11:13

come from your gut. They interact with

11:16

all your biological systems and abnormalities

11:18

in your gut microbiome, meaning having

11:20

bad gut bugs by not eating enough of the

11:23

right foods and too much of the wrong foods

11:25

and not having enough polyphenols, linked to

11:27

everything from heart disease to cancer to diabetes

11:29

to dementia to autism to autoimmune disease

11:31

to asthma to pharmacology to chronic fatigue syndrome.

11:33

And the list goes on and on

11:35

and on, even aging itself. So

11:38

polyphenols are kind of newly understood to

11:40

have a huge role in the microbiome.

11:42

And they help support our

11:45

microbiome by basically feeding and growing

11:47

the good gut bugs, which

11:49

produce anti-inflammatory metabolites. And

11:51

also for other compounds we call

11:54

postbiotics. Now, what are postbiotics? Well,

11:56

you've heard of prebiotics. You've heard

11:58

of probiotics. Postbiotics are... Basically

12:00

compounds that are made

12:03

by the bacteria in your gut that

12:05

have a role in our physiology and our

12:08

biology in a good way that

12:10

makes us healthier. These are really

12:12

beneficial. They're quite amazing. That's why I said

12:14

about a third and a half of all

12:16

the things floating around in your blood, all

12:19

the molecules floating around in your blood come

12:21

from the gut bacteria. Now postbiotics support something

12:24

called the innate immune system as well as

12:26

the adaptive immune system. These are the two

12:28

immune systems that help fight off infection. Now

12:30

it's super important to keep these good gut

12:32

bugs around and keep them happy because they

12:34

strengthen the gut barrier which prevents

12:37

a leaky gut which causes a lot

12:39

of inflammation and that leads to a

12:41

healthier, stronger, more robust immune system. Why

12:43

is this important? Why is it protecting

12:45

your gut barrier important? About

12:48

60 to 70 percent of your immune system

12:50

is in your gut. Why? Because

12:53

that's where your body comes into contact with a

12:55

lot of foreign stuff and your immune system is

12:58

supposed to help you identify and fight off foreign

13:00

stuff like bugs or weird proteins

13:02

or food proteins, things

13:04

that leak into your system. The more

13:07

polyphenols you consume, the stronger

13:09

and more resilient your immune system. Many

13:12

studies have shown that there's an inverse

13:14

relationship between viral infection and polyphenol rich

13:16

diets. Meaning if you're eating a lot

13:18

of coliform fruits and vegetables, you're less

13:20

likely to get a virus and get

13:22

sick from it. Not bad. It's

13:24

from eating a bunch of good food. Now let's talk

13:26

about a few foods that you can start including

13:28

in your diet that will help protect you against

13:30

the cold and flu foods and

13:32

foods that contain these compounds. The

13:35

first is a category of compounds

13:37

called catechins. Catechins are

13:39

powerful polyphenols that are found

13:41

in green tea and they have shown to have

13:44

significant benefit to reduce

13:46

the incidence of influenza and the common

13:48

cold symptoms. Now catechins are

13:50

also abundant in dark chocolate. Apples,

13:53

gooseberries, grape seeds, kiwi, strawberries, red wine.

13:56

Oh, I wouldn't use that. Beer also,

13:58

I wouldn't use that. Chocolate,

14:01

cocoa, all of that is a source of

14:03

some of these catechins, although green tea is

14:05

one of the highest sources. And

14:08

they have a lot of benefits, right? These

14:10

catechins are anti-cancer compounds, they

14:12

fight obesity, they're anti-diabetic

14:14

compounds, they're anti-inflammatory, they're

14:17

detoxifying compounds, they're anti-viral, and

14:20

they have a role in preventing colds and

14:22

flus, and that's really important. In fact, research

14:24

shows that regular consumption of green tea catechins,

14:26

either by drinking green tea or taking

14:29

it as a supplement, or gargling

14:31

with green tea, hmm, I've never

14:33

done that but it sounds interesting, and that's

14:35

been linked to a decrease in the flu.

14:38

So just drinking green tea or taking green

14:40

tea supplements or just gargling with it lowers

14:43

your risk of getting the flu. That's

14:46

great. By the way, I never get the flu shot for

14:48

many reasons, but I think if your immune system is healthy

14:50

and your vitamin D levels are up and

14:52

you're eating a healthy diet, you're really not going to

14:54

get the flu or it's going to be very mild.

14:56

Obviously, if you're chronically ill, you're sick, or some of

14:58

the reason you might need a flu vaccine, that's fine,

15:01

but for most of us, I think it's overkill. And

15:03

then basically when you drink green tea, it's been linked to

15:06

a reduced incidence of

15:08

influenza infection and cold symptoms. So

15:11

when you're looking to beat that seasonal

15:13

cold, just have a cup of green

15:15

tea, or better yet, have a piece

15:17

of dark chocolate. That's my favorite. Now,

15:19

these are a great and delicious source

15:22

of catechins, and they're simple and effective

15:24

ways to support your immune system. Another

15:26

really important polyphenol is called corsatin. Now

15:28

you've probably heard me talk about this

15:31

in longevity talks I've done or in

15:33

podcasts. It's really important. It's very high

15:36

in Himalayan tarrybuk wheat, which I love.

15:38

I use Himalayan tarrybuk wheat sprout powder

15:40

every day. You can get it from

15:42

Big Bolt Health. And it's a

15:45

very potent flavonoid

15:47

and has remarkable antiviral

15:49

properties. And it gained

15:52

a lot of attention recently for being

15:54

effective against infections like COVID-19. And

15:56

it's found in a variety of whole foods,

15:58

including apples, berries, and brassicas like

16:01

the broccoli family, capers, grapes,

16:03

onions, shallots, green tea, cranberries,

16:05

blueberries, dark cherries, olive oil,

16:08

parsley, sage, and even

16:10

honey. So all of these contain

16:13

quercetin in some of them higher amounts than

16:15

others, but I think the highest source is

16:17

Himalayan tartary buckwheat and you can use it

16:19

as capsules, as sprout powder, as flour, and

16:21

make great buckwheat pancakes. In fact, there's a

16:23

recipe in my book Young Forever the Young

16:26

Forever Cookbook using Himalayan tartary

16:28

buckwheat as a way to get delicious sprout powder.

16:30

Now you can also take it as a supplement

16:32

as I mentioned and my favorite

16:34

is HTB Rejuvenate from Big Both Health.

16:37

Just make sure you're getting a good

16:39

source of it. I think that's really

16:41

my favorite source because it has lots

16:43

of other phytochemicals too and other polyphenols.

16:45

Now we're going to talk about more

16:48

about this in a little bit, but

16:50

quercetin is known well for its antiviral,

16:52

anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, and antioxidant properties and

16:55

it's been studied extensively for this and even

16:57

was actually studied in a

16:59

trial to reverse biological age and was

17:01

effective in just reversing biological age. Now

17:04

the most notable example of this antiviral

17:06

effect is COVID-19. It was making headlines

17:08

throughout the pandemic for its strong antiviral

17:11

properties. It exhibits these antiviral activity by

17:13

doing a few things. It

17:15

blocks the virus's entry into your

17:18

cells. It inhibits viral

17:20

enzyme activity so it can't do what it's

17:22

supposed to do. It reduces the viral load,

17:24

the overall load of the virus, which relates

17:27

to how severely ill you are, and

17:29

it reduces inflammation and there's lots of

17:31

research to support this. A small-scale randomized

17:33

control trial, which is the highest level

17:35

of evidence, found that 500 milligrams

17:38

of quercetin three times a week for

17:40

one week followed by 500 milligrams two times a

17:42

day for another week in those

17:44

who tested positive for COVID-19 led to a

17:46

whole bunch of benefits like

17:49

improved inflammatory biomarkers and faster

17:51

clearance of the COVID virus

17:54

in the quercetin group 68% tested negative at one

17:57

week versus 24% in the control group. 54%

18:02

had earlier resolution of acute symptoms at one week versus 24%

18:04

in the control. But

18:07

that's very impressive. Another clinical trial with

18:10

about 152 COVID-19 patients found that quercetin supplementation

18:14

about a thousand milligrams a day for a

18:16

month led to reduced hospitalization

18:18

rate, which is amazing. Shorter

18:20

length of hospital stays decreased

18:23

need for non-invasive oxygen,

18:26

lower progression to intensive care. So you

18:28

basically prevented you from going to intensive

18:30

care and reduce death. Now,

18:32

just think about this for a moment, folks. There's

18:35

no good drugs that can do this. The vaccine may

18:37

help with this, although there are a

18:39

lot of issues with the vaccine, but

18:42

think about these benefits from taking

18:44

a simple, harmless nutritional supplement or

18:46

including foods with had have this

18:48

in them every single day.

18:50

It's really bad effective. These, these are

18:52

not trivial effects. These are really powerful

18:55

effects. Rutan is another

18:57

polyphenol. It's the third polyphenol I

18:59

want to talk about. It's a

19:01

powerhouse polyphenol found in a whole bunch

19:04

of fruits and vegetables, like apple peels,

19:06

black tea, asparagus, buckwheat. And I particularly

19:08

like the Himalayan tartary buckwheat I mentioned,

19:11

probably the highest source of, of Rutan. Onions,

19:14

green tea, figs, most

19:17

citrus foods like grapefruit, lemon,

19:19

limes, apples, cranberries. And as I mentioned

19:21

this Himalayan tartary buckwheat is a polyphenol

19:24

or superfood. It's uniquely rich

19:26

in coarse tin and Rutan, and

19:28

it's known for its immune rejuvenation properties,

19:31

which strengthens immunity. It boosts your cellular

19:33

health. It boosts your energy, your focus,

19:35

and your clarity. In fact, exciting

19:37

new research from my mentor, Dr. Jeffrey Bland

19:39

and his friends at Big Bolt Health show

19:42

they can even help lower the age

19:44

of your immune cells. So it's basically

19:46

where versus your immunological age, which is

19:49

important because that's how we age is

19:51

for inflammation. Now Rutan has

19:54

anti-inflammatory properties, anti

19:56

carcinogenic properties, it's

19:58

neuroprotective. protective and

20:00

has antifungal properties and

20:02

antiviral properties, all that makes it

20:05

extremely effective and versatile in

20:07

supporting overall health and longevity and it's based

20:09

on immune resilience. These are really amazing compounds

20:11

that you can get as part of your

20:13

diet and that will help you. Now

20:16

there's a whole other class called flavonoids and

20:19

many other polyphenols in this

20:21

class exhibit immune supporting properties

20:23

and also have antiviral benefits.

20:26

Now there's a big class of these polyphenols

20:28

called flavonoids. There are

20:30

subclasses of these called flavonols,

20:33

isoflavones, flavonones,

20:35

flavonols, anthocyanins, which

20:38

are just a few examples. Now

20:40

flavonoids have been shown to

20:42

exhibit direct antiviral effects against

20:45

respiratory viruses including influenza,

20:48

rhinovirus, which is also known as the

20:50

common cold, and SARS-CoV-2 or

20:53

COVID-19. Now they

20:55

enhance immune function by increasing the circulation

20:57

and the activity of your immune cells,

20:59

particularly antibodies and white blood

21:01

cells. Pretty darn good, right? And

21:05

these are really important and they're found in a lot of

21:07

foods you can eat. They also

21:09

reduce the expression of what we

21:11

call pro-inflammatory cytokines. Cytokines are the

21:14

immune messenger chemicals and they work

21:16

together with their gut microbes to

21:18

enhance protection against infection. One

21:21

amazing source of flavonoids is

21:23

propolis, or propolis, however you say it.

21:26

It's a natural resin complex. It's

21:28

made by honeybees with immune-supporting

21:31

properties. It's antiviral, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory.

21:33

It's basically what the hive uses

21:35

to protect itself. Now

21:37

you can take propolis as a supplement, as a

21:39

liquid extract, or as a nasal spray. Beak

21:42

Keepers Natural makes a great throat spray with

21:45

propolis. It's really awesome for daily

21:47

immune support. Now there's other foods

21:49

that belong to flavonoids include blueberries,

21:52

strawberries, blackberries, also apples, pears, lettuce,

21:54

tomatoes, kale, soybeans, citrus fruits, and

21:56

the list goes on. All

21:58

right, well let's talk about citrus fruits. Because

22:01

they're also great in all sorts of properties.

22:03

They're great in terms of

22:05

their antioxidant properties. They have high levels of

22:07

obviously C and flavonoids, and that helps protect

22:09

your cells from oxidative stress. Now,

22:12

something to keep in mind

22:14

is that the bioavailability of

22:16

these flavonoids from fresh citrus

22:18

fruits is up to

22:20

two times higher than frozen fruit.

22:23

So also the longer the

22:25

fruit travels to get you, the more

22:27

nutrients it loses. So basically you want

22:29

to eat the lemon, lime, orange,

22:31

or grapefruit right off the tree

22:33

if you can, or

22:35

basically in season and not stored

22:37

for weeks or months in warehouses.

22:40

Industrial farming practices and processing

22:43

really reduces the nutrient content and the

22:45

polyphenol content really significantly. And that's why

22:47

it's important to eat seasonal, local, fresh

22:49

fruits and veggies. Farmers market is a

22:51

great place to find these in the

22:53

summertime. I love the farmers market. I

22:55

pretty much only shop at the farmers

22:57

market when I can in the summer.

23:00

Now you can purchase frozen fruits because

23:02

they are actually flash frozen at their

23:04

peak ripeness, which is great and actually

23:06

contains more phytochemicals than typically what you'll

23:09

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23:11

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gift that keeps giving. molecule

38:00

and they may not know this

38:02

but exercise increases the production of

38:04

something called glutathione. This is our

38:06

body's master antioxidant, master anti-inflammatory

38:10

and master detoxifier. I've written a lot

38:13

about it. It basically helps neutralize free

38:15

radicals and reduce oxidative stress. Now

38:18

this protects our tissues from damage.

38:21

It further supports immune function and it helps

38:23

reduce inflammation so it's all good. What

38:25

else does exercise do? Well it improves

38:27

circulation. Physical exercise and

38:30

activity enhances blood flow and circulation.

38:32

It allows immune cells to

38:34

move more efficiently throughout the body. It

38:37

increases their availability to detect and

38:39

respond to infections quickly so everything

38:42

works better. Now this enhanced circulation

38:44

also aids in the removal of metabolic waste

38:46

and toxins which basically makes you more resilient.

38:49

And what about stress? Well exercise is a great stress

38:51

reducer. I know if I'm stressed and I go for

38:53

a run or do some activity or

38:55

use my body, it's sort of

38:58

the stress goes away. The cortisol, the

39:00

adrenaline goes away. And why? Well think about it.

39:02

If you're a zebra, you want a

39:04

big jolt of cortisol to make you run fast

39:06

and go really fast but then you burn it

39:08

off, right? You burn it off by exercise, by

39:11

running from the tiger or the lion or whatever

39:13

it is, right? So we don't do

39:15

that. We just stew in our own stress juices and

39:17

that makes us sick. So exercise is

39:19

a great way to discharge all those

39:21

stress hormones and I really encourage you to

39:23

do it and it also helps your

39:25

immune function. Also exercise helps sleep, right? It

39:28

improves sleep quality and sleep pattern. It's

39:30

really essential for immune function. It's really

39:32

during deep sleep that the body produces

39:35

and releases cytokines and proteins that are

39:38

really necessary for fighting infections and reducing

39:40

inflammation. Studies have demonstrated that people who

39:42

get at least seven to eight hours

39:44

of sleep every night have a stronger

39:46

immune response to infections. And that's great.

39:49

What else does exercise do? Well it

39:51

helps maintain aerobic capacity measured by something

39:54

called VO2 max, a very important biomarker

39:56

for over longevity and health. And

39:59

this is interesting. A research into this area

40:01

shows that those who exercise regularly have

40:03

a lower rate of respiratory infections during

40:05

cold seasons because it just increases your

40:07

overall metabolism and health. Specifically,

40:10

exercise in this context is described as daily

40:12

activity of modern intensity, which is about 60

40:14

to 80% of your VO2 max. VO2

40:17

max is basically how much oxygen you

40:19

consume per minute. The volume of O2

40:21

oxygen. So how many liters of oxygen

40:24

can you consume per minute per kilo of body

40:26

weight? And you want to be at about 60 to

40:29

80% of your max amount. And

40:31

that really has been associated with a

40:33

decrease in upper respiratory tract infections by

40:35

about 20 to 30% during cold

40:37

and flu season. Now this

40:39

protective effective regular exercise on immune

40:42

system may be due to increased

40:44

levels of something called IgA or

40:46

immunoglobulin A. It's an antibody that's

40:48

found in the respiratory tract that's the first line of

40:51

defense. Now studies have shown

40:53

that men and women who consistently engage

40:55

in modern intensity exercise have

40:57

significantly higher levels of salivary IgA

40:59

compared to those who are sedentary.

41:02

But it's important to note that

41:05

very intense exercise or overtraining can

41:08

temporarily suppress immune function. Now

41:11

there's evidence that an increased susceptibility to infection

41:13

from overtraining can happen. So if you do

41:15

too much exercise, it actually causes a suppressed

41:17

immune system like marathon runners for example, or

41:20

if you're just in gym all day, not

41:22

a good thing. Now the relationship between exercise

41:24

and immune function, it's kind of like a

41:26

J shaped curve. Modern exercise

41:29

tends to enhance immune function, but

41:31

a sedentary lifestyle and a

41:34

very high intensity exercise can

41:36

increase the risk of infection. So both being

41:39

a couch potato and a marathon runner, definitely

41:41

not good for you. Furthermore,

41:44

improvements in fitness such as increases in VO to

41:46

max also been linked to reduced incidence of cold,

41:49

which is great. And just by exercising, you reduce

41:51

your risk of infection. Now I almost never get

41:53

sick. So exercise, I take my vitamin T, I

41:55

have all the polyphenols, I do the zinc, I

41:57

do the Himalayan tarrybukweed, I can have sleep. So,

42:00

I'm almost never getting sick. A

42:02

fascinating study involved over 115

42:05

overweight and obese post-menopausal women

42:08

showed that 45 minutes of modern intensity

42:10

exercise, five days a week for a year, resulted

42:13

in a three times lower risk of

42:15

catching a cold compared to the

42:17

control group who only participated in

42:19

45-minute stretching exercises once a week. That's

42:21

pretty darn good. So basically 45 minutes

42:24

of modern intensity, five days a week,

42:26

three times lower risk of getting a cold. Not

42:29

bad. The next hack is hack

42:31

number five. It's supplements.

42:33

Okay, finally let's talk about some key

42:35

supplements that can help proactively support your

42:37

immune system and prevent colds and flu.

42:41

And some others you can take at

42:43

the onset of exposure to decrease viral

42:45

growth and reduce symptoms of infections. Well,

42:48

these nutraceuticals and botanicals are essential

42:50

allies in fighting your health. You

42:52

can't not take them. They're not

42:55

optional unless you're only

42:57

eating wild food, only

42:59

drinking pure clean water, sleep nine hours

43:01

a night, have no exposure to environmental

43:04

toxins, exercise

43:06

regularly, and you live in

43:08

a bubble basically. You

43:10

don't need them. But everybody else needs vitamins because

43:12

we just live in a toxic, nutritionally depleted world.

43:15

You just want to make sure you get high quality

43:17

versions that are tested for quality, potency, purity. Now,

43:20

is a multivitamin and it just sounds like

43:22

a boring thing to take, but it actually

43:24

works and there's tons of data on how

43:27

this up-levels your health. It ensures your body

43:29

gets the basic vitamins and minerals to fill

43:31

any nutrient gaps, supports all your

43:33

daily biological functions, it keeps your immune system

43:35

and everything just going smooth. The

43:38

next up is omega-3 fatty acids. I

43:41

like omega-3 rejuvenate from Big Bold Health.

43:44

Take two grams a day. This

43:46

has powerful anti-inflammatory benefits. And

43:49

then really important for your immune function

43:51

is vitamin D3, which should be taken

43:53

with also vitamin K2. A

43:56

daily dose of about 5,000 is ideal. Some

43:58

people need less. 5,000 usually is

44:00

well tolerated by most people, especially during the winter months.

44:03

People say, oh, I don't need

44:05

it during the summer, but you do, unless you're a surfer

44:08

or a lifeguard, you probably

44:10

need vitamin D in the summer. I think

44:12

the only people I've ever seen with adequate

44:15

vitamin D levels who don't take it are

44:17

surfers or lifeguards. Vitamin

44:19

D is a powerful anti-inflammatory.

44:22

It's critical for immune function and

44:24

it decreases viral growth and reduces symptoms. In

44:26

fact, having vitamin D level over 50

44:28

in COVID actually

44:32

prevented you from death. There were zero deaths with anybody

44:34

over a vitamin D of 50. And if your vitamin

44:36

D was low, you're 70%

44:39

more likely to end up in the hospital and in

44:41

ICU and die. Another really

44:43

important supplement is called NAC, or

44:45

N-acetylcysteine, about 600 to 900 milligrams

44:47

a day, or

44:50

twice a day, promotes the production of

44:52

glutathione. I mentioned that. This potent antioxidant

44:54

that supports immune function and reduces

44:56

the severity of the flu. Also for quercetin

44:58

and rutin, I like HTB Rejuvenate from BigBolt Health,

45:01

two twice a day. You can just start with

45:03

two a day, but two twice a day

45:05

is a full dose. You can take the Himalayan

45:07

tardic bi-weed sprout powder. I put that in

45:09

my smoothie every morning. And this

45:11

significantly decreases viral growth. It

45:14

enhances the immune system and it reduces

45:16

symptoms. Vitamin C is well known for

45:18

its immune regulating properties. Taking

45:20

one to three grams orally can boost

45:23

your immune system. It decreases viral growth

45:25

and reduces symptoms. So pretty

45:27

darn good. Zinc also really important. Has

45:29

strong antiviral properties, dose about 30 to

45:32

60 milligrams. It

45:34

supports the immune system. As I

45:36

mentioned, it decreases the viral growth, helps

45:38

alleviate cold symptoms. And also

45:41

green tea extract called EGCG, epi-galactocatican

45:44

galate, big blah,

45:47

buty blah word. But anyway, it's just think

45:49

of emiscaticans. It's a huge

45:52

immune supporter. Four cups of

45:54

green tea a day or 500 milligrams orally

45:56

twice a day, reduce inflammation, helps

45:59

boost the immune system. its immune function and targets

46:01

many processes that interfere

46:04

with COVID-19 replication and also

46:06

viral replication. So just

46:08

putting all these into your regimen daily can be

46:10

a huge win for the winter

46:13

months, a multivitamin, vitamin

46:15

D, fish oil, N-acetyl

46:17

cysteine, and omega-3

46:19

fatty acids, and the

46:22

Himalayan tardary buckwheat, which has quercetin and

46:24

routine. These are all really, really important

46:26

in terms of optimizing your health. You

46:28

can add a little green tea extract

46:30

in there as well, or just drink

46:32

green tea. So if you incorporate

46:34

these supplements into your daily routine, I can

46:36

promise you it's gonna provide a robust defense

46:38

against infections and just enhance your overall health.

46:40

Now, if you're on lots of medications or

46:43

have complex health history, you might

46:45

wanna check with your doctor before starting anything,

46:47

but most of the time they don't really

46:49

know what they're talking about when

46:51

it comes to supplements because they don't understand them, you don't learn about

46:53

them, but you wanna make sure

46:55

you're just doing the right thing for your

46:57

body and you can do your own homework

46:59

and research. All right, as we wrap up

47:01

today's episode, I hope you're inspired to take

47:03

full advantage of the incredible benefits that polyphenols

47:05

offer by incorporating these polyphenol-rich foods

47:08

in your daily routine like green tea, dark

47:10

chocolate, not so hard, and a variety of

47:12

colorful fruits and veggies you're given your body

47:14

the tools it needs to stay strong and

47:16

resilient and protected against illness.

47:19

Remember, it's not just about eating

47:21

for taste, although that's a

47:23

great bonus, but also eating with intention

47:25

to nourish your body and support

47:27

your health in the long run. But here's a

47:29

little fun fact. Food that

47:32

naturally tastes good, right? A

47:34

summer peach that's so ripe and

47:36

juicy and delicious, a strawberry picked

47:39

right off a summer vine, a

47:41

tomato, cherry tomato, ripe right

47:44

off the August tomato vines.

47:47

These are so flavorful, you don't need

47:49

anything on them to just create an

47:51

explosion of flavor. And why do

47:54

they have that flavor? It's because

47:56

they are full of phytochemicals. So

47:59

actually,