Abundant reinforcement of immune system is unhealthy

Activating the immune system by drugs without physician’s control is hazardous to health. S.F. Medvedev, Director of the Institute of Human Brain, Russian Academy of Sciences, recounted about that. According to him, if immunostimulant drugs are taken in case of any malaise, then, when intense work of the immune system is really needed for the organism, its reserves may fail.

I.D. Stolyarov, head of laboratory of neuroimmunology (Institute of Human Brain, Russian Academy of Sciences), believes that serious illnesses (including arthropathy, thyroid gland diseases and even disseminated sclerosis) may become consequences of thoughtless application of immunostimulants. The abundantly active immune system starts to attack the own cells on top of struggle against alien proteins. Specialists of the laboratory observed autoimmune phenomena occuring with some children from the group of young patients suffering from abnormalities in work of brain after vaccination (which was necessary in that case). Undoubtedly, systematic special investigations are required to enable generalization of this data. However, the researchers believe that such risk exists and should be taken into account.

In any case, the immune system status should be impartially assessed prior to vaccination or other treatment. Such methods have been developed and applied in the laboratory of neuroimmunology (Institute of Human Brain, Russian Academy of Sciences). After ordinary blood drawing, the researchers get the data on immune system indices within four days. The researchers assume that such assessment is absolutely necessary to diagnose correctly and to choose proper treatment.

“It is impossible to activate immunity status without preliminary measuring it, emphasizes I.D. Stolyarov. A physician would not prescribe adrenolytic or blood pressure increasing drugs without knowing the blood pressure value. The immune system requires the similar examination.”

In general, as it is strongly not recommended to treat the heart or vessels without physician’s recommendations, likewise it is better not to perform self-treatment of the immune system and to spur it on without any control. At the same time, the researchers emphasize that it is absolutely necessary to strengthen immunity, but there are multiple other non-medicamentous methods for that purpose. They include taking vitamins, moderate physical activity, sun, air and water, harmony in psychoemotional sphere. If they are not sufficient, patients have to appeal to immunostimulants but only under physicians’ control.

It is particularly important for inhabitants of northern areas to maintain immunity as well as for the individuals who survived stress and patients who underwent an operation. “Sometimes, even after a very good surgical operation, a patient can fall seriously ill particularly because the immune system status was not paid proper attention to”, pointed out I.D. Stolyarov.