With Covid-19 cases seeming to rise every day, is there anything we can do to protect ourselves and strengthen our immune system? Turns out, supplementation might help. But it must be the right type of supplementation.
Vitamins with antioxidant activities are known to enhance immune response and Vitamin E Tocotrienols are known to have potent antioxidant activities – In fact, 40 to 60 times more potent than Vitamin E Tocopherols . A study by Mahalingam et. al, looked at the immunity biological markers Immunoglobulins (IgG), Interferon-gamma (IFNγ), and Interleukin 4 (IL4) and how these immunity markers respond to the presence of tetanus toxoid (TT) challenge, in a Tocotrienol-Rich-Fraction (TRF) group and placebo group.
IgG are also known as antibodies . They act as critical part of the immune response by specifically recognizing and binding to antigens like bacteria or viruses and aid in their destruction. In this study, a significant mean level of IgG production was observed in the tocotrienol-rich-fraction (TRF)- supplemented group compared to the placebo group. This indicated that there are higher antibodies in the group that’s supplemented with TRF and therefore, is more able to aid in pathogen destruction.
IFNγ is a type of cytokine (a molecule that helps with cell communication in immune responses) that mediates antiviral and antibacterial immunity and helps activates the innate immune system (a type of cellular defense that come into play immediately at an antigen’s appearance in the body). As shown by Mahalingam et. al., groups that were TRF-supplemented had IFNγ levels that were significantly augmented compared to the placebo group, after the TT stimulation. This indicated that the bodies of those supplemented with TRF were boosted with more cell-signaling molecules which may enable better and faster protection to patients.
IL4 is another cytokine that is a potent regulator of immunity that’s secreted by certain cells . Similar to the other two markers, the IL4 cytokine levels were significantly increased in the TRF-group compared to the placebo-group, following a TT vaccination.
Based on the observation of the elevated levels of these markers, it is clear that Vitamin E Tocotrienols can improve cell-mediated immunity. Supplementation with tocotrienols can improve antibodies and cytokine levels which assist with improving one’s immune response. As the old saying goes, prevention is always better than cure!
