AUGUST/September
2003
INTRODUCTION
TO EXERCISE IMMUNOLOGY
By Michael Youssouf MA, MES
The
field of exercise immunology is relatively new. It deals
with a lot of complex scientific, microscopic, theoretical
mumbo-jumbo. The phone call listed above is just one example
of a "real world" impact it can have on you, your
business as well as the effect it might have on your clients
and colleagues. With the advent of super speed travel, international
commerce, the sprawl of denser population centres, the sharing
of resource facilities such as schools, hospitals and mass
transit systems, any problem that my neighbour might have,
I might have as well. The world truly is a smaller place.
AN
IMMUNE SYSTEM PRIMER:
Before we can get into all the fun stuff about exercise
immunology (like can you sweat off a cold or why asthmatics
make such capable swimmers?), we have to go over the basics
of immune system functions. It's sort of like putting in
your dues with anatomy and physiology before talking about
biomechanics and exercise programming.
Every
cell in your body has packets of instructions. These instructions
include, among other things, how to reproduce, how to procure
nutrients, dispose of waste, perform its particular role
or job, and how to communicate with its brother and sister
cells of the body. When all is going well with the body
and the various checks and balances are stable we call this
homeostasis. It's when some aspect of the body fails to
work or carry out some of those instructions that we have
a breakdown in health, more commonly know as a disease.
The disease world is separated into two major categories.
Infectious diseases are those diseases that are caused by
some parasitic organism or substance that manages to disrupt
the normal goings on of your body. Certainly, the largest
of these parasites are the worms. Ranging in size from the
tiny hook worm that is small enough to live in the walls
of your intestines for years without notice, to the giant
guinea worms, that when sexually mature will burrow out
the side of your body in search of a mate (Author's note:
now that I got your attention, I'll try to be a little less
graphic). Syphilis, diphtheria, and tuberculosis are diseases
that one gets by exposure to a single celled organism known
as bacteria. The flu, polio, and small pox, are transmitted
by the invasion of even smaller packages of genetic material
called viruses. Protists are single celled organisms but
usually larger and more complex than bacteria, they are
responsible for diseases such as sleeping sickness and malaria.
Athlete's foot, yeast infections, and thrush are some of
the diseases caused by the fungus family. It should be noted
at this time that not all infectious diseases are biological
in nature. Black lung (long term exposure to coal dust)
and white lung (chronic exposure to asbestos) are two examples
of diseases that are more chemical in nature and occupational
in origin, but still considered an infectious disease. Be
it a microscopic organism, or a chemical agent, the term
used to describe the guilty party is pathogen. The term
used to describe the person or creature used to spread the
disease is known as a carrier. Typhoid Mary, and the Anopheles
mosquito being carriers on a legendary scale. When a disease
crosses from one species to another, we call this a vector.
It is a popular theory that chimpanzees and or monkeys may
have been the vectors for AIDS.
Non-infectious
diseases are those diseases that are not caused by pathogens.
Autoimmune diseases (such as Lupus, type 1 diabetes, and
rheumatoid arthritis), cardio vascular related problems
(stroke, embolism, heart attack), certain forms of birth
defects, behavioural disorders (bulimia, depression, bi-polar
disorder), various cancers (pancreatic cancer, leukemia,
Hodgkin's lymphoma), and a host of neurological disorders,
(deafness, blindness. Turret's syndrome) are some examples
of what might happen without a pathogen (at least at this
time in our understanding). I would like to comment here
that lifestyle can certainly have tremendous impact on the
severity of these diseases, and should not be overlooked
or underplayed (If we ever get through all this medical
stuff lifestyle management is the main reason why we’re
here).
Just
for the record, problems that arise from driving a car and
crashing into a tree, dropping a weight on your foot, twisting
an ankle stepping off the curve, or a bloody nose from sparring
with your buddy, are not diseases but fall under the heading
of injuries.
Now
that we are familiar with all the bad guys let me introduce
to you our all-star cast of your body's defence team.
1.
Your Skin: More scientifically referred to as the Integumentary
System. Weighing in around 5 kg, it comes in a variety of
colors and textures, but its job is the same for everyone:
protecting us from all manner of heat, chemicals, sunlight,
cold, excessive fluid loss, and acting as a wall of granite
to most germs and pathogens.
2.
Eyes, Nose, Ears, Mouth and the other "Portals"
of the Body: Although each of the aforementioned body parts
are windows into your personal living space, your body has
set up a wide variety of "screens" to act on your
own behalf. The eyes produce tears that act both mechanically
as well as chemically to drive off some of the bad guys.
The nose has hair and mucous to trap unwanted spores and
germs. The mouth has tonsils, adenoids, and mucous membranes
just waiting to go into action. Even the vagina and anus
have their own systems set up to keep out most unwanted
guests.
3.
The Internal Defence Forces: These are the armed services
that patrol and monitor your body looking for troublemakers.
All the variations of your internal defence forces must
be able to identify friend (your own cells) from foe (the
little guys who don't belong in you). They must also be
able to keep an eye on the normal birth, maturation, and
destruction cycle of all your cells. When something goes
wrong in that cycle, and cells grow or reproduce out of
order, they form little clusters of rebellious cells called
tumours. Yes! The internal immune mechanisms help prevent
certain forms of cancer. Listed below is a brief description
of some of these immune mechanisms. White blood cells or
leukocytes form the army, navy and mounted police of your
body. They each have a certain job to do. B-cells, so named
because they originate in the yellow marrow of your bones.
It makes antibodies to engulf or mark a specific antigen.
T-cells derive their name because they are "hatched"
in the Thymus Gland. There are two basic forms of T-cells.
Helper cells that act as delivery boys and messengers for
the T-cells, and suppressor cells, that prevent B-cells
from producing antibodies. Antibodies are also identified
as immunoglobins,(abbreviated Ig) to date I am aware of
5 different types of immunoglobins; IgA, IgD, IgE, IgG,
and IgM, with the last two being the most deadly. Among
the other armed services in your body there is separate
family known collectively as monocytes, most notable are
the Macrophages and Phagocytes. These big bruisers act as
heavy artillery to knock out and engulf the bad guys.
If
you're still with me, you have my respect. This stuff is
not easy. Some people have criticized me for not just jumping
to the exercise part of the information. That certainly
would be easier. However, the first serious conversation
you have with an attending physician would only demonstrate
a lack of professional development.
So,
what’s the exercise connection?
- Immediately following a bout of exercise, the body's
immune system is temporally depressed. In fact the more
intense the workout the more depressed the system is.
My suggestion is to time workouts so that you can eat
and recover in more private surroundings, limit exposure
to hostile environments after the workout. Keep hands
in pockets or at least away from your eyes and nose.
Try not to linger in large crowds, especially indoors.
Wash hands and other exposed body parts with soap and
water as soon as possible.
- Regular exercise coupled with adequate nutrition and
a decent amount of rest, will over time, improve immune
function. Exercise, especially aerobic exercise will
stimulate the production of several Ig's. The trick
here is manipulating the intensity and duration. Too
little or (worse) too much will not get you there. Research
(LaPerrier, Rigsby, Spence) suggests that 30-40 minutes
at approximately 70% of predicted heart rate max should
be the basic target to shoot for.
- Indoor training is statically more risky than outdoor
training. I have to admit that this topic has a lot
of variables. Nevertheless, my research comparing indoor
group fitness classes with outdoor conditioning classes
demonstrated a much higher transmission rate among the
indoor classes. A well-ventilated room with the air
filter in your ventilator shaft replaced regularly should
help. An open window when practical is another plus.
- Watch where you stand when spotting your client.
You and your client do not need to be eyeball to eyeball
in order to get the most out your spot. Try keeping
yourself off center of your client's head, body in close,
but head facing in another direction.
5. Keep your equipment and facility clean. Boxing gloves,
whirlpools, and steam baths head my list of places to
cultivate my bacterial experiments. Plain soap and water
will work just fine if applied properly.
- Apply a barrier between you and whatever bodily fluid
you come up against. Although sweat is not the enemy
many think it is, blood, vomitus, phlegm, etc. are serious
agents for transmission.
- Over training or under resting are open invitations
to illness.
- Track your environment. Stay abreast of heat, humidity,
pollution, and pollen count in your locale. Find out
when the bees are swarming or where the poison ivy is
blooming if going for a run outside.
- Be prepared. Do you know where the nearest bathrooms
are? How about the whereabouts of a phone, first aid
kit, or A.E.D. unit?
There
is a lot of information out there; Human Kinetics publishes
an academic quarterly entitled "Exercise Immunology
Review." It contains various articles and abstracts
on what's going on in the world of exercise and immune function.
The world is a very competitive place to live. It is teeming
with life. Some of those life forms may be very hostile
to your health. By the same token, some of those life forms
are bright caring and cooperative; let us make the most
of what we have.
Michael
Youssouf MA, MES
Michael is the recipient of the 2000 IDEA/Life Fitness Personal
Trainer of the Year award, Fitness Director of UNICEF, and
currently manager of trainer education at the Sports Center
at Chelsea Piers in New York City. Michael is known internationally
as an author, master trainer and motivational speaker, and
is a veteran with over 25 years experience in the fitness
industry. Michael’s appearance at Can-Fit-Pro is sponsored
by Life Fitness.
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