Nov 20, 2025
3 min read
A healthy diet supports the immune system.But which nutrients play a key role?Learn more here.
Studies confirm: this diet will strengthen your immune system
This article was originally published on Smart News *
Experts have recently taken a closer look at the effects of food on the immune system, particularly its role in promoting health and fighting disease.Diets such as intermittent fasting or avoiding certain foods are often recommended to boost the immune system.However, the scientific evidence for many of these recommendations is often insufficient.
According to research: there is great potential in personal nutrition
Most popular statements about nutrition and immunity have an uncertain scientific basis, as long-term and accurate studies of the relationship between nutrition and immunity are difficult.The results of animal studies cannot always be transferred to humans.Despite these obstacles, in the past five years, researchers have developed innovative methods to accurately analyze the effects of certain food groups on the immune system.This allows the immune system to access molecular processes that affect the food system.
Scientists, including Francesco Filecusa from the hospital, discovered the potential in the past years, as found in the background.
Personalized nutrition: what does it mean?
Personalized nutrition aims to address a person's specific health needs and specifically to strengthen the immune system.Unlike general dietary recommendations for the entire population, individualized diets examine how different people respond to specific foods.Genetic factors, individual metabolism and even the composition of intestinal flora are extremely important.
Key nutrients: Fat and fiber
Fat and fiber have received a lot of attention lately for their role in the immune response.Steneny Joan Dicken of the Medicine School of Vachshaton was able to show that a special fiber called Chitin, which was found in mushrooms, shellfish and eat insects, can have a positive effect on the immune system.His research with mice showed that a diet rich in chin significantly expanded the stomach of the animals and thus activated the immunity.
Interestingly, inhibition of the chitin-degrading enzyme resulted in decreased body weight, increased body fat, and improved insulin sensitivity in the mice.This suggests that chitin and the immune response to it may play an important role in regulating metabolism and thus provide a promising basis for future obesity treatments.
The effect of fasting on the immune system
Not only the composition of food, but also the timing of eating affects our immunity.Many studies show the positive health effects of fasting.Researchers have found that fasting can help reduce the risk of diseases such as high blood pressure, arteriosclerosis, diabetes and asthma.The immune system seems to play a crucial role in this case as well.
Cheng Zhan, a neuroscientist from the University of Science and Technology of China, discovered a group of neurons in the brain stem that regulate immune defense.In one study, he showed that these neurons are activated by starvation and return T cells to the bone marrow, which temporarily "restructures" the immune system.
Recommended Reading: Intermittent Fasting: Which Method Helps Most?
New ways to change
Zhan believed that these neurons could also be stimulated by electrical stimulation or other methods to achieve the benefits of fasting without depending on food.These things will lead in the future to allow new ways to specifically control the body or its state of inhibition.But scientists also warn of the potential harm of fasting, which is more healing.
Philip Swirsky, an immunologist at the Icahn School of Medicine in New York, found in a study that after prolonged fasting, a large number of immune cells enter the blood, which can cause dangerous inflammation.So he advises fasting carefully so as not to overload the immune system.
Immediate effects from short-term dietary changes
Research shows that even short-term dietary adjustments can have a significant effect on the immune system.Siracusa and his team conducted experiments in which mice were alternately fed a high-fat diet, a low-fiber diet, and a normal diet.After just three days on a high-fat diet, the mice's immunity weakened and they were more susceptible to infection."It was amazing to observe how quickly and drastically the immune system changed," Siracusa reported.
When Siracusa asked six people to switch from a high-fiber diet to a low-fiber diet, he observed changes in their T cells similar to those previously observed in rodents.These changes, comparable to the effects of a lavish meal, were, however, only temporary.Still, Siracusa believes that studying dietary changes to these early immune responses could provide valuable insights into the causes of chronic immune diseases.However, he cautions that such studies are only preliminary indications and may not be directly transferable to humans.
Human studies - a demanding job
As written in Nature, transferring such results to humans is difficult because it is difficult to monitor the diet of study participants for a long time and precisely.Kevin Hall from the US National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases created a special experiment in which subjects followed different diets under strict supervision in a hospital.This made it possible to accurately determine the effect of diet on the immune system.
The article Boosting the Immune System with the Right Diet – How It Works was first published by our partner SmartUp News.
