The Pros and Cons of Taking Supplements

Even though many of us have been spending a lot of time staring out the window and yearning for the moment we can step outdoors again, the situation that we’re in could also be seen as an extraordinary opportunity to turn our attention back to our bodies.

“Extraordinary” to be understood as uncommon, and magnificent.

It’s been a few weeks since the beginning of the lockdown. In some countries, the measures seem to be enforced more strictly than in others. Some people experience it with fear and worry; others with anger, frustration and a certain tone of resentment for everything they had to give up or postpone. There are also those who add a touch of humor, calm, acceptance and/or resignation.

Regardless of the dominant mindset, there is something that most of us share: an uncomfortable sense of helplessness and vulnerability towards what is happening out in the world.

And it is precisely here where the “return to our body” can help us find an appropriate anchoring.

Focusing On Our Body to Strengthen the Immune System

Meditation, conscious breathing, yoga… any practice focused on mindfulness is an example of turning the attention to our body, back to our essence.

I’m not going to talk about the benefits of these practices, since they’re all over the Internet, and their countless health benefits clearly explained.

I’d like to focus here on the body from a more physiological angle.

By that I mean focusing on our immune system: an innate intelligence, finely honed and polished after millennia of evolution, which operates within us autonomously, without us having to consciously manage it.

Our body has a perfectly organized defense system, with an intelligence and functioning strategy that even today science is only just beginning to understand.

 In the midst of this information whirlpool, where the news seems to leave us more helpless than empowered, I think it’s worth emphasizing, now more than ever, that there is something we can do to defend ourselves, and that is to help our immune system do its job, as it has been doing it, continuously and with no interruption, ever since we were born.

How Do We Support Our Immune System?

I discussed this topic in this post, as well as the importance of maintaining a healthy balance in relation to four fundamental pillars so as to move out of the spiral of our day-to-day stress.

Nutrition, rest, exercise (even if it’s indoors), sitting in the sun (even if it’s behind the window), finding moments to laugh and smile throughout the day (too much exasperating news literally undermines our immune system), looking for (or re-discovering) activities that allow us to relax…

All these actions contribute differently to support and strengthen our immune system.

Something to emphasize here: none of the above-mentioned activities is more important than the others.

None of them. There is no hierarchy.

And why am I highlighting this? Shouldn’t I be talking about food and supplements?

Seeking the “Magic” Supplement (Or Natural Remedy)

In this attempt to strengthen our immune system at all costs, we seem to have started to panic over the last few weeks by rushing to buy (in addition to the mysteriously elusive toilet paper) food supplements, vitamins and other “natural” remedies.

We are conditioned to discount what is available to us for free.

… and we tend to believe that “the XYZ supplement just discussed on the radio or on social networks is the one that will help me,” while we underestimate the value of looking through the window, with the rays of the sun shining on our faces, closing our eyes and turning our attention to our breath, while listening to a piece of music that uplifts the soul a few levels…

Continuing with the same example, both supplements XYZ and sitting for a few minutes under the sunlight can equally contribute to:

1. Decrease blood cortisol (herb “X” is usually recommended for this, along with supplement “Y”)
2. Stimulate the pineal gland, which, among many other functions, produces melatonin that helps us sleep at night (another trendy supplement)
3. The conversion of vitamin D through our skin (another ”supplement” for which pharmacies already have a waiting list these days)
4. The production of serotonin (a chemical messenger that, when the levels of it in our brain are low, we are prescribed antidepressants – yet another pill)

Yes, there are supplements (and I will talk about them in future posts) that can support our immune system, without a doubt. However, they don’t work miraculously.

“There is no supplement that will compensate for a poor diet, interrupted sleep, lack of exercise or the permanent state of stress and anxiety to which we can expose our bodies on a daily basis.”

Every day people ask me about what I think about this or that supplement or herbal remedy, or what they can take as a substitute for supplement “A”, since it is sold out in pharmacies or even on Amazon (this is the moment I stop and wonder about the huge amount of money some companies must be generating these days).

I listen to them and note the distress in their voice, as if that supplement were the last resort we have left to escape this pandemic.

“Nature is the best pharmacy the universe could make accessible to us.”

All necessary nutrients (vitamins, minerals, enzymes, co-factors, transcription factors etc.) that our body needs can be obtained from food, water, air, and sun.

Our body’s wisdom and immune system know how to reorganize and combine these nutrients to make them available for life– for our life.

Can some supplements be helpful?

• Yes, of course—in those cases where there are clear symptoms of deficiency.
• Yes, as temporary boosters for moments when we have pushed the body to unhealthy extremes, and we want to return to our natural state of homeostasis.

Yet supplements are not a “shortcut” when the other factors that determine this equilibrium, i.e., nutrition, sleep, exercise, and stress levels, are not properly balanced.

“To Caesar what is Caesar’s and to our body what is our body’s”

When we attribute so much power to something external (a pill, a supplement, such and such “mega herb” or “super food”), we step out of our center, away from the inherent wisdom that operates within us and knows what to do to keep us safe on this side of life.

In other words, we return to the fear and dependency that is generated when we give power to another “entity” other than ourselves.

This also puts us at risk of entering the realm of vulnerability, helplessness, overwhelming anxiety and “panic mode,” all of which trigger a cortisol spike in the blood.

And do you know what this cortisol spike does, among other things?

It will suppress and depress our immune system, precisely what we want to support and strengthen these days, more than ever.

(You can read more about the consequences of cortisol excess in this post)

Now more than ever, our body requests that we return to it, that we reconnect with it.

To do so, I would like to share with you three pillars (in addition to the previous ones) that I personally strive to apply every day.

1. Understand, comprehend; this is different than being swept away by the tsunami of information
2. Support and sustain the basic needs of our body; instead of worrying or obsessing
3. Let go of fear, and trust (again) in life; trust in that inner intelligence that operates uninterruptedly beyond our control capacity; which assimilates our food, heals our wounds and keeps our heart beating and immune system operating.

Will I talk, then, about supplements?

Of course I will, but placing them where they belong: as a complement to a solid foundation made up of the following cornerstones:

1. “Pro-immune” nutrition
2. Restorative sleep
3. Some physical exercise
4. Healthy stress management practices

Will I talk in future posts about foods that support (and nourish) our immune system? Absolutely! Stay tuned 😉.

As an example, here there are 8 foods that help strengthen your lungs.

For now, I send you one of those hugs that makes you smile and raises endorphins (without supplements) 😉

Teresa M.