By Penelope A. Domogo, MD
It has been wisely said that “the solution is in the problem.” We are now on our fourth week of lockdown in the Philippines (“tengao”- Bontok, “ubaya”- Kankanaey) and if you have watched internet or TV then you would already have so much information about preventing covid-19 that you need to wash your hands often, wear face mask, social distancing, and self-quarantine when you are not feeling well. Those are our out-of-the-body defense actions. What about our inside-the-body defense? In this column we have been talking about our internal defense system – our immune system. Our wonderful gift from our Creator. Our immune system is what keeps us healthy and well. It protects our body against potentially-damaging foreigners like viruses, bacteria and parasites and even cancer cells. It’s our ultimate defense mechanism so we need to keep it in tip-top condition. How? By believing it is there, by nurturing it with a plant-based, organic, whole foods diet, minimizing stress, and avoiding other health hazards like smoking and overeating, etc.
We have been given this powerful immune system as a gift but taking care of it and that of our children (who cannot decide on their own) is our own responsibility- not the government’s or the church’s. Because it is our choice to believe in it or not, to worry or not, to buy refined sugar or not, to drink Coke or not. The Creator has also given us the power to choose.
We don’t really appreciate our immune system until it weakens or crashes and we get sick. Well, we cannot afford to ignore it, not only at this time but at any time. We cannot just gamble that it is okay. In gambling, winning is no effort perhaps this is why many people get addicted to it thinking baka sakali. This game of life is like chess. You take responsibility. In chess, for you to win, you have to put in a lot of effort (it takes hours for one game of chess to finish), you have to think far ahead, sacrificing some minor victories to win in the end.
Like chess, we need to know how our internal defense machinery works. What composes our immune system? Our blood, our bone marrow, the spleen, tonsils, appendix, lymph nodes and thymus, digestive system, the skin, the lining of our nose, ears, mouth and genitals. These are our infrastructure and their contents are the live forces.
How does the immune system work? Once a foreign body (virus, bacteria or parasite or toxin) attacks or is able to penetrate the skin or cell lining of our body openings, this internal defense system is activated automatically. Even if we are sleeping. It’s on alert 24/7, no off duty. There are two subsystems in the immune system. (1) The innate or general or nonspecific immune system and (2) the adaptive or specific immune system. These two work closely together. The innate or general immune system is at the frontline – natural killer cells and phagocytes. They gobble up the viruses, bacteria, parasites and damaged cells. They clean up debris from these operations so your blood is not poisoned. May excellent waste management din sa loob.
The adaptive or specific immune system makes special forces called antibodies – these are the elite forces, highly specialized to target specific “foreigners”. How does the body do this? You see, our immune system also has an amazing memory, no limit as to how many bytes it can store. When it meets a germ for the first time, it gets all the crucial information about this germ and stores it in its memory. It will also manufacture the necessary weapons to destroy this germ . It will not say, “next time na lang kasi busy ako sa FB”. No, no, the system is so designed to make us overcome the germs asap. Praise be to our Creator. Usually two weeks after exposure to the virus or bacteria, your body has already the antibodies specific for this type of bacteria or virus. This is why, for example, in typhoid fever, we, doctors, compare antibody levels in the blood at the onset of fever and then after two weeks. Another amazing thing here is that you don’t have to get sick to produce antibodies. As long as you are exposed and the virus has entered your system, it triggers this immune response and you produce these antibodies. This is what happens in asymptomatic cases. We are on our fourth month now after the first exposure to covid-19. If you are a front liner or you have been in contact with a covid-19 patient and yet did not get sick, praise God! You have a strong immune system and chances are you already have those antibodies kasi you were exposed to the virus. Pero puede rin naman na di nakapasok ang germs sa iyo so wala ka pang antibodies. Anyhow, these antibodies are so powerful and have excellent memory. The next time that they meet covid-19, they already know what to do so the immune response is faster and the virus does not stand a chance. The person does not get sick with the virus. Although puedeng magkasakit pa rin from other types of corona viruses or other diseases like high blood. This is why I am not keen on making more vaccines because vaccines will only be effective against that specific virus. Unfortunately, our bodies are not designed to trap those sugar and cholesterol molecules while in the stomach. (Perhaps because you have the power not to let these enter your mouth.)
Although there are also general antibodies that help fight the “enemy”, it is these specific antibodies that will be able to finish the virus. Thus modern medicine uses these antibodies to tide patients over while waiting for the patient’s own immune system to respond. This is done in rabies patients and now in severe covid-19 patients. It’s a very expensive modality and not necessary if your immune system is stronger.
So how does the immune system master its function? Like any other worker, it needs practice to hone its skills. It needs to be exposed to these germs. As we mentioned earlier, your body or your system has to confront the virus face to face to be able to get the right information to be able to customize the weapon. So in the past, if it was the season for mumps, parents would continue sending their kids to school to be exposed naturally so they would “get over it” because they knew that these are self-limiting anyway. Once you had it, then that’s it. While they are not affected by antibiotics, viral infections are designed to be self-limiting. Same goes true with chicken pox and measles and German measles. Ano kaya ang message ng Dios dito? Now, the dilemma is that we developed vaccines for some diseases. And it seems we want more vaccines for more viruses. And yet there are thousands and even millions of viruses and aside from these natural germs, we are breeding mutant germs! What more, we want to sterilize the environment. Modern society has made us so “allergic” to germs and we have an arsenal of germkillers- from soaps to sanitizers to sprays to anibiotics, antihelminthics, antivirals. If we remove these natural germs from our environment, how can our immune system practice making antibodies? I have often seen “poor” children swim in the severely-polluted Manila Bay. How come they don’t get the cough and colds and pneumonia? Compare their health to children who are not allowed to touch soil or be caught in the rain without an umbrella. One colleague intentionally walked the streets of Manila with her kids and they ate street food to strengthen their immunity. Germs are part of nature and they have an important role to play for our wellbeing.
In summary, our bodies are designed to handle viruses and other potentially harmful creatures in nature. Just as viruses (and bacteria and parasites) are designed to create an immune response in our bodies. It’s the law of cause and effect. Viruses are also designed to be self-limiting and to be seasonal. The solution is in the problem. We just need to live in harmony with the rest of creation. With covid-19, we have lockdown and do social distancing to slow the spread as we don’t have the means to handle a drastic rise in cases. And in due time, this season will pass. Like a storm that surely will weaken as it passes by land, so this virus will soon fade away. I pray that we have learned our lessons by now and we keep our memory, just like what our immune system does. Happy Easter to everyone!**
**
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 2 Corinthians 12:9
