Natural regulation of the immune system

Why so many immune system therapies fail.

Many people now suffer from problems with their immune system. Chronic burdens from viruses, bacteria and other parasites, allergies and autoimmune diseases, long-term consequences of infectious diseases (post-COVID, post-EBV etc.) and chronic inflammation and inflammatory processes are just some of the consequences of a disturbed immune system that we regularly encounter in our practice. But just because the problems show up in the immune system does not mean that they can be solved by treating the immune system alone.

In order to understand how we really get to the root of these problems, we need to look at the role the immune system plays in the body and which conditions must be met for it to function optimally.

Problem 1: Energy deficiency

The immune system is the body’s own police force, fire brigade and waste collection service. Its tasks include warding off pathogens (such as viruses and bacteria) and harmful substances from the environment that try to enter the body, neutralising and removing pathogens and foreign substances that have already entered, and removing dead or degenerate body cells. One could therefore say: the function of the immune system is to distinguish between what is self and what is foreign, and between what is healthy and what is harmful to one’s own body. Only those things that serve one’s own system should be allowed to enter or remain. This is how we establish healthy contact with our environment.

In this respect, our body works much like our state. Even though the police, fire brigade and waste collection perform important public tasks, they neither make the decisions nor manage the funds. They carry out the tasks assigned to them. This also implies, however, that there are one or more higher-level systems that allocate the tasks and provide the funds for carrying them out – just as in our state.

In the human body, funds are provided in the form of energy. Energy is the basis of life. If enough of it is available, the various systems in the body can carry out their tasks and even renew and develop themselves further. If we look again at the police, fire brigade and waste collection, sufficient funds mean that they can employ enough staff, that all employees are optimally trained, that computer systems, vehicles and processes are up to date, and that all tasks are carried out as well as possible. The same applies to the immune system.

The body’s currency for energy is ATP. At the cellular level, it is ideally produced in the mitochondria, the body’s power plants. For this, the body needs carbohydrates, fats and proteins, as well as the right micronutrients, i.e. vitamins, minerals and trace elements. In the best case, one production cycle yields 36 ATP. In the worst case, a diseased mitochondrion no longer produces any ATP at all.

If too little energy is produced, the body must react and adapt to the prevailing deficiency. Systems can no longer be supplied with all the energy they need, as before. Cutbacks have to be made. We call this state of continuing to function despite an energy deficiency survival. The adaptation of the organism to the new conditions is carried out primarily by three systems: the nervous system, the hormonal system and the immune system – in exactly this order and hierarchy.

When energy becomes scarce, the funds are distributed to the organs and tissues that are most important for survival. The organism thus “considers” how it can survive for as long as possible with scarce resources. All other areas have their “funds” withdrawn.

We know this mechanism from the state, too. When funds are lacking, no new staff are hired, or posts are even cut. In addition, technology is not renewed, sites are closed and the vehicle fleet is not maintained. The police, fire brigade and waste collection continue to exist and work, but no longer under optimal conditions. Some tasks are dropped, overtime accumulates and the longer this state lasts, the more unresolved backlogs build up. In better times, a great deal of money then has to be spent first in order to clear them.

Most immune system therapies do not take the energy factor into account. They intervene directly in the immune system and try to help it regain its optimal way of working. Owing to energy deficiencies, even measures that are fundamentally sensible therefore sometimes fail to bear fruit, or do not do so sufficiently. Without taking the patient’s energy supply into account, it is like giving the police, fire brigade or waste collection tips on how to work better without providing the funds needed to actually implement the necessary changes.

For this reason, in our practice for natural hormone regulation we always start at the base: energy production.

Problem 2: Other organ systems are also affected by energy deficiency, which in turn affects the immune system

It has already been mentioned that the immune system makes few “decisions of its own”, as it is subordinate to the nervous system and the hormonal system in the hierarchy of organ systems. In the case of an energy deficiency, however, it is not only the immune system that is adversely affected, but also the hierarchically superior nervous and hormonal systems. Their reactions to energy deficiency must therefore also be taken into account if the immune system is to be treated effectively.

There are several causes of energy deficiency. Missing nutrients and a derailed metabolism are one of them. Another reason why one’s own battery drains faster than it can be recharged is stress.

Stress is a common word that we use every day. We have stress at work and stress with our partner. We have stress because something is weighing on us emotionally, and we have stress when everything becomes too much. But even though we often use the word stress only casually to describe how we feel, stress has a very physiological counterpart.

Stress of the hormonal system

Hormonal stress is expressed in the body by the stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline. They are released when a threat to survival is perceived. This can happen when we are physically attacked, but also, for example, when the demands and tasks to be managed exceed one’s own energy potential – in other words, when an energy deficiency threatens the organism. The system cannot distinguish between a real and an imagined danger. The release of stress hormones leads to a shift in the entire metabolism, with consequences for all other body systems. In addition to the increased release of cortisol and adrenaline, more oestrogen is also produced. Thyroid hormones, progesterone and testosterone are down-regulated, as these hormones stand for fertility, which is not important in a survival situation. In the case of prolonged stress, the adrenal cortex becomes exhausted, which may lead to cortisol deficiency.

Stress of the nervous system

When danger threatens, the nervous system has three ways of reacting: fight, flight and, if neither helps and the situation seems hopeless, freezing. The higher the stress level already is, however, the less one pauses to consider whether the danger is still present, or even whether it is real at all. You may know this from being out alone at night and feeling uneasy. All the senses are sharpened by the sympathetic branch of the nervous system, which also promotes the release of adrenaline, and one is ready to react to the slightest sign of danger. Every sound and every movement is a potential threat. At least as it feels, it is about the sheer survival of the organism.

Immunological disorders caused by stress in other organ systems

Once these basic principles of the body’s physiology are understood, many complaints of the immune system can also be viewed functionally in a new light.

Why are parasites allowed to remain and spread unhindered, for example in the case of bacterial overgrowth?

– Possible explanation: freezing/resignation. It is hopeless to keep fighting.

Why does the body attack itself, as in the case of an autoimmune disease?

– Possible explanation: fight, because one cannot flee from oneself.

Or reactions to harmless substances from the environment, as in the case of allergies?

– Possible explanation: fight, because one cannot escape the environment.

Why does the body remain in a state of exhaustion even after the acute infection has healed, as in the case of post-COVID?

– Possible explanation: resignation due to a lack of resources.

The connection between fight/flight and freezing in particular can be explained well in terms of survival. The body gives its all once more to escape the dangerous situation, until resources are so scarce that the defence can no longer be maintained. Both over- and under-reactions of the immune system can thus be interpreted meaningfully.

Primary disorders of other organ systems can also have a negative effect on the immune system

For years, in our practice for natural hormone regulation, we have not treated disorders of body systems in isolation, but always in the context of the overall processes in the body.

This applies equally to the hormonal system, the nervous system, the psyche and, of course, the immune system. In the case of immune system disorders, I therefore consider all the important factors that influence the functioning of the immune system, and in a sensible order. In addition to immunological factors and energy deficiency, a disturbed immune system is often caused by further problems.

– The nervous system and the immune system, for example, have fine and direct connections with each other. As the nervous system sets the tone as the body’s conductor, the immune system is also affected when problems arise in the nervous system. Patients not infrequently suffer from a general dysregulation of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems, resulting in under- or over-activation of the entire system.

– The psyche, in turn, is seated in the nervous system and is therefore also connected to the whole body. A good example of the effects of the psyche on the immune system is when holidays, family trips and other family celebrations regularly fall through or have to be cancelled because another infection is on its way.

– General problems in the hormonal system can also affect the immune system, e.g. shifts in hormonal balance after taking the pill or as a result of cortisone. After all, hormones are messengers that, so to speak, convey commands. Hormonal imbalances such as adrenal fatigue, oestrogen dominance or an underactive thyroid affect all processes in the body, including the immune system.

Holistic treatment

If we want to strengthen the immune system and lead it back into regulation, we therefore need to look not only at the immune system but also at the other important levers in the body. The same naturally applies when problems in the immune system cause other systems to become unbalanced. Connections do not always run in one direction only.

Pathogens of infectious diseases such as COVID-19, Lyme disease, influenza and EBV can, once they have entered the body, have negative effects on all systems. Chronic fatigue syndrome is an example of what happens when infections trigger long-lasting consequences for a person’s general condition. In this case, pathogens exert an inhibiting influence on the energy system, which frequently also leads secondarily to adrenal exhaustion.

Since the coronavirus pandemic, we have also seen more and more patients for whom we need to place a phase of immune system treatment before the therapy of the hormonal/nervous system. The reason is that, owing to the circumstances, the COVID infection and, where applicable, the vaccination encountered a particularly stressed organism. In such cases, it seems as though the immune system has forgotten how it normally functions.

Prior stabilisation or holistic regulation straight away?

For this reason, I offer those affected a stabilisation package that precedes the actual regulation of the immune system. This time-limited intervention is initially aimed at enabling patients to regain more quality of life. For this purpose, I have developed a special protocol intended to remind the immune system of its natural task. Improving energy production continues to take precedence over everything else.

These time-limited interventions for post-COVID/post-vaccination can be booked on their own or as preparation for the actual regulation of the immune system.

Whether prior stabilisation makes sense for the patient, or whether natural immune regulation can begin straight away, is clarified in the first appointment.

More about my approach in the practice for natural hormone regulation can be found on the page Natural hormone regulation.

Image: own work, Canva