How to work out your 'immunotype' and why it could be the secret to better health

Moday says modern lifestyles are fuelling a crisis in immunity, but her message is that we can all make ours more robust. Photo / Getty Images

In 2020 we all began talking about immunity. Suddenly, we were discussing how to 'boost' our immunity, and learning a new vocab too, of antibodies, cytokines, T cells. "When you have a pandemic that affects the entire world, people start to pay attention," says Dr Heather Moday, immunologist and author of new book The Immunotype Breakthrough.

The immune system is truly "a matter of life and death", she says. Every day, it encounters and fights off viruses and other invaders. "Most of the time you and I don't even know what we are encountering," she says. "It's normal to get sick. The issue is, do you resolve quickly? How frequently do you get sick? And how long do you stay sick? That will give you a sense of how robust your system is."

Moday says modern lifestyles are fuelling a crisis in immunity, but her message is that we can all make ours more robust. "People often think they are given their immune system and there's not really much they can do about it... Regardless of where they are, they can always make improvements," she says.

She believes our immune systems fall into four different types, and working out which type you are is key to rebalancing your body's defences against illness.

Moday is not only talking about not getting sick from catching something. Our immunity determines our overall health and longevity, our chances of developing the chronic diseases that kill most people, namely heart disease, lung disease, diabetes, Alzheimer's and cancer.

Once you identify which type of immune dysfunction you have, you can take steps towards immune balance. Photo / Getty Images

The key lies in inflammation, part of our immune system's repair response. When our army of immune cells is triggered this causes redness, swelling and heat, or we produce mucus to trap and expel the germs. "All of us get inflamed every day, constantly. But we don't feel the symptoms because it gets resolved very quickly," she explains.

This inflammatory response is supposed to subside. "Inflammation is great as long as you can put out the fire once it's done its job." But when it keeps going or spins out of control, it can lead to dysfunction, then to chronic disease.

Say you smoke, for example. This inflames your airways, lungs, mouth and oesophagus. "Our immune cells are constantly repairing that so over time, we have a lot of inflammation," she says. Or, if you have diabetes; "very high blood sugar damages blood vessels, so we constantly have to try to repair that". Or if you are obese, with a BMI of over 30. "Fat itself is inflammatory," she says.

Our level of inflammation will also determine how ill we get when we are, for example, confronted with a novel virus such as Covid. "If you are chronically inflamed, your body is already compromised, you're putting out fires all over the place," says Moday. This can lead to the over-reaction of the 'cytokine storm' when our immune cells' last-ditch efforts may end on a ventilator.

Inflammation is a key part of autoimmune conditions too, such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus and type 1 diabetes. This is where the immune system attacks the body's own tissues, "a vicious cycle of inflammation-autoimmunity-more inflammation".

"If we cut out sources of inflammation, the immune system can do its job," says Moday. At this point, her approach might diverge from that of your GP. After working in the US as an allergist and immunologist, she studied integrative medicine, which includes Ayurveda, acupuncture and Chinese herbs. She then trained in functional medicine, which looks at a person's health in terms of imbalances, uses biochemical tests to pinpoint them, and food and lifestyle changes to rebalance.

Excess sugar, sitting too much, and drinking too much alcohol can all raise inflammation, while a polyphenol-rich diet, with plenty of the different coloured pigments in fruit and vegetables, can dial it down. Moday's number one piece of advice for immunity is eight hours sleep. In studies on response to vaccines, the sleep deprived did not make as many antibodies as those who'd had eight hours each night.

Moday suggests that toxins, which include pesticides in food, Bisphenol A (BPA) softeners in plastics, phthalates and parabens in cosmetics, "directly impair our immune cells" and play a "significant role" in immune dysfunction.

She stresses the importance of personalised lifestyle changes, which work with your immunotype, which came to her when she noticed patterns emerging among her patients.

A Misguided immunotype is an immune system attacking your own healthy tissues. A Weak immunotype simply isn't strong enough. If yours is Smouldering, you are dominated by chronic inflammation. And if you fall into the Hyperactive category, your immune system is reacting to things it shouldn't. (See below to find yours.)

Moday's advice for each category aims to balance key immune cells, in particular the T cells which have recently proven to be important in immunity to Covid, through vaccines and previous infections. "The T cells are like the generals of the army; they make a lot of decisions," she says. In response to attack, they create different types of T helper – or Th1 – cells. People with more Th1 cells, which are very inflammatory, may be Smouldering or Misguided, while people with a Weak Immunotype may need more of them. In fact, better immunity turns out not to be about 'boosting' after all. In fact, only the Weak Immunotype needs this. The other types need redirection or calming, she says. "If you can figure out why the immune system is a certain way, you can bring it back to a better balance," says Moday.

If you have allergies, including seasonal and food, eczema or hives, asthma or a chronic cough you may have a hyperactive immune system. Photo / Getty Images

Discover your immunotype, and how to rebalance it
Once you identify which of these four types of immune dysfunction you have, you can take steps towards immune balance, says Moday. NB: you may be more than one.

Misguided

Signs this is you: You have an autoimmune disease eg, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis or thyroid disease, or a family history of this. Also: unexplained hair loss, joint pains or swollen joints, muscle weakness or pains.

What to do: Focus on gut health: eat more fibre to feed gut bacteria, and naturally fermented foods, such as kefir, kimchi and sauerkraut. Also, try a 30-day elimination diet with a nutritionist, taking out sugar, alcohol, wheat, dairy, soy, eggs, corn, peanuts and processed food. "This will allow the immune system ample time to become less reactive if any of these foods are an issue," says Moday. You then add the foods back in to see how the body responds.

Smouldering

Signs this is you: You have diabetes or high blood sugar, or coronary artery disease. You may have had a heart attack, have high blood pressure or be obese (BMI 30+) or have high blood sugar, arthritis or swollen joints.

What to do: Focus on decreasing inflammation. "That includes removing sugar from your diet," says Moday, and "industrial" seed oils such as sunflower, corn and vegetable oil. Add in anti-inflammatory fish oils, either from eating oily fish or from a supplement. You can also take curcumin, the active ingredient in turmeric, or use turmeric in cooking. Studies have shown it shuts down inflammation on many levels. If you are overweight, prioritise getting to a healthy weight.

Hyperactive

Signs this is you: You have allergies, including seasonal and food, eczema or hives, asthma or a chronic cough. You are sensitive to mould, and have a tendency to yeast infections.

What to do: Take steps to calm your immune system, as it can no longer tell the difference between friends and foes. One way to do this is to up your intake of vitamin A and carotenoids, found in squash, beets, mangoes, egg yolks, liver, chicken and turkey, as well as cod liver oil. Another is quercetin, found in many types of produce, especially onions and apples, which acts like an antihistamine in the body. At home, inside air can be more polluted than that outside: open windows regularly.

Weak

Signs this is you: You get frequent colds or upper respiratory infections, urinary tract infections, herpes or cold sores. Your colds last for weeks, you get diarrhoea or food poisoning when you travel, and often feel run down.

What to do: Eat maitake and shiitake mushrooms, rich in immune-boosting beta glucans, or you can take a mushroom blend supplement. But most important is to prioritise sleep. "As soon as you start getting high-quality sleep, your immune system rebounds swiftly," says Dr Moday. Maximise internal melatonin (the sleep hormone) levels by avoiding electronics for an hour before bed, wearing blue-light blocking glasses at night and covering any electronic lights in the bedroom with tape. And fit blackout curtains.