Does Sugar Affect the Immune System?

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One of the most sugar filled days of the year is upon us. How does your family handle it? Do you let the kids gorge on all of their Halloween candy in one night? Do you ration it out to one to two pieces per day? How do you deal with sugar on a daily basis? Are you anti- or pro- sugar? Or does your family fit somewhere in the middle?

I’ve recently been wondering a little more about how sugar affects our daily lives and our well-being. Over the past six to nine months, my husband and I have tried to limit our sugar intake. We’re doing it to become more healthy… but most of my health benefits have been focused on weight loss and increased energy. From a personal viewpoint, I feel much better. But from a scientific standard… the jury is still out.

Does Sugar Affect the Immune System?

The fact is, not much is known about how sugar affects our immune system. Maybe I should clarify that statement. If you do a Google search on sugar and our immune system, you will find a plethora of articles indicating that sugar is the root of all evil. Some examples are here and here. Let me be clear. Many of these are blogs or personal websites. They may not evidence-based medicine and may not have reliable research cited as a source for their information. As always, be careful what you read on the Internet.

In addition, a popular TV show, The Doctors, even addressed this issue on sugar and the immune system. Watch the clip here:

Now… is this a causal relationship or more of a coincidence?

This is what we do know.

  1. Anything in excess is bad. This general rule applies to so many things in life.
  2. A lot of foods have sugar in them, not just candy. Carbohydrates are broken down into sugar starting at the first site of digestion: your mouth/saliva. Many foods that we all eat daily contain sugar, and you wouldn’t expect it. Check your labels.
  3. Not much research has been done regarding sugar’s effect on our immune system. There was one study cited throughout all my research. It was from 1973, so it is considerably old in the research world. This study suggests that there may be a relationship between the ingestion of sugar and decreased function of infection fighting cells. More specifically, it addresses the idea that the FUNCTION of these cells is decreased, not the actual number of cells themselves.

An excerpt form the abstract of this article:

Oral 100-g portions of carbohydrate from glucose, fructose, sucrose, honey, or orange juice all significantly decreased the capacity of neutrophils to engulf bacteria…. Starch ingestion did not have this effect. The decrease in phagocytic index (average number of bacteria viewed within each neutrophil) was rapid following the ingestion of simple carbohydrates. The greatest effects occurred between 1 and 2 hr postprandial, but the values were still significant 5 hr after feeding. The decreased phagocytic index was not significantly associated with the number of neutrophils. These data suggest that the function and not the number of phagocytes was altered by ingestion of sugars. (http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/26/11/1180.abstract)

Despite not having any concrete answers, I can tell you this. There is likely not one single thing that contributes to the sickness that seems to increase over the holiday season. Lack of sleep and exercise, poor diet, increased stress, subpar hygiene/handwashing, and lack of healthy relationships can all affect your immune system (http://www.webmd.com/cold-and-flu/10-immune-system-busters-boosters).

My recommendation to my patients is the same guideline I follow for my own family. Everything in moderation—let kids enjoy being kids and smile while you watch them drool over their precious stash of candy this Halloween (and maybe sneak a few for yourself!)

Does Sugar Affect the Immune System?


Meet Guest Blogger Dr. Tricia Cooperrider

Dr. Tricia CooperriderHello! My name is Tricia Cooperrider, and I’m a local pediatrician in Waukee with UnityPoint Clinic.

I grew up in southern Minnesota on a farm. I went to college in Minneapolis at the University of Minnesota. After graduation, I worked for one year doing Applied Behavioral Analysis therapy with children with autism. I then moved to Des Moines for medical school and pediatric residency at Blank Children’s Hospital. Following completion of my residency in 2011, I was able to find my dream job with the UnityPoint Clinic Pediatric location in Waukee. It’s been wonderful to grow my practice and develop relationships with my patients over these last few years. I look forward to watching these children grow up into amazing people.

I am not only a full-time pediatrician, but also a full-time mom and wife. I am constantly working to find the balance between work and home. I’m married to my husband of five years, Jeff, and we live in Waukee. I have a very energetic 3-year-old, Liam, and I gave birth to our second son, Noah, this past August.

I love my job taking care of children but struggle to be everything to everyone – home, work, family – it’s overwhelming! Despite the craziness, I’m in love with my life and my work. I hope to be able to offer you a little perspective from the world of pediatrics while keeping it real… because, let’s face it—textbook advice does not always line up with reality!

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