Overview

An Integrative Health approach to the immune system emphasizes clean living, healthy eating, adequate sleep, exercise, positive relationships, and stress reduction.  It draws in mindful awareness and self-care along with conventional and integrative approaches to health and well-being.  The Circle of Health highlights eight areas of self-care: Surroundings; Personal Development; Nutrition; Recharge; Family Friends, & Co-Workers; Spirit & Soul; Mind & Emotions; and Physical Activity.  This overview explores what a how to apply the latest research on complementary and integrative health (CIH) to immune system health.

Note that this overview focuses immune system health in general.  In addition, there are specific Integrative Health tools focusing on some of the more common immune system-related concerns that lead people to see clinicians.  For more details on sinusitis, herpes simplex virus, asthma, allergies, upper respiratory infection prevention, urinary tract infections, and herbs that support the immune system, see the specific Immune Health tools that accompany this overview. 

Meet the Patient

Joanne is a 45-year-old executive assistant who is new to your practice.  She is feeling frustrated with her propensity toward frequent upper respiratory tract infections (URI) and difficulty controlling her asthma.  For the last couple of months, she has found herself using her albuterol inhaler 3-4 times per week, maybe a bit more when she was having URI symptoms—which was about three discrete episodes over that time frame.  She has had periods similar to that nearly every year for the last 10 years.  She denies ever being hospitalized for his asthma, although there were several times over the last 20 years when she required prednisone for an acute exacerbation.  She has tried some over-the-counter antihistamines, which seem to help a bit, but she does not like the way they make her feel.  She has been on an inhaled steroid in the past but stopped a couple years ago because she was feeling better.