27 de July de 2023

Latent viruses: what they are and how to combat them

Viruses aim to invade the cells of a living being and use them to create new copies of itself, which will repeat this process. Usually, the invasion and replication lasts for a few days, and if the immune system is unable to deal with the problem, the condition develops into a more serious, life-threatening situation if not treated properly. In this article we will talk about what they are and how to combat latent viruses.

What are latent viruses

There is a group of viruses that go one step further. Shortly after the initial infection, they manage to hide in some corner of the body, sometimes inserted in the same genome or in areas that are difficult to access, such as the nervous system or the reproductive system. This phase can last for months, years, or even decades, only reappearing when the immune system is lower than normal. That’s when the infection reappears and causes health problems again. In this group of viruses, we find from HIV, which causes AIDS, to herpes simplex, chickenpox and Epstein- Barr, which is behind the “kissing disease”, among others.

What happens to these viruses in our body

These viruses lie dormant for a long time, without replicating very intensively. They manage to inhibit the internal defenses of the cells and become ‘invisible’ to the immune system and appear when the body is weak or has suffered an infection by another pathogen, when it is subjected to a very stressful situation or some extreme physical activity. It can also be triggered by external factors such as accidents, major surgeries, transplants or drug treatments.
The latest studies relate the worsening of many of the Covid-19 cases, at least in part, to a phenomenon that had not yet been detected during the pandemic: the activation of a second virus, which was latent in the human genome.

How to fight them

Today there are many strategies aimed at promoting the proper functioning of the immune system. Some basic measurements include:

Balance diet.
Moderate daily exercise.
Stress management.
Good sleep hygiene
Specific food supplements

When we talk about specific food supplements, we are referring to those that are intended to compensate deficiencies associated with the immune response, such as immunonutrients , among which it is worth highlighting: Betaglucans , vitamin D3, probiotics , antioxidants, vitamins and minerals.

Treatments

In recent years, immunotherapy treatments have also been used specifically, which are aimed at specifically correcting imbalances in the immune system, through the use of molecules or compounds designed to suppress, block, activate or regulate the immune response. This type of immunomodulatory treatment pursues the long term, regulating immunity and not simply treating the symptoms or blocking some of its functions. After all, it is not a question of strengthening immunity beyond its normal capacity. It is about helping the body to guarantee its immune function.

The most current microimmunotherapy is a form of immunomodulation that advocates getting as close as possible to the natural functioning of the organism. The raw materials used in these microimmunotherapy treatments are endogenous molecules such as cytokines, proteins in our body with an active role in coordinating immune reactions and are administered in low or very low doses, in order to respect physiological processes and guarantee good tolerability of the treatments.

The use of immunonutrients and immunomodulators is probably the best way to preserve the body against latent viruses, guaranteeing proper function of our immune system.

Vitae solution

At Vitae we care about your health, which is why we present you our ImmunoVita supplement.

ImmunoVita ® is one of the supplements that belongs to the family of products specialized in the Immune System, it is a natural food supplement whose formula contains purified beta-glucans from Saccharomyces yeast cerevisiae , vitamin D3, vitamin B6 and Zinc, which helps raise defenses, strengthening the immune system naturally.