Stay in the loop with an exercise nugget.

Boost your immune system with exercise.

Exercise can boost our immune system by so much that we can reduce the number of sick symptom days by 25 to 50 percent(American Joural of Lifestyle Medicine, 1)

It doesn’t even take much of a workout to get results. If you let kids run around for just six minutes, the levels of immune cells circulating in their blood can increase by 50 percent.

What about exercise to reduce infection risk? Those who exercised even just a few days a week were sick about 40 percent fewer days than sedentary individuals(NIH, Br J Sports Med, 2)

In a study(Med Sci Sports Exerc. 3), elderly sedentary women randomized to a mild range of motion and flexibility calisthenics control group had a 50 percent chance of getting an upper-respiratory illness during the fall season, but those randomized to begin a half-hour-a-day walking program dropped their risk down to 20 percent. For conditioned athletes, the risk was just 8 percent. Exercising could potentially make our immune systems more than five times better at fighting infection.

Who is ready to tie those shoes up and walk around the neighborhood?!

Sources sited:

1. American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine: Moderate exercise improves immunity and decreases illness rates: https://doi.org/10.1177/1559827610392876

2. Br J Sports Med. doi: 10.1136/bjsm.2010.077875

3. Med Sci Sports Exerc. doi: 10.1249/00005768-199307000-00011