Living with an immunodeficiency can impact your daily life, especially when interacting with other people. Understanding how your body can become immunocompromised and finding ways to protect yourself can improve your quality of life.
How Your Immune System Works
Your immune system is your body’s primary defense against bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites and includes your:
- White blood cells
- Lymph nodes
- Liver
- Skin
- Tonsils
- Bone marrow
- Spleen
- Thymus
Those body parts work together to fight infection and illness by inducing tissue inflammation to attack harmful germs. Innate immunity is the immune defense you’re born with and responds the same to foreign substances. Adaptive immunity is acquired over time. Your body develops adaptive immunity as it learns to respond to specific antigens introduced through infection or vaccination.
Common Causes of Immunocompromisation in Seniors
Immune system issues are categorized by primary or secondary immunodeficiencies. Primary immunodeficiency occurs at birth and is caused by genetic mutations or changes in your genetic code. It can cause partial or complete immunodeficiency. Secondary immunodeficiency occurs later in life due to a health condition or medication and affects your immune system’s ability to adapt to new infections and illnesses.
Common immunodeficiency causes include:
Aging: As you get older, your body makes fewer cells needed to fight infection. That negatively affects its ability to recognize and ward off bacteria and viruses.
Autoimmune diseases: If you have an autoimmune disease such as multiple sclerosis or lupus, your immune system mistakenly attacks your body’s tissues, organs and cells, resulting in permanent damage.
Organ transplant: You may have to take immunosuppressant medication to prevent your body from attacking an organ transplant, reducing your ability to fight infection.
Diabetes: High blood sugar impairs your white blood cells, preventing your immune system from responding appropriately and increasing your susceptibility to illness and infection.
Heart disease: Cardiovascular conditions can reduce your circulation and your body’s ability to deliver white blood cells to different parts of your body.
Chronic kidney disease: Your kidneys are responsible for flushing toxins out of your body. Kidney disease can affect their ability to do so, resulting in an accumulation of toxins that can cause immunodeficiency.
Cancer: Leukemia and lymphoma are types of cancer that affect your white blood cells, which directly impact your immunity.
HIV/AIDS: Human Immunodeficiency Virus and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome reduce your T-cells, a type of white blood cell, and impair your immune response to illness and infection.
Exposure: Long-term exposure to pollutants and chemicals can create cellular damage and disrupt immune cell function.
Chemotherapy and radiation: Both types of cancer treatment target rapidly dividing cells, including white blood cells. That diminishes your immune system’s ability to respond to foreign substances.
Symptoms of a Compromised Immune System
- Frequent infection
- Longer healing or recovery
- Unusual or intense infection or illness
- Lack of response to medication
- Sinus or lung infections
- Fever or chills
- Weight loss
- Chronic diarrhea
- Secondary infection or illness
Preventative Measures to Protect Your Immune System
Living with an immunodeficiency as a senior can present challenges. You may be at an increased risk of infection, requiring you to take more precautions when interacting with others.
Immunodeficiency can also affect how your body responds to vaccinations and make it more difficult to recover from an illness. That may cause you a sense of anxiety, but there are steps you can take to protect yourself.
The following tips can help you manage your risk for illness and injury:
- Wash your hands with soap and water frequently.
- Avoid crowded public places.
- Wear a mask when you’re in public.
- Limit your exposure to sick individuals.
- Get yearly vaccinations.
- Practice consistent medication management.
- Wash produce and cook food thoroughly.
- Avoid cuts and scrapes.
- Eat a nutrient-rich diet.
- Practice good dental hygiene to control germs.
- Schedule regular checkups with your primary care physician.
- Get plenty of sleepto allow your body to rest and recuperate.
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