Why does your immune system not act in the same way as someone else's in your environment when faced with the same disease? There is no single answer to this question, although cytokines play an important role.

Our immune system has the capacity to defend us against aggressions to our organism. However, there are factors that can alter or enhance it and others that allow us to know its state. At Biosalud we contemplate these factors in a global way and among them are the cytokines are fundamental.

Cytokines, molecules that trigger the immune response

Cytokines are the molecules in the body that signal the existence of pathogens and thus the need for the body to react against them. This function of communication and activation of the immune system marks them out as fundamental, although there are different types of super-specialised cytokines.

On the other hand, these molecules can also have disproportionate responses; one autoimmune reaction such as the so-called "cytokine storm". which causes very dangerous tissue inflammation, as has been the case in a large number of deaths from covid-19.

The influence of age

We often think that, as we get older, our body does not have the same capacity to cope with disease or infection. This is not exactly true; immunosenescence refers to a reduced ability of the body to variations in specific components of the immune systembut there is no immunodeficiency per se.

The role of fat in cytokine production

Cytokines, which are key determinants of the body's immunity, are produced in fat cells. This may be one of the reasons why women suffer more from autoimmune diseases than men, as men tend to accumulate more body fat.

In this sense, obese people may have compromised immune system function; obesity triggers chronic inflammation and a process that can lead to the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines.

Genetic predisposition

The strength of the immune system is largely determined by a person's genetics. Several genes are related in some way to cytokine production.. These are responsible for regulating the detection of pathogens and providing the precise response to kill them.

This genetic predisposition, which shapes the response of the immune system to an external aggression, has a high hereditary component and the presence of a pathogen can provoke alterations in it and make it respond in an unexpected way. In fact, in this circumstance, it must make an effort and adapt to this external presence in order to supply the basic components that neutralise the inflammatory reaction, creating a specific immune response.

Diet influences the immune system

The foods that form part of a person's diet can condition the response of the immune system to certain aggressions, as they increase the immune response to certain aggressions. The body's store of vitamins and other nutrients.

Likewise, nutrition contributes to the development of bacteria in the intestinal flora which, in turn, help the body generate specific cytokines.

The influence of antibiotics on the stability of the immune system

The intake of antibiotic drugs in uncontrolled doses, or in doses that are unnecessary for a particular pathology, can also limit the immune system. In fact, these drugs may distort the immune system's ability to react to some pathogens and affect certain immunotherapy treatments.

Specific diseases that can disrupt our immune response

It has been shown that the existence of certain pathologies in the body can cause changes in a person's immune system, such as, for example, the Lyme disease, obesity, or infections caused by Candida. In these cases, the body's reaction to the existence of bacteria or any other foreign agent may even develop out of control.

In short, whether a person can become ill in certain situations depends on his or her health, but above all on his or her immune system, and on his or her reaction to the causes of the disease. Furthermore, knowing this reaction and the reasons that differentiate it in each person is a priority in order to open the door to new scientific research.

In any case, it is important that take care of yourself individually to preserve the well-being of your body and to ensure that you are in the best possible position to react successfully to possible pathogens. It is also worth taking into account all the factors that influence the creation of something as important for your immunity as the cytokines.