When it comes to immune health, the mantra of "more is better" has run amok on the internet. Social media is full of influencers promoting supplements and life hacks that promise to "boost" your immune system. In truth, however, the secret to maintaining good health is not a supercharged immune system but rather one that is balanced. Scientific evidence has proven that an overactive immune response leads to allergies, autoimmune disorders, and chronic inflammation, whereas an underactive immune system makes you vulnerable to infections. This article explores the science behind why balance, not boosting, is the foundation of a healthy immune system.

How Does the Immune System Defend the Body?

Your immune system is like a complex system of cells and organs that function without rest, fighting to defend your body. Think of it as a roaming patrol team; the immune cells continuously patrol, scouting for pathogens, such as bacteria, viruses, or toxins, that must be eliminated.

B and T cells are the immune system's special forces. They are produced in your bone marrow and trained with such intensity that they can tell the difference between the bad guys and the body's own good guys. If a cell cannot pass this test, it is killed. However, when self-reactive cells slip past this checkpoint, they may lead to autoimmune diseases by attacking healthy tissues.

It's a delicate balance, and upsets to either extreme of overactivation or suppression are bad news for your health.

Is Immune Boosting a Misguided Approach?

The idea of "boosting" your immune system sounds almost appealing, but it is fundamentally scientifically flawed. The immune system operates much like a thermostat. If you set the thermostat too high, inflammation and over-activation result, whereas if you set it too low, you are quite defenseless to infections.

Over-the-counter immune-boosting supplements often promise quick fixes but come with a critical caveat: they are not FDA-approved to diagnose, treat, or prevent diseases. For those with clinical nutrient deficiencies, supplements might be helpful. However, for the average person with adequate nutrient levels, they offer little more than a false sense of security.

Also Read: Natural Remedies For 6 Common Ailments To Boost Immunity And Destress

Balance your Immune System Through Lifestyle Choices

Instead of chasing “immune boosters,” focus on adopting sustainable habits that support immune balance:

1. A Well-Balanced Diet: A diverse diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats provides essential nutrients like vitamins C, D, and zinc, which are vital for immune health.

2. Regular Exercise: Moderate, consistent physical activity helps improve circulation and immune response.

3. Stress Management: Chronic stress depresses the immune function. Mindfulness, meditation, and yoga are known to help in the management of stress levels.

4. Good Sleep: Restorative and regenerative activities take place when there is good quality sleep. Adult individuals need at least 7-9 hours every night.

These habits are not likely to make you impervious but are greatly essential for the betterment of overall health and immunity.

How Vaccines Prepare Your Immune System

Unlike supplements, vaccines are scientifically proven tools to boost up your immune system's shield. Vaccines contain inactivated or attenuated forms of pathogens that actually train the immune cells to identify and combat them easily. This leaves behind memory cells in the immune system that can almost instantly eliminate real threats, sometimes without even realizing the exposure.

For instance, routine immunizations against influenza, measles, and COVID-19 have greatly reduced the burden of infectious diseases in the world.

Risk of Immune Overactivation

While an underperforming immune system leaves you prone to infections, an overactive immune system can cause its own set of problems. Conditions like allergies and autoimmune disorders arise from an exaggerated immune response where the body mistakenly attacks itself. Chronic inflammation, often linked to overactive immunity, has been implicated in conditions like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer.

This speaks to the balance of a good immune response, rather than loading it with too many unrequired interventions.

In a society of quick fixes and marketing mantras, where "boost" has become an almost siren word, the principle of immune balance gets lost. But science absolutely agrees that an immune system prospers with equilibrium.

Paying attention to a healthy lifestyle—balanced nutrition, regular exercise, stress reduction, and quality sleep—you can support your immune system without the risks associated with overactivation. Combined with vaccinations to enhance your body's natural defenses, this approach provides a sustainable route to good health.

In the case of your immune system, more isn't always better. Sometimes, "just right" is the perfect formula for long-term well-being.

Long COVID should be viewed as a web of overlapping symptoms rather than a single, uniform condition, according to a new systematic review published in eClinicalMedicine and reported by the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP). The review highlights several recurring symptom patterns linked to long COVID, including neurological, respiratory, smell and taste-related, cardiopulmonary, and fatigue-driven clusters.

Researchers led by a team from Lanzhou University in Gansu, China, examined data from 64 studies conducted across 20 countries, covering nearly 2.4 million people. They grouped long COVID patients into subtypes using different approaches: symptom overlap in 30 studies, affected organ systems in 16 studies, symptom severity in nine, clinical markers in three, and other classification methods in the remaining research.

COVID Symptoms 2026: Fatigue Emerges As The Most Common Symptom

Among studies that focused on how symptoms appear together, fatigue stood out as the most consistently reported issue. It often occurred alone or alongside problems such as muscle and joint pain, brain fog, or breathlessness. Other symptom pairings that appeared frequently included loss of smell and taste, anxiety with depression, and various forms of musculoskeletal pain.

When researchers classified patients based on affected organ systems, respiratory problems were the most widespread, seen in about 47% of long COVID patients. Neurological symptoms followed at 31%, while gastrointestinal issues were reported by 28%. The authors stressed that these percentages reflect how often these clusters appeared within long COVID cases studied, not how common they are in the general population.

A smaller number of studies sorted patients by how severe their symptoms were, dividing them into mild, moderate, or severe categories using symptom scores, symptom counts, or quality-of-life measures. Three studies used clinical indicators for classification, including abnormal triglyceride levels and signs of restricted lung function on imaging.

COVID Symptoms 2026: Women Report Fatigue More Often

The review also found that long COVID subtypes vary based on demographic, socioeconomic, and medical factors. Women were more likely to report fatigue and neuropsychiatric symptoms, while men more commonly experienced respiratory issues. Older adults tended to show higher rates of respiratory, cardio-renal, and ear, nose, and throat symptoms.

Racial and ethnic differences also emerged. Black and Hispanic individuals were more likely to experience respiratory, cardiac, and neuropsychiatric symptoms, whereas White patients showed higher rates of fatigue and musculoskeletal complaints.

COVID-19 variants appeared to influence symptom patterns as well. The researchers noted that the Alpha variant was closely linked to smell-related and respiratory symptoms, while the Delta variant raised the risk of ENT-related problems. In addition, higher body mass index, socioeconomic disadvantage, and existing conditions such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease were strongly associated with cardiopulmonary symptom clusters and a heavier overall long COVID burden.

Overall, the findings reinforce that long COVID rarely affects just one system in the body. Instead, it tends to involve multiple overlapping symptom groups, pointing to the need for more tailored, patient-specific care.

The authors call for future studies to focus on creating standardized ways to classify long COVID, identifying the biological mechanisms behind different symptom clusters, and testing targeted treatments for specific subtypes. They note that this approach will be essential for moving toward precision medicine and improving outcomes for people living with long COVID.

Measles is one of the most infectious illnesses known, and as case numbers rise across the United States, health experts warn the country is close to losing its measles elimination status. The current surge marks the highest number of measles cases recorded since the disease was officially eliminated in the U.S. in 2000. In 2025 alone, more than 2,100 cases have been reported nationwide. Texas has emerged as the hardest-hit state, accounting for roughly two out of every five confirmed infections. So just how easily does measles spread?

Measles Cases Increase In The US

As of January 8, a total of 2,065 measles cases had been confirmed across the country, according to the latest figures from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The last time the U.S. recorded a higher annual total was in 1992, before the routine recommendation of two doses of the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine for children, CNN reported.

Several major outbreaks remain active, including one in upstate South Carolina and another along the Arizona-Utah border. These clusters have renewed fears that the U.S. could lose its measles elimination status, which it has maintained for more than two decades. While measles spreads easily, vaccination remains highly effective. One dose of the MMR vaccine offers about 93% protection, and two doses increase effectiveness to 97%, according to the CDC.

What Is Measles?

Measles, also known as rubeola, is a highly contagious viral illness that typically causes fever, cough, a runny nose, red and watery eyes, and a distinctive red, blotchy rash that usually begins on the face and spreads downward. The virus spreads through the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes and can lead to serious complications such as pneumonia or brain inflammation. Despite its severity, measles is preventable through a safe and effective vaccine, as per the Mayo Clinic.

How Contagious Is Measles?

Measles is among the most contagious diseases in the world. The virus spreads through airborne droplets that can linger in the air or on surfaces for hours. Up to 90% of unvaccinated people who are exposed to measles will become infected. A single infected person can pass the virus to an estimated 12 to 18 others through close contact or shared spaces. People can transmit the virus days before symptoms become obvious and continue spreading it after the rash appears, according to the World Health Organization.

How Long Is Someone Contagious With Measles?

Someone infected with measles can spread the virus from four days before the rash develops to four days after it appears. The virus spreads so efficiently that about 90% of people who are unvaccinated or have never had measles will become infected after being exposed.

In November, Canada lost its measles elimination status following a significant outbreak, according to the Pan American Health Organization, which works closely with the World Health Organization.

“It’s important to say that all the other 34 countries in the region, they keep their certification as measles-free,” said PAHO/WHO Director Dr. Jarbas Barbosa at the time, as per NPR News.

U.S. health officials have also warned that genetic links between outbreaks in different states suggest continued spread.

“The trajectory that we’re looking at now is that we do anticipate more cases well into January,” Bell said. “What that means for us nationally in terms of how they are defining our designation in this country as having eliminated measles is unclear.”

A major UK study tracking more than 165,000 people living with dementia has found that risperidone raises the risk of stroke across all patients, calling into question the long-held belief that the drug may be safe for certain groups.

Risperidone is a potent antipsychotic commonly given to people with dementia who develop severe agitation, particularly in care homes, when non-medicated approaches have failed.

Researchers observed that the risk of stroke rose even in patients with no previous history of heart disease or stroke. The finding challenges assumptions about who can safely take the drug and has prompted fresh concerns about how risperidone, the only medication of its kind licensed for dementia, is prescribed and followed up.

The findings, published in the British Journal of Psychiatry, are likely to fuel renewed discussion around current prescribing practices.

What Is Risperidone?

Risperidone, sold under brand names such as Risperdal and Risperdal Consta, is an atypical antipsychotic that affects brain chemicals including dopamine and serotonin. It is a prescription-only drug.

Risperidone: Risk Holds Across Patient Profiles

One of the study’s key insights was that the increased stroke risk appeared consistent across different types of patients, according to Dr Byron Creese of Brunel University of London. “We already knew risperidone was linked to stroke, but it was unclear whether some people were more vulnerable than others. We hoped to identify traits that could help doctors avoid prescribing it to higher-risk patients,” he said, as reported by Scitech Daily.

About half of all people with dementia experience agitation, which can be deeply upsetting for both patients and carers. When other methods do not help, risperidone is sometimes used as a last measure. The new evidence sharpens the difficult choices doctors and families face, weighing the drug’s ability to ease extreme distress against its clearly increased stroke risk.

Risperidone: Gaps In Guidance And Monitoring

Risperidone, often used to manage aggressive behaviour, already carries warnings about stroke risk in older adults. However, there is still no dementia-specific guidance on how clinicians should monitor these risks. While NHS advice limits risperidone use to six weeks for severe symptoms, many patients remain on it longer, with follow-up practices differing widely.

Dr Creese noted that there are no UK-licensed alternatives for such cases, making it essential that risks are clearly discussed and carefully balanced. People who have already had a stroke are naturally at higher risk of another. If a stroke occurs while taking risperidone, it may not always be possible to separate drug-related risk from underlying vulnerability. “These results give clearer information to guide decisions,” he said. “Each case should come down to what is right for the individual, through open conversations between doctors, patients, and families.”

What The Data Proves

Researchers examined anonymized NHS records from 2004 to 2023, comparing patients prescribed risperidone with similar individuals who were not. Among those with a prior stroke, the annual rate per 1,000 person-years rose to 22.2 percent in people taking risperidone, compared with 17.7 percent in those who were not. In patients without a stroke history, rates were lower but still notable at 2.9 percent versus 2.2 percent. The risk was also higher during short-term use of up to 12 weeks, according to Scitech Daily.

“We hope this evidence helps shape updated guidance that is more focused on individual patients and real-world risk,” Dr Creese said.