Fever May Help the Body Heal Itself.

Before you reach for that bottle of aspirin when you have a cold, you may want to consider the result of a new study on fever. Researchers have found that running a slight temperature bolsters the immune system, and might actually help people with colds and other infections recover more quickly. Experts say little has been known about the role body temperature plays in disease. For example, do people run a fever because their immune systems are working hard to make them well? Or is an elevated temperature part of the healing process?"Studies from our group and from others really raise the concept that in moderate ranges, the febrile temperature is providing just one more advantage to the immune response, the immune defense," said Sharon Evans.

In a healthy individual the body deposits about a 100,000 disease-fighting white blood cells every day into each lymph node, which is part of the body's immune system. These white cells, or lymphocytes, act as sentinels for infection. To gain entry into the nodes, the cells must cross delicate blood vessel tissue and membranes of the lymph system. But when there is a local infection or cold that requires a heightened immune response, a flood of white cells pack the lymph glands. A particular study looked more closely at this process, and the role fever plays since it accompanies infection. The researchers used mice whose core body temperature was raised to about 39.5 degrees Celsius, that of an average fever.

Investigators found that elevations in body temperature doubled the speed at which the infection-fighting white blood cells entered the lymph system. "In other words, more lymphocytes are coming through constantly and searching for foreign pathogens" "So, the overall efficiency of immune defense is actually augmented." The findings were published in the journal Nature Immunology. Future studies may show it is beneficial not to reduce a fever."

It may not be necessary to repress a fever in the early stages of infection as long as it's well-controlled."

"The issue becomes when it is very, very high, and you know that is talking above 105 degrees [40 Celsius], above the temperatures we used in our study. Then you always have concerns, especially in children, that you might have real problems in the brain and other organ failure systems."

Healing is the process whereby the cells in the body regenerate and repair to reduce the size of a damaged or necrotic area. Healing incorporates both the removal of necrotic tissue, and the replacement of this tissue.

In order for an injury to be healed by regeneration, the cell type that was destroyed must be able to replicate. Most cells have this ability, although it is believed that cardiac muscle cells and neurons are two important exceptions.

Healing must happen by repair in the case of injury to cells that are unable to regenerate, e.g. cardiac muscle or neurons. Also, damage to the collagen network, eg. by enzymes or physical destruction, or its total collapse, as can happen in an infarct cause healing to take place by repair. The healing process at work in spontaneous remission is explained in detail in Cancer Free For Life, as well as the reasons why we get sick. Dr Magne has been researching the origins and causes of disease and cancer for the past 25 years. Visit www.cancer-free-for-life.com to receive a FREE report on The 10 Ways to Cure Cancer Immediately. This article is available for reprint for your website and newsletter, provided that you maintain its copyright integrity and include the signature.