Intestine
The intestine is an essential part of the digestive system. It is responsible for breaking down food, absorbing nutrients and excreting waste products. The intestine is divided into the narrower small intestine and the wider large intestine. Both intestinal sections have different subdivisions. Small intestine: duodenum, jejunum and ileum. Large intestine: cecum (with appendix), colon and rectum (with anus).
The gut is home to a diverse microbiota that plays a crucial role in health, including supporting the immune system, producing certain vitamins and regulating metabolism. The gut is therefore not only an essential organ for digestion, but also has a far-reaching impact on the individual's overall health.
Immune system
The immune system is a complex network that protects our body against foreign substances and pathogens through defense reactions. This defense system consists of two main parts: the innate and the acquired immune system. The innate immune system provides a general immune response against pathogens.
The acquired or adaptive immune system specifically targets certain pathogens and forms an immunological memory. A healthy immune system is crucial for maintaining our health and well-being. Our immune system consists of many different cell types (T cells, “scavenger cells” or “killer cells”, memory cells,...) and messenger substances. They all have different tasks.
Intestine and immune defense
When we want to strengthen our immune defense, we often pay too little attention to the immune system in the intestine.
This versatile organ is in constant exchange with microscopic creatures and passes on the latest information through the blood to the entire body.
The so-called microbes also support the intestine in its role as an immune organ. We would therefore do well to stimulate their growth.
In this article, you will learn a lot about the intestinal immune system and how it is related to your diet.
What are water-soluble dietary fibers and where can you find them? Why is porridge good for your gut? And what about those lactobacilli? We will answer these and other questions in the blog.
Read all about the immune system now
What is the connection between the gut, gut flora and the immune system?
The immune system is an exceptionally complex interaction of various components.
But while we usually assume that the blood and lymphatic system are primarily involved in strong body defenses, the largest immune organ often goes unnoticed: the gut.
Our gut not only plays an important role in defending against pathogenic germs, but also a very interesting one.
The immune system protects us from harmful external influences, but the intestine shows that the “outside” is not automatically bad. Our organism even needs other living beings such as bacteria in order to function properly.
While the cellular immune defense, the white blood cells from the bone marrow, fights cells that are foreign to the body, the intestine needs these cells for its most basic tasks.
These beneficial bacteria, which strengthen the gut health, help the gut to digest food. They ensure an acidic intestinal environment in which other harmful germs cannot multiply.
In addition, the gut often forms the first immune defense against certain germs.
The information learned in the gut about pathogenic “cohabitants” is then passed on to various defense centers in the body via the immune cells in the intestinal mucosa 1 .
And indeed, 80% of all immune cells are located in the intestinal mucosa to directly eliminate pathogens ingested through the digestive tract.
Where is the immune system located in the gut?
The gut can fight pathogens at various levels in the body. These are:
- The intestinal mucosa, which primarily serves as a mechanical barrier.
- The gut-associated immune system, which, as part of the lymphatic system, exchanges information about harmful germs with the entire organism. About 80% of the human body's immune cells are located in the intestinal wall!
- The intestinal microbiome or intestinal flora (or microbiota) is a complex system of intestinal bacteria. Up to 100 trillion microorganisms are part of the human intestinal flora.
The intestine thus has three lines of defense that form a functional unit known as the intestinal barrier.
Build intestinal flora – read more
Intestinal nutrition – what should I consider?
If you are familiar with healthy eating and pay close attention to your body's signals, you will almost automatically strengthen your intestinal immune system.
You can recognize a stressed gut that is not doing a good job of performing its immune defense role by digestive complaints. This is because a weak intestinal flora often makes it easy for pathogens to gain a foothold, increasing susceptibility to infection. Under some circumstances (e.g. prolonged use of antibiotics, etc.), intestinal cleansing (taking special preparations to restore and build up the intestinal flora ) may be necessary. After that, you can strengthen your intestinal immune system again with the help of the right nutrition.
To get your intestinal immune system back in shape, follow these important rules:
- A daily intake of sufficient fiber – about 30 grams
- The intake of beneficial bacteria through probiotic foods
- Regular meals that keep your digestion going
- Thorough chewing
Which foods are particularly good for the gut?
If you want to strengthen the intestinal immune system and thus your immune system in general, the following foods play an important role. They should be on your menu often:
- Whole grains, especially oats and rye
- Lactic acid and probiotic foods such as yogurt or sauerkraut (because bacterial cultures such as bifidobacteria and lactobacilli inhibit the growth of disease-causing germs)
- Fruit, especially berries and apples
- Nuts (such as cashews, almonds or walnuts)
- Legumes (lentils or chickpeas)
- Seeds (flaxseed or chia seeds)
When choosing fiber-rich foods, you should also look for a particularly high content of water-soluble fiber such as inulin or pectin.
These swell up in the body and quickly move the food bolus along in the intestines. This can effectively prevent constipation.
Of course, the wrong diet can put a considerable strain on your intestinal immune system. Highly processed and industrially produced foods made from white flour tend to be rather harmful for the bacteria of the intestinal flora.
But foods that are high in sugar and fat also put unnecessary strain on the digestive system. 2
Breakfast from VERIVAL for a healthy gut
Helpers for the gut: fermented milk products
Among probiotic foods, fermented milk products are particularly beneficial for the gut immune system.
These microbe boosters consist of milk that is inoculated with various lactic acid bacteria.
Various lactobacilli are particularly beneficial for a healthy intestinal flora and a strong immune system. They are responsible for the lactic acid fermentation in yoghurt, sour milk and buttermilk.
But milk kefir, which contains not only lactobacilli but also health-promoting yeasts, is also beneficial for the intestines and strengthens the beneficial bacterial strains 3 .
These “live” dairy products provide relief from acute digestive problems such as diarrhea or constipation and strengthen the immune system in the gut sustainably.
Functional foods enriched with probiotics (prebiotic foods ) and probiotic dietary supplements can help you strengthen your immune system in the gut. In addition, it is ideal to combine probiotics with prebiotics. This is because special prebiotic fibres are a real booster for intestinal bacteria. Abundant sources of prebiotics include flaxseed, oats, parsnips, onions, leeks and legumes.
Intestine – healthy breakfast from VERIVAL
With plenty of fiber in the morning, you can effortlessly support your immune system and thus prevent infections.
At VERIVAL, we make sure that our muesli and porridge products are full of these important dietary fibers, as well as vitamins and minerals.
With a porridge or muesli in the morning, your blood sugar level rises only slowly and your energy level remains constant for a longer period of time.
A porridge made from three particularly high-fibre ingredients - oats, berries and nuts - is good for the gut.
A delicious and gut-friendly addition to your healthy breakfast would be a few spoonfuls of yoghurt. But buttermilk or kefir are also perfect complements to your wholesome breakfast.
A healthy breakfast with VERIVAL products is the first step in strengthening the immune system in the gut.
Porridge recipes for a healthy gut - discover them now
- 1.Kamada N, Núñez G. Regulation of the Immune System by the Resident Intestinal Bacteria. Gastroenterology . Published online May 2014:1477-1488. doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2014.01.060
- 2.Illiano P, Brambilla R, Parolini C. The mutual interplay of gut microbiota, diet and human disease. FEBS J. Published online February 3, 2020:833-855. doi: 10.1111/febs.15217
- 3.Rosa DD, Dias MMS, Grześkowiak ŁM, Reis SA, Conceição LL, Peluzio M do CG. Milk kefir: nutritional, microbiological and health benefits. Nutr Res Rev . Published online February 22, 2017:82-96. doi: 10.1017/s0954422416000275
Frequently asked questions
What does the immune system have to do with the gut?
The gut plays an important role in our immune system. The intestinal mucosa, the gut-associated immune system and the intestinal flora are essential components of a functioning immune system. In fact, 80% of all immune cells are located in the intestinal mucosa, where they directly eliminate pathogens that have been absorbed through the digestive tract.
Is the immune system located in the gut?
Yes. A significant part of the human immune system is located in the gut. About 70% of the immune cells in the human body are located in the intestinal wall!
Why is the immune system located in the gut?
Our gut plays not only an important but also a very interesting role in defending against disease-causing germs. The immune system protects us from harmful influences from the outside. The gut shows that the “outside” is not automatically bad. Our organism even needs other living things, such as bacteria, to function properly. The gut has three lines of defense, which form a functional unit known as the intestinal barrier: intestinal mucosa, intestinal flora, and gut-associated immune system.
How does the intestinal flora influence the immune system?
You can recognize a stressed gut, which is less effective at performing its role in immune defense, by digestive problems. Because when the intestinal flora is weak, pathogens often have an easier time and the susceptibility to infection increases. Under some circumstances (e.g. prolonged antibiotic use,...), intestinal cleansing (taking special preparations to restore the intestinal flora) may be necessary. After that, you can strengthen your intestinal immune system again with the help of the right nutrition. A balanced intestinal flora is able to successfully fight pathogens.
Which organ is responsible for the immune system?
The thymus is an important organ of the immune system. Important immune cells are shaped here. But while we usually assume that the blood and lymphatic systems are primarily involved in strong immune defenses, the largest immune organ often goes unnoticed: the gut. What many people don't know is that the gut forms the first line of immune defense against certain germs. The information learned in the gut about pathogenic “germs” is already passed on to various immune centers in the body via the immune cells in the intestinal mucosa.
