Nutritional modulation of age-related changes in the immune system and risk of infection

The immune system undergoes some adverse alterations during aging, many of which have been implicated in the increased morbidity and mortality associated with infection in the elderly. In addition to intrinsic changes to the immune system with aging, the elderly are more likely to have poor nutritional status, which further impacts the already impaired immune function. While the elderly often have low zinc serum levels, several manifestations commonly observed during zinc deficiency are similar to the changes in immune function with aging.

Source: Nutrition Research - February 3, 2017 Category: Nutrition Authors: Munkyong Pae, Dayong Wu Source Type: research