I often receive this query. How ghee play role in immunity?

There are many ways by which ghee helps us. One of the most silent feature of manually churned ghee is strong immunity.

As per research [1], Plasma nitric oxide level increased to significant levels in different dietary groups (day 35) as compared to control (day 0).  Both cow dung and ghee are agencies which release Nitric oxide.

Nitric Oxide, either produced by body or donated by donors like ghee, works against the growth of following viruses ,bacteria, fungi and parasites.

Here is the list of pathogens inhibited by action of Nitric Oxide. [2]

Viruses

• Coronavirus Coxsackievirus
• Ectromelia virus
• Encephalomyocarditis virus
• Epstein–Barr virus
• Friend leukemia virus
• Herpes simplex virus
• Human immunodeficiency virus-1
• Japanese encephalitis virus
• Murine cytomegalovirus
• Parvovirus
• Poliovirus
• Reovirus
• Rhinovirus
• Sindbis virus
• Vaccinia virus
• Vesicular stomatitis virus

Bacteria

• Bacillus cereus
• Brucella abortus, B. suis
• Burkholderia pseudomallei
• Chlamydia trachomatis
• Clostridium perfringens, C. sparogenes
• Ehrlichia risticii
• Enterococcus faecium
• Escherichia coli
• Francisella tularensis
• Helicobacter pylori
• Klehsiella pneumoniae
• Legionella pneumophilu
• Listeria monocytogenes
• Micrococcus roseus, M. luteus
• Mycobacterium avium complex
• Mycobacterium bovis
• Mycobacterium leprae
• Mycobacterium tuberculosis
• Mycoplasma pulmonis
• Pseudomonas aeruginosa
• Rickettsia conorii, R. prowazekii
• Salmonella typhimurium, S. enteritidis
• Shigella sonnei
• Staphylcoccus aureus
• Yersima enterocolitica

Fungi

• Aspergillus fumigatus
• Candida albicans
• Cryptococcus neoformans
• Epidermophyton floccosum
• Histoplasma capsulatum
• Penicillium marneffei
• Trichophyton tonsurans. T. mentagrophytes

Parasites

• Babesia bovis
• Brugia malayi
• Cryptosporidium parvum
• Echinococcus multilocularis
• Encephalitozoon hellem, E. intestinalis, E. cuniculi
• Entamoeba histolytica
• Fasciola hepatica
• Giardia lamblia
• Leishmania major, L. enriettii, L. amazonensis, L. mexicana, L. chagasi, L infantum
• Naegleria fowleri
• Onchocerca lienalis
• Plasmodium falciparum, P. chabaudi, P. vinckii, P. vivax, P. bergher
• Schistosoma mansoni
• Toxoplasma gondu
• Trypanosoma cruzi, T. brucei, T musculi

During the past two decades, nitric oxide (NO) has been recognized as one of the most versatile players in the immune system. It is involved in the pathogenesis and control of infectious diseases, tumors, autoimmune processes and chronic degenerative diseases. Because of its variety of reaction partners (DNA, proteins, low–molecular weight thiols, prosthetic groups, reactive oxygen intermediates), its widespread production (by three different NO synthases (NOS) and the fact that its activity is strongly influenced by its concentration, NO continues to surprise and perplex immunologists. Today, there is no simple, uniform picture of the function of NO in the immune system. Protective and toxic effects of NO are frequently seen in parallel. Its striking inter- and intracellular signaling capacity makes it extremely difficult to predict the effect of NOS inhibitors and NO donors, which still hampers therapeutic applications. [3]

 

NO (Nitric Oxide) is not just about pathogen control. It also helps for several other benefits.

When we consume adequate amounts of dietary nitrates, our body converts them into a short-lived gas called nitric oxide. One of nitric oxide’s primary roles is to regulate the delivery of oxygen to the muscles. It does this by relaxing and opening the blood vessels, subsequently improving blood flow. Better blood flow not only translates into lower blood pressure, but into a decreased demand on your heart and skeletal muscles.

Additional research has shown that dietary nitrates can reduce the oxygen cost of exercise, improving the function of our energy-producing mitochondria.

Until recently, nitrates (especially those used in processed meats as a preservative) were considered toxic, and long-term exposure to them was thought to increase our risk of cancer.  We now understand that nitrates themselves are not carcinogenic; it’s the cooking and processing methods that are the underlying cause of concern.

Don’t mix Indian cuisine by non-Indian high temperature cooking like grilling, microwave etc.

It turns out that nitrites (the compound formed in the body from dietary nitrates) can form carcinogenic nitrosamines (like N-nitrosodmethylamine, NDMA) when meat-containing nitrites or nitrates are cooked or grilled. In fact, in October of 2015,processed meats were classified as a cancer causing substance by the World Health Organization.

The key point:

Don’t reply on synthetic , processed nitrates (For example protein shake, protein powder etc)

One can get Dietary Nitrates from leafy vegetables. Problem with them is that they are row in nature. Compare to them, we can get digested/churned nitrates from cow-dung, urine and ghee. They are easy to digest and act on Nitric Oxide generation without much digestion toll of Prana. (Prana is consumed during digestion process).

 

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References

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[1]  High conjugated linoleic acid enriched ghee (clarified butter) increases the antioxidant and antiatherogenic potency in female Wistar rats

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3766171/

[2]  NO inhibitions: antimicrobial properties of nitric oxide. De Groote MA¹, Fang FC. 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8845445

[3] Nitric oxide and the immune response 

http://www.nature.com/ni/journal/v2/n10/full/ni1001-907.html