I was born the same year as rock and roll and molecular genetics (1952, which means of course that I’m 33 - OK -53). I’m not sure if there is a correlation between rock and roll and molecular genetics. But the point is, it has taken molecular genetics (and me) a half a century to really get cooking. But cooking it is.

Some have said that Biology will change the 21st century as much as Physics changed the previous one. You don’t have to think about this statement very long to realize how bold it is. Biology will have a tremendous impact on medicine in this century. Don’t get me wrong, physics isn’t exactly dead. Physics is making possible such things as robosurgery, the gamma knife, and internal monitoring and healing with nanoparticles. It will also make it possible for diagnosis and treatment to occur through cyberspace. Chemistry isn’t dead either for that matter. New pharmaceuticals are constantly being generated as you read this by purely chemical processes.

So how is all this new stuff going to impact you and me? In spite of all the new medical bells and whistles that are coming out daily, I still believe the greatest thing to come out of modern medical science in this century will be individualized preventive care.

One of the problems with present medicine is that doctors have to work off the law of averages. For example, when they prescribe a certain dose of medicine, they don’t really know that this is the best dose for you as an individual. They prescribe an amount that seems to work best for the largest number of people and you may not be in this category. I’ll use my wife as an example. More often than not, she ends up over-reacting to prescribed medicines and has to scale back the dose. Part of this may be because she is smaller than the average person. But I also think it has something to do with her metabolism and how her body handles drugs. Someday, medicines will be better tailored to each patient. But the reason I bring this up is because preventative medicine will also be tailored to the individual in the future.

One step toward individualized preventive medicine that is already underway is the realization that past medical research has been biased toward white men. Because of this, government agencies that fund medical research are now seeking projects that determine if what is best for the health of the white male is also best for women and children and people of other races etc. This will eventually lead to information that will individualize preventive medicine for all of us, even us white men.

A lot of people are up in arms about the possibility of other people (such as insurance companies) knowing the sequence of their DNA. The fact of the matter is, the good of this will far outweigh the bad. And this will also be true with regards to specifics about your lifestyle, career, home-life, medical history and other “environmental” issues that impact your health.

I look forward to the day when, to go with my owners manual for my ‘93 Jeep Cherokee, that I have the owners manual for my ’52, male, English, Danish and Scotch Irish body. Then I will know how many thousand miles I can go between checkups and whether my body needs a special grade of gasoline (diet), how often I should add motor oil (my daily water requirement), etc. There will, of course, still be commonalities to all owners manuals, like don’t smoke or step in front of moving trains. But each body is unique and will ultimately have its own set of instructions. If you don’t take care of your body then, you won’t be able to shop for a new one – at least, not until the next century.

I wanted to follow up a previous article of mine on how stress can impair the immune system (“Chill or be Chilled”, on this web site) with at least one method for reducing stress, namely humor. I apologize for the fact that I’m going to interrupt this article occasionally with some answers to past reader’s immunological questions. Here is the first one of these questions, with its accompanying answer:

Reader Billy. ______ of Kickkabrick, NJ asks: “Why did the spleen cross the road?” Well Billy, after much study and research I have come to the conclusion that the spleen crossed the road because it was in the chicken.

Now getting back to the topic at hand. Let’s try to define humor. My favorite definition is that humor is transient pain. I like this definition because immediately before the laughter, there is almost always a moment when we are taken aback or briefly confused. This pain is mild and not physical. But it is pain nonetheless. I believe the body is self-medicating when we laugh.

So what does humor do for the immune system? In my article, “Chill or be Chilled” (Caring for the Immune System category). I mentioned that stress results in the release of corticosteroids that are part of the flight or fight response (good). These corticosteroids temporarily suppress the immune system. If we are chronically stressed, however,, these corticosteroids can result in long term suppression of our immune system (not good). One of the ways in which humor seems to boost the immune system is to reduce the production of corticosteroids. The only down side of this I can foresee is that it might not be good to laugh while running from a hungry lion. Sorry but I feel it is necessary to interrupt this article again with another reader question and its accompanying answer:

Reader Sally. ______ of Whirlygig, Wisconsin says: “I am an avid zoo-goer and I have yet to see an anteater with a cold or the flu. Could you tell me why they are so healthy?” Dear Sally, I am now prepared to conclude that anteaters are so healthy because they are full of “anty” bodies.

There are other ways that humor appears to boost the immune system besides reducing corticosteroid production. It also increases the release of endorphins from the brain, many of which, affect leukocytes in a positive manner. Studies have shown that humor, such as watching a knee-slapping video, increases antibody production and leads to increased numbers of certain types of leukocytes in the blood. However, how long this increase persists, is not well known. One study showed increased antibody levels were observed 30 minutes after a humorous video while another showed increased immunity as much as 12 hours later. The duration is an important issue because a transient immunity boost may do little good if it does not happen to occur just when you are exposed to particular virus or other disease-causing microorganism. However, a sustained increase may be very beneficial. Now, another important break for an answer to a highly technical reader question:

Johnny ____ from Grannysbranch, TX asks: “Why do allergies make you sneeze? Well Johny, from years of study, and extensive experience, I am of the opinion that allergies make us sneeze because making us fart would be just plain rude.

In conclusion, I take some of this stuff about the enhancement of antibodies and leukocytes by humor with a grain of salt (and a banana peal or two). But I do believe that humor plays a very important role in benefiting immunity by reducing stress. In addition, to the above studies, others have shown that those who have a good sense of humor are sick less often than those who don’t. This might be due to the fact that healthy people find it easier to have a sense of humor than sick people (har, har). However, I also believe that a sense of humor is a very effective stress reducer and hence is likely to be very beneficial to our immune systems. If your immune system needs a dose of humor, try my article on hillbilly professors on this web site. Pardon me but there is one last reader’s question that I would like to share before I go:

Reader Ebeneezer _____ of Studmergen, VA asks: “How many white blood cells does it take to change a light bulb?” I’m sorry Ebeneezer, I’m still working on this one. If anyone knows, please enlighten us.

This book contains excellent advice. In fact, I’m giving it to my daughter because I know that it will help her and my son-in-law keep my grandson healthy. However, a few things in this book are over-stated. For example, we don’t know as much about the effects of saturated fat, salt and sugar on the immune system as the author implies. Reports on the suppressive effect of sugar on the immune system seem to pop up everywhere. But they all seem to cite the same two articles in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition from the 70s. In the realm of science, this is not exactly overwhelming evidence. Don’t get me wrong, sugar, salt and saturated fats all stand convicted of wrecking our health. I am just not sure if we can add the immune system to the list of casualties just yet.

Another portion of this book that may be a bit of a stretch is the mention of various herbs and their immune boosting and anti-microbial properties. In fact, the author’s recommendation of herbs as anti-bacterial seems to run counter to her valid admonition to avoid antibiotics because they can eliminate the good bacteria in us . If some of these herbs don’t have a significant anti-microbial effect in the body, they may be a waste of money. If they do have this effect and it is not highly specific, they could be harmful, in the same way that some antibiotics can hurt us.

I whole-heartedly agree with the majority of what is said in this book. I certainly agree with the author that antibiotics and medicines that make the patient feel better while interfering with the immune system are way over-prescribed. I also found her discussions of food allergies very useful and insightful. And there are some very useful tips on such practicalities as how to read between the lines on food labels, how to treat fever, how to look for signs of serious infections , how to avoid food poisoning etc. These are the kinds of things that every parent should know. And this book does a great service in presenting this information in a clear and entertaining fashion.

The major thesis of this book is that parents can improve their children’s immune systems by improving their diet. I believe this is true. I must admit that I didn’t read all the recipes. But the ones I did read, sound very healthy and appetizing. I know that my grandchildren (and I) would be better off if they ate the diet proposed within these pages.

Lucy Burney has done a great deal to promote the health of children. If you are a parent and haven’t read any of her books, now is the time to get started.