Inside your body there is an amazing protection mechanism called the
immune system. It is designed to defend you against millions of bacteria, microbes, viruses, toxins and parasites that would love to invade your body.
Viral and bacterial infections are by far the most common causes of illness
for most people. They cause things like colds, influenza, measles, mumps, malaria, AIDS etc. The job of your immune system is to protect your body from these infections. The immune system protects you in three different ways:
It
creates a barrier that prevents bacteria and viruses from entering your body.
If a bacteria or virus does get into the body, the immune system tries to detect and eliminate it before it can make itself at home and reproduce.
If the virus or bacteria is able to reproduce and start causing problems, your immune system is in charge of eliminating it.
The immune system also has several other important jobs. For example, your immune system can detect
cancer in early stages and eliminate it in many cases.
Once inside the body, a germ is dealt with by the immune system at a different levels. The major components of the immune system are:
- Thymus
- Spleen
- Lymph system
- Bone marrow
- White blood cells
- Antibodies
- Complement system
- Hormones
