How Sugar Impacts Your Immune System: What Columbia, MO Patients Should Know

We all enjoy a sweet treat now and then — but what if that dessert is doing more than just expanding your waistline? At Columbia Urgent Care, Dr. Jonathan Morris and his team are helping patients in Columbia, Missouri, understand the powerful link between sugar intake and immune health. Spoiler alert: too much sugar can suppress your immune system and make it harder for your body to fight off illness.

Sugar and Your Body’s Defense System

When you eat or drink something high in refined sugar — such as soda, candy, or pastries — your blood glucose levels spike. This rapid increase in sugar may do more than just cause an energy crash later; it can also directly impair the function of your white blood cells.

A landmark study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that the ingestion of 100 grams of sugar significantly reduced the ability of white blood cells to engulf bacteria for up to five hours after consumption.¹ This means your body is literally slower to respond to germs after a sugary snack.

“Sugar appears to compete with vitamin C for entry into immune cells,” notes the research. “This impairs the immune system’s ability to use vitamin C to fight infections.”¹ In other words, excess sugar not only weakens your immune cells, but it may also block the nutrients meant to strengthen them.

The Hidden Sugars Sabotaging Your Health

One of the biggest challenges for patients is identifying how much sugar they’re actually consuming. It’s not just candy and soda — many processed foods, salad dressings, breakfast cereals, and even "healthy" protein bars are loaded with added sugars. At Columbia Urgent Care, nutritional counseling is part of our holistic approach to wellness, helping patients make smarter choices every day.

How Columbia Urgent Care Helps

If you’re feeling run down, constantly catching colds, or struggling to bounce back from illness, your diet may be working against you. Dr. Morris and his team can help assess your immune function with blood tests, review your dietary habits, and recommend IV therapy, supplements, or hormone testing when appropriate.

“Many of our patients don’t realize how much diet affects their immune system,” says Dr. Morris. “Reducing sugar and supporting your body with nutrients like zinc, vitamin C, and magnesium can dramatically improve how you feel — especially during cold and flu season.”

At Columbia Urgent Care, we combine evidence-based medicine with lifestyle strategies to help you strengthen your immunity naturally and safely.

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