Sepsis is a severe physiological dysfunction of the immune system. It occurs when your immune system has an exaggerated response that instigates a life-threatening series of inflammation throughout your body.
Sepsis accounted for 20% of all deaths worldwide in 2017. It is a leading cause of death for patients in hospitals. In many ways, the domino-like effect of the autonomic responses is a perfect storm. When your body detects an infection, it releases infection-fighting chemicals into the bloodstream. Dysfunction occurs when those chemicals trigger systemic inflammation that damages tissues and major organs.
The leading causes of sepsis in 2017 were respiratory and diarrheal infections. However, it may also be caused by fungal infections, viruses, non-communicable diseases, injuries, or even accidents. Sepsis escalates rapidly, and a patient needs immediate emergency care.
Facts about sepsis
- Sepsis kills 270,000 Americans every year —one death every two minutes.
- Sepsis is the most common killer of children worldwide, causing 3.4 million deaths each year.
- In the United States, someone is diagnosed with sepsis every 20 seconds.
- The risk of dying from sepsis increases by as much as 8 percent every hour treatment is delayed.
- In 2012, an average of 38 sepsis-related amputations was performed each day in U.S. hospitals.
- Sepsis is the No. 1 reason for hospital readmissions at a cost of more than $3.5 billion annually.
- Up to 50 percent of sepsis survivors are left with long-term physical and/or psychological effects.
Despite the seriousness of sepsis, many people are unaware of the condition.
Risk factors for sepsis
The obvious risk factor is having an infection. The infection may be viral, bacterial, fungal, or parasitic, and the infection may be mild, moderate, or severe. Even a mild infection may lead to sepsis. Other risk factors include:
- Individuals with cancer, diabetes, kidney stones, and diseases such as malaria are especially vulnerable.
- Aged 65 or older, or younger than 1 year
- Diagnosed with a chronic medical condition
- Immunocompromised
- A previous sepsis infection
Anyone meeting these risk criteria should be vigilant in monitoring symptoms and warning signs.
Warning signs of sepsis
The non-profit group, the Sepsis Alliance, developed a handy way to recognize and remember the warning signs of sepsis. It uses the acronym, TIME.
T = Temperature is higher or lower than normal
I = Infection is present
M = Mental decline or sleepy, confused, disoriented
E = Extremely ill and in severe pain, discomfort, shortness of breath
If you suspect that you have an infection and have any of these symptoms including difficulty breathing, low blood pressure, fever, accelerated heart rate, and mental confusion, call a doctor or seek emergency health care.
Traditional treatment includes antibiotic regimens and IV fluids. Many sepsis patients end up in ICU, and some will need long-term care. The condition can be very traumatizing, and some patients will experience PTSD because of it. There are many support groups for survivors of sepsis.
Natural support for surviving sepsis
Taking care to provide your body with the right nutritional support helps to ensure that your cells remain healthy. It also helps facilitate and moderate the biological processes in your body. Research shows that several nutrition-based ways will help reduce the risk of developing sepsis. Key Vitamins and minerals play a role in this process.
Remember, these supplements do not replace conventional treatment. Always ask your doctor or seek immediate medical help if you suspect you have an infection.
Vitamin C
Ample evidence exists that vitamin C is effective at helping to fight sepsis. Many studies have shown that incorporating vitamin C in the treatment of sepsis results in lower mortality and a reduction in the duration of vasopressor administration.
A study published in the Journal of Research in Pharmacy Practice found that high-dose vitamin C may be considered as a safe and effective adjunct therapy in patients who are critically ill with sepsis. During the study, patients in the ICU with septic shock who were given intravenous ascorbic acid every six hours required significantly lower doses and a lesser duration of vasopressor drugs to maintain blood pressure.
Vitamin D
Vitamin D is necessary for a healthy immune system.
A 2019 study analyzed the correlation between serum levels of vitamin D and the outcome of sepsis patients. Blood samples were taken from adult patients in a hospital emergency room who were suspected of having sepsis during a one-year study period. The researchers examined the serum vitamin D levels and the outcomes in liver failure, kidney failure, and mortality.
After an assessment of 168 patients, mean serum levels of vitamin D were below normal for 61.6 percent of patients admitted to the hospital for sepsis. Both age and mortality were significantly correlated with mean vitamin D, meaning older patients and those who died were more likely to be deficient in vitamin D.
Another study in 2020 found evidence that vitamin D supplements can help fight sepsis and acute respiratory diseases that lead to sepsis. The evidence was both Level 1 and 2. Level 1 is the systematic review of data aka meta-analysis. Level 2 is evidence from a minimum of one large-scale randomized controlled trial.
Selenium
Selenium is an essential nutrient that plays a role in keeping your immune system healthy. It is a trace element found naturally in some foods. Selenium helps protect your body from oxidative damage, including damage caused by infection. Selenium deficiency can raise your risk of developing diseases such as immune system dysregulation and viral infections.
Studies on preterm neonatal infants have shown that low selenium concentrations are linked to a higher risk of diseases related to prematurity. Meta-analysis of the pooled data showed a significant reduction in the number of infants having one or more episodes of sepsis when provided selenium supplementation.
Probiotics
Probiotic supplements are a safe and supportive practice to fight the effects of an unhealthy diet and environmental pollution. In addition, probiotics may help reduce the inflammatory cytokine storm of sepsis.
A 2018 study examined the effect of probiotics on cytokine levels of critically ill children with severe sepsis. The double-blind, placebo-controlled trial enrolled children from 3 months to 12 years of age who were hospitalized with severe sepsis and randomized to placebo or probiotic groups.
The probiotic group received a probiotic product developed to support patients with ulcerative colitis or irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), twice daily for seven days, while the placebo group received an inert maltose mixture.
From the first day of probiotic supplementation, children in the experimental group had significantly lower levels of proinflammatory cytokines and higher levels of anti-inflammatory markers than the placebo group. They also had lower levels of tumor necrosis factor, a protein released during an inflammatory response, and higher levels of transforming growth factor, a cytokine that plays a key role in immune system regulation, compared to placebo.