Food, Nutrition & Immune Health

Few areas of nutrition have captured public attention quite like the connection between diet and immunity, especially in recent years. Food, Nutrition & Immune Health examines what the science actually says about how the foods we eat shape the body's defences — cutting through the noise of "immune-boosting" marketing to explore the real, evidence-based relationship between nutrition and immune function. The immune system depends on a steady supply of nutrients to develop, operate, and respond, making diet a genuine and often underappreciated determinant of how well we resist and recover from illness.

Specific nutrients carry the weight of much of this story. Vitamins such as A, C, D, and the B-complex, minerals including zinc, iron, and selenium, and dietary components that support the gut all play defined roles in immune development and response. Deficiency in any of these can impair defences, while adequate, balanced intake supports resilience. The session also explores the deep connection between the gut microbiome and immunity, the role of inflammation as both a protective and harmful force, and how nutritional status influences vulnerability to infection across the life course.

Yet this is also a field where enthusiasm frequently outruns evidence, and a critical perspective is essential. Claims of foods or supplements that "supercharge" immunity rarely survive scientific scrutiny, and the session gives due attention to separating substantiated effects from wishful thinking. Immunologists, dietitians, public health nutritionists, and researchers will find this session relevant, as will those advancing nutritional immunology and immune-supportive dietary strategies. For attendees of the Nutrition Conference, it offers a grounded, science-led look at a topic of immense public interest — clarifying how nutrition genuinely supports immune health and where popular belief parts company with the evidence.