How Does Quercetin Help the Immune System?

Article Summary:

• Quercetin is an antioxidant and has immune-support properties to help maintain the body’s normal response to inflammation.* 
• The poor natural absorption of quercetin compromises its efficacy in supporting immune health. 
• Tesseract’s innovative nutrient delivery nanotechnology overcomes quercetin’s absorption challenges to achieve its health benefits.

Flavonoids are a class of phytonutrients found naturally in various fruits and vegetables, such as berries, grapes, apples, cruciferous vegetables, onions, shallots, tomatoes, and tea. Due to their ability to help the body fight off free radicals, there is an increasing scientific interest in understanding how flavonoids influence multiple biological pathways and immune functions in the body. Quercetin, a type of flavonoid, provides a broad range of benefits and is well knwon for its potent antioxidant activities and ability to maintain the body’s natural inflammatory response.*

So, how does quercetin help the immune system? Below, we discuss quercetin’s immune-supporting properties and explore why you should consider including this antioxidant in your daily nutritional supplement regimen.

How Does Quercetin Help the Immune System?

Quercetin exists in various molecular forms, including methylated quercetin, quercetin sulfate, quercetin glucuronide, and quercetin glycoside. The glycoside form, in particular, has enhanced water solubility, which makes it more easily absorbed by the body. This improved absorption allows quercetin to be more effective in reaching and positively influences the body’s immunomodulatory pathways.* The following table highlights the specific ways quercetin can support immune health through these mechanisms. 

Although quercetin exerts many immune-supportive benefits, there are actually many absorption challenges that arise with supplemental quercetin. We will cover this in more detail in the following sections.

Quercetin’s Absorption Challenges 

Studies indicate quercetin is primarily absorbed in the upper segment of the small intestine and later metabolized in multiple organs, including the liver, small intestine, colon, and kidney. However, quercetin is known for its naturally poor oral bioavailability: 

1. Only 3-17% of quercetin glucoside — the most absorbable form — is absorbed in healthy individuals after ingesting at least 100 mg. 
2. Although onions contain the highest natural source of quercetin, clinical trials show that after consuming an onion-rich meal, quercetin values peaked from baseline values after two hours, only to return back to baseline after 24 hours.

Combining Quercetin with Zinc and Vitamin C for Better Absorption 

When combined with zinc and vitamin C, quercetin has shown promising effects of synergistic protection that helps balance overactive immune responses.* 

1. Zinc enhances quercetin’s therapeutic benefits on several enzymes involved in the body’s immune responses.* 
2. Quercetin also acts as an ionophore for zinc — creating channels in cell membranes to enhance intracellular zinc concentration.* 
3. Promising evidence suggests a synergistic protective effect of a quercetin, zinc, and vitamin C complex in benefiting the body’s natural immune responses.*  

An Advanced Quercetin Supplement to Include in Your Diet

How does quercetin help the immune system? You now know the antioxidant’s immune support properties, but what is the best quercetin supplement to include in your diet? 

QuerciSorb^® Immuphore SR, developed by Tesseract Medical Research, is an innovative supplement formulated with a soluble form of quercetin that supports healthy immune function.* Zinc, vitamin C, and vitamin D are other bioactive ingredients in this hypoallergenic formulation that support the immune system’s optimal functioning.*

The proprietary CyLoc – DexKey® nutrient delivery technology achieves quercetin’s benefits for promoting optimal immune health.*   

• Maintaining the integrity of the quercetin molecule: The CyLoc® technology encases each quercetin molecule to maintain its integrity during transit through the stomach. 

• Targeted delivery of the quercetin molecule: The DexKey® technology accompanies each CyLoc® molecule to release QuerciSorb’s active ingredient molecules at the desired point in the gastrointestinal tract. 

The resulting optimal absorption of each QuerciSorb molecule makes it a bioavailable therapeutic reality in achieving optimal immune function.*     

Citations:

¹Rice-Evans CA, et al. Free Radical Research vol. 22,4 (1995): 375-383. doi:10.3109/10715769509145649

²Mlcek J, et al. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) vol. 21,5 623. 12 May. 2016, doi:10.3390/molecules21050623

^3,4Chirumbolo S. Inflammation & Allergy Drug Targets vol. 9,4 (2010): 263-285. doi:10.2174/187152810793358741

⁵Huang RY, et al. Journal of Immunology (Baltimore, Md.:1950) vol. 184,12 (2010): 6815-6821. doi:10.4049/jimmunol.0903991

⁶McAnlis GT, et al. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition vol. 53,2 (1999): 92-96. doi:10.1038/sj.ejcn.1600682

⁷Sahib HB, et al. Advances in Virology vol. 2022 1575605. 8 Jun. 2022, doi:10.1155/2022/1575605