Leukocytes, also known as white blood cells, are absolutely crucial for the immune system. Leukocytes are one of the various types of blood cells in our bodies, produced continuously in the bone marrow due to their short lifespan, and they are stored in the blood and in lymph tissues.
Showing normal levels of leukocytes suggests that there is a balance within your immune system. Maintaining that balance is essential, since an off-set means that your immune system is taking a hit from either an invading pathogen, or from chronic processes within your body.
Measuring leukocytes, also known as white blood cells, may therefore provide valuable information about your immune system and your overall health. Therefore, it is of interest to measure for several reasons, such as:
- Diagnosing infections
An increase in the number of white blood cells can be an indicator of an infection.
- To monitor chronic diseases
Certain chronic diseases can affect both numbers and function of white blood cells.
- To evaluate the immune system
Measuring white blood cells together with other types of blood cells, can help in understanding the overall health of your immune system
- To monitor and evaluate side effects
There are medicines, such as chemotherapy, which suppress production of white blood cells. A continued monitoring can help to avoid severe side effects and guide treatment decisions.
- Monitoring and tracking biological age according to BioAge
Low levels of white blood cells in your blood test, indicates low concentrations of circulating white blood cells in your bloodstream, also known as leukopenia.
Low levels of white blood cells can increase the risk of infections. The severity of your symptoms will depend on the underlying cause, as well as the duration and degree of decrease.
Reasons behind leukopenia can originate from two main categories of reasons:
- Inability to produce sufficient amounts of white blood cells
- Increased destruction of white blood cells, overpacing the frequency of which new white blood cells are produced.
Infections and treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy are common examples of causes behind a suppressed immune system. Apart from these, there are also deficiencies such as folate, B12 and copper that may cause your immune system to be less resilient to infections.
In less common cases, autoimmune disorders and bone marrow disorders may cause a decrease in leukocyte levels. However, these disorders and conditions are accompanied by additional symptoms and deviating test results.
High levels of white blood cells, also known as leukocytosis, can indicate several medical conditions. To better understand which one(s), you will have to recognize which specific types of white blood cells are elevated.
When your body notices that something isn’t quite right, more white blood cells will be produced and sent to the affected part of your body. This is often caused by inflammation and infection, since this is the way that the body protects itself from invaders. Stress and medicines may also cause an increase in leukocytes, as a result of injury or as a result of side effects.
A rare reason for increased levels of leukocytes are various types of cancer. These conditions come with additional symptoms and several test results that are either highly elevated or suppressed. If your levels are increased, a doctor will take into consideration your symptoms, medical history and the result of a physical examination to decide if further investigation may be needed.