The current coronavirus outbreak has troubled everyone around the globe. While everyone is waiting for vaccination or treatment to be released, the ideal way right now is to prevent the infection by taking safety precautions. However if you do get infected by coronavirus, then the most important thing in protecting you is your immune system.
In this post we will discuss how can we improve our immune system to fight against not coronavirus infection primarily, but also against any other such foreign bodies trying to infect us.
Diet to increase immune system efficiency against CoronaVirus
While most of the people start the list of diet from the minor ingredients, lets not forget the major ones first. Don’t get me wrong, minor ones are equally important too, however they are of no use if your body is not getting the major bulk of nutrients it needs to improve your immune system.
If we define the diet to increase your immune system in one word, then it has to be: Balanced diet. Lets see what that balanced diet is and how can we optimize it to help us against the cooronavirus infection (covid-19).
Macro Nutrients
Have your macronutrients in sufficient amounts. You should have all of these in healthy amounts on daily and regular basis:
- Carbohydrates
- Proteins
- Fats
People who’re on low fat diet or low carb & high fat diet (keto diet for example). You should start taking all three macronutrients in optimum quantity, your weight loss can wait if you remain alive, as probably there’s no point in doing keto diet so that your dead body has lesser weight only.
Best sources for these macronutrients can be summarized as:
- Carbohydrates:
- Whole weat flour. Try to avoid refined wheat or white bread and prefer to use whole wheat bread or chapati. Note that there is a difference between bran bread and a whole wheat bread. Bran bread simply focuses on adding bran to the flour while it may or may not contain all other parts and nutrients of the whole wheat. Having whole wheat bread or roti helps you get all the nutrients that wheat has to offer.
- You should also use other carbohydrate sources like potatoes, rice, etc. in optimum quantity
- Proteins:
- Proteins are the most important nutrient that help your immune system. Remember to take healthy amounts of proteins on daily basis to help your body fight against the diseases and coronavirus.
- Sources of protein matter a lot. The broiler / white chicken is a big NO when it comes to sources of protein. Not only its protein is of low quality, white / farmi chicken also contains many harmful chemical and hormones which reduce the immunity of our body, along with many other side effects. So basically avoid eating the white broiler checked.
- However if you eat the organic chicken meat, which was also fed on natural diet, then its protein is helpful. However not as helpful as that of meat or beef.
- Meat and beef are much preferred sources of protein as compared to chicken, especially broiler white chicken.
- Fats:
- Fats are also essential for our body systems, including immune system. However the usual source of fat, the oils that we use, are not of high quality to provide all the benefits.
- The fat is useful not just as a compound itself, but also because it contains fat soluble vitamins, when it comes from a healthy source like cattle in the form of meat or beef.
- So the ideal fat is the one which you get from the animal too. For example if you eat beef or meat, then eat the fat in it too as a regular dish. Don’t add extra fat from the animal to your plate, but let the natural fat part of the meat which you’re eating, come to your plate.
- Again, broiler chicken is not a good source of fat and infact harmful. As the harmful chemicals and hormones are also saved in the fat of that chicken, and thus harm the human body after consuming it and may also reduce the immunity.
- Do include butter and cheese in your diet. Make sure it’s a butter and not margarine. Look for best brands around you which provide original butter or else try to get the desi / organic butter and cheese. Remember, do not eat margarine.
- Water:
- Hydrate yourself with plenty of water. Take fluids whenever you feel like.
Micro Nutrients
Micronutrients are used by many enzymes in our body and are part of many systems and pathways. They have a very important role and need to be provided in healthy quantity to the body too.
Remember that if your source of macronutrients is healthy and organic, then you will also be getting most of the micronutrients from the same source too. For example if you’re having healthy meat and fat from the cattle which grazed on organic diet, then you’ll also get fat soluble vitamins from its fat and water soluble from the muscles and other fluid part of its meat.
Supplements however, can also be used, especially when your diet is not healthy and can be deficient in the required micronutrients in sufficient quantity.
You can ask your doctor for advice about the best and optimum multivitamins available around you. Remember to go for a balanced multivitamin, not some brand which has extra quantities of the micronutrients. Remember that overuse of any micronutrient, vitamins and minerals, can also damage the body and have adverse affects.
Vegetables
Vegetables are not a separate category for nutrients, but I wanted to include it as many useful nutrients are in good quantity in them.
Try to get organic vegetables when you can. For example market is full of chinese vegetables too, including turmeric and garlic, etc. So try to get the local organic one when you can.
Also note that dark green leafy vegetables are rich in proteins too.
Sun exposure
Bonus: Sun exposure. Expose arms till elbows for example and sit in sun or walk for at least 10 minutes a day. This does not have to be hot sun bath. You can do it in healthy sunlight too which you can easily bear or in fact enjoy. If the weather is harsh then you can do it in breaks too. But do it on daily basis and ask all your family members to do this too, especially elders and kids.
Remember, you don’t need to burn or roast yourself in the sunlight. It has to be pleasant.
Dry fruits & Fruits
A handful of dry fruits a day and any fresh fruit of the season is an awesome addon to your balanced diet.
Summary & Example diet
To summarize, you should be using this sort of diet:
- Whole grain wheat
- Mutton or beef
- Natural fat, butter, cheese
- Green leafy vegetables
- Other vegetables too
- Balanced Multivitamin supplements
- Sun exposure on daily basis
- Fresh fruit & handful of dry fruit
Note: If you’re suffering from any disease like heart issues, diabetes, etc. then do consult your doctor to get advice on diet and follow diet prescribed by your doctor only.