Amid the coronavirus pandemic, it is very important to have very strong immune system. Proper nutrition and hydration are vital to fight this virus. People who eat a well-balanced diet tend to be healthier with stronger immune systems and a lower risk of chronic illnesses and infectious diseases.
You should eat a variety of fresh and unprocessed foods every day to get the vitamins, minerals, dietary fibre, protein, and antioxidants your body needs. Drink enough water. Avoid sugar, fat, and salt reduce your risk of overweight, obesity, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and certain types of cancer, says WHO’s report.
Dietician (Dr) Shaffali Lakhanpal, MD, MSC(DFSM), Total Nutrition Diet Clinic, Jalandhar explains, “During this pandemic, proper nutrition aspect is very important not only for adults, but also for elderly. It is important because it gives us immunity and protects us from disease. If you have a good immune system then it may help you fight this deadly coronavirus. Firstly, we should know what we are eating. We must include good vitamins in our diet. Outside food should be avoided because you don’t know which person has prepared that food and how.”
“We should maintain proper hygiene and eat green vegetables. Along with that we must take supplements of vitamins like Vitamin C, Zinc, potassium and vitamin D, these will help us build a good immune system to fight any disease,” added Dr. Lakhanpal.
Type of foods you can have
- Fruits like Banana, oranges, berries
- Eat more and more seasonal green vegetables
- Take all types of dal and grains in a day it provides a lot of proteins which improves muscle strengths too.
Hence, during the times of Covid focussing more on vitamin supplements is very important along with antioxidants and herbs to boost your immunity.
Drinking ‘Kadha’ is also very important during this time for both immunity and good respiratory tract. Taking steam of ajwai and tulsi water also works great for the respiratory tract. Hence, we must currently focus on these common home remedies, said Dr. Lakhanpal.