Do you know there is a direct relationship between your diet, physical activity, and overall health and wellness? During the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important that we continually find ways to stay healthy as much as possible.

Attitudinal activities such as eating a balanced diet, sleeping properly and exercising daily are not only actions you can take but that are also within your control to help reduce your risk of having a compromised immune system.

None of us are certain how long this virus will remain with us, so making sure you are eating healthily is one way you can take an active role in maintaining your health and wellness. 

Let’s discuss a variety of foods and nutrients you can adopt to your diet moving forward.

1. Foods that are high in Vitamin C: Foods such as oranges, tangerines, sweet red pepper, broccoli, and strawberries are known to have high Vitamin C content, which will help increase the production of white blood cells in the body. Consuming high quantities of these foods is important as white blood cells are the ones that help your body fight against infectious diseases.

• Foods that are high in Vitamin A: Vitamin A is an anti-inflammatory vitamin that can help your antibodies respond to toxins, such as a virus. Foods such as carrots, spinach, kale, apricots, sweet potato, squash, and cantaloupe are all great sources of beta-carotene that converts into Vitamin A.

• Foods that are high in Vitamin E: One class of vitamin that is key in helping regulate and support your immune system function is Vitamin E. Examples of foods rich in vitamin E include nuts, seeds, avocado, and spinach.

• Foods that are high in live cultures: Yogurt is one of the common foods known to contain elements that are healthy. One of the elements that stands out is live cultures, also known as probiotics, which are thought to help stimulate the immune system to fight off disease.

• Foods that are high in Vitamin D: Vitamin D is also essential to your overall health. Vitamin D can be found in salmon, canned tuna, egg yolks, and yogurt. Your body can also synthesize Vitamin D with just 13-15 minutes of sunshine three times a week.

• Foods that are high in Vitamin B-6: Foods such as chicken, salmon, tuna, and bananas are great sources of Vitamin B-6, which plays a key role in formulating new and healthy red blood cells. This will help maintain the lymphatic system. 

• Foods that are high in water content: As simple as it may sound, consuming water is essential to your health. Typically, water produces lymph which transports white blood cells and other immune cells through the body. Examples of food with high water content include cucumbers, watermelon and celery. If you are not the type to drink water frequently, eating some of these foods will help you get enough water.

• Foods that are high in antioxidants: Often, green tea is packed with antioxidants that have been shown to be healthy for consumption. Green tea also contains amino acids that may aid in the production of germ-fighting compounds in your T-cells, which reduces inflammation in the body and helps fight infection.

References:

https://www.uchealth.com/en/media-room/covid-19/boost-immunity-with-food

https://nutrition.org/making-health-and-nutrition-a-priority-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-pandemic/