Along came a virus and wreaked devastation on the world like never before. We all live in the era of the pandemic today. Coronavirus and its implications have impacted personal lives and health and have brought world economies down to its knees. Never before had the world come to a standstill. There have been pandemics before, world wars, revolution, and civil unrest, but none have done the kind of damage that COVID 19 has unleashed. It is not only there to stay, but there still doesn’t seem to be any vaccine, any cure, or any resolution in the near future. So how do we protect ourselves from something so unknown and unpredictable in nature?
Why is Immunity boosting important?
Doctors and researchers around the world have been burning the midnight oil to understand the mutation of this virus and how the human body reacts to it. Yet, world-renowned facilities and millions of dollars’ worth of money has been spent to get out of this tailspin. When so much advanced medicine cannot come to speed with the virus, how can we as individuals? We cannot. But that does not mean at our level we cannot take precautions.
Taking care in terms of wearing your masks and washing your hands every now and then is one thing. We all do that. We have begun to see and settle into the new normal of social distancing well. We know our basic dos and don’ts. We take our temperature, clean our houses, avoid touches, etc. These activities are on the outside or protection from external sources. What about our bodies? Like we are fighting corona by observing the precautions, the same way our body also must be equipped to fend off the coronavirus attack. How will it do that if we do not equip it with the right kind of weapons? Weapons here meaning Immunity boosting fuel, which it needs in the form of food that we eat.
Recently, there has been a growing obsession among the masses for eating healthy and Immunity boosting food. The new mantra doing the rounds’ food is your Medicine’ is true in more ways than one. You are, after all, what you eat. With the rise in COVID 19 cases among a significant number of other diseases, the question becomes unavoidable ‘Are we consuming what’s best for our body?’ Or are our food habits and the products available on the shelves of our supermarkets to be blamed? People seem to have found a so-called safe option, i.e., food, which has a label of being immunity boosting. But are the highly-expensive Immunity boosting fruits and vegetables in your supermarket trolley worth it?
What is Immunity Boosting food?
There isn’t a legal definition or standard which addresses an item as immunity boosting. However, simply stated, Immunity boosting food is the food that has a natural content tendency to strengthen the immune systems of the body, making it ready for any attack. The elemental chemical composition of food and how it affects our body categorize it as an immunity booster food.
The promoters of Immunity boosting food have done a marvelous job when it comes to marketing it, especially with the ongoing COVID situation. With an increase in the number of health stores and healthy food sections in the supermarkets, one tends to fall for Immunity boosting versus the conventional produce. Having said that, it still is an excellent diet to follow if you are living in a world of COVID where protecting yourself by any means is considered imperial.
Immunity booster foods to fight coronavirus
Let us now dig a little deeper into some essential immunity-boosting foods that can help us fight coronavirus.
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Yogurt
When we use hand sanitizers, wash our hands multiple times, we lose good bacteria from our hands along with harmful bacteria. Good bacteria are essential for our body. Yogurt has oodles of good bacteria. Always remember that yogurt has to be freshly made. It cannot be a yogurt that has soured. Why? If you have a terrible throat for whatever reason, not necessarily COVID, sour yogurt will worsen.
Yogurts have probiotics that provide the body with better Immunity. Markets today have a lot of synthetic probiotic drinks that come packaged in bottles under different brand names. You do not need to resort to any probiotics drinks or supplements if you are having fresh yogurt.
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Turmeric
Turmeric is considered to be an antiseptic compound in all the Indian spices. People from centuries have used turmeric as a medicine for any inflammation or Immunity boosting purposes. Usually, turmeric cannot be consumed in its solid form. It is finely ground or boiled with milk to make intake easier. It is also applied to any skin tearing or rashes when required.
Turmeric contains a compound known as curcumin. Curcumin is famous for its anti-oxidizing and anti-inflammatory qualities. It is exceptionally potent in fighting off infections and healing wounds and lacerations. Turmeric milk is conventional, but turmeric can also be consumed with coconut oil and black pepper.
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Garlic
A usually smelly option this one is. Yet, very potent. Garlic has excellent properties when it comes to fighting off infections, lowering cholesterol and controlling blood pressure surges and is considered a natural virus fighter.
Garlic has a chemical called allicin. Allicin is a chemical that gets activated when the garlic is bruised or smashed. Take one or two cloves of garlic depending upon the size. Bruise it with a mallet lightly or any heavy object like a mortar stone. Leave it unattended for five minutes. The chemical allicin, which has rare and critical medicinal properties, gets activated. Post the wait time, eat it.
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Vitamin C
Its common knowledge that anytime we are trying to avoid a cold, we best douse ourselves with vitamin C. vitamin C is known to be a forerunner in the race for best Immunity boosting foods. It is also a clear winner and a crucial member.
When we are stressed, our body suffers from oxidative stress. Vitamin C not only prevents colds and infections but also protects damage to the body from oxidative stress. Many significant diseases like ARDS (Acute respiratory distress syndrome), lung collapses, sepsis, and congestions are treated with a dosage of intravenous or oral vitamin C.
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Zinc
Zinc is an underrated but very important nutrient to the human body. Ignorance towards the intake of zinc leads to several health issues that you would want to avoid during COVID times. Zinc has properties that help your Immunity but also increase your metabolic function of the body.
Zinc can be taken in the form of supplements, which is the most commonly used option by people. It can also be derived from natural foods that have a more significant benefit. Foods like cashew nuts, pumpkin, pumpkin seeds, white chickpeas, etc. have an abundance of zinc to offer. Especially in coronavirus times, you would want to make friends with zinc intake for your health.
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Vitamin D
Vitamin D has an inbuilt effect that protects the body against mild respiratory tract infections. Any person who is deficient in Vitamin D will have slight issues with the throat, a rogue cold, etc. there are many supplements available for vitamin D. Doctors can prescribe a lot of good immunity-boosting since fighting off corona is essential.
Many natural foods like salmon, egg yolks, soy, and mushrooms are rich in vitamin D. Fish like salmon, herring have vitamin D in abundance and are light on the body.
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Berries
Berries are found to be an excellent source of minerals. Minerals like phosphorous, iron, copper, magnesium, etc. They are also loaded with vitamins like A, B, and C. Apart from the minerals and vitamins, they help in providing dietary fibers and roughage to the body, keeping it infection-free.
Some rare berries lie elderberries with antibacterial traits and anti-viral characteristics that enable the body to fight off colds and the flu. Due to their protein and fiber quality, they make a great candidate for boosting Immunity and metabolism.
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The leafy greens
When we talk about Immunity, how can we forget the greens from all over the world? The leafy greens may look humble but are a beast when it comes to fending off a viral or bacterial attack from an organism. Leafy vegetables are stuffed with abundant elements like iron and vitamin C. They recycle your blood and clean your body through their beta carotene compounds and successfully fight off blood impurities.
Leafy vegetables like spinach are easily found and can be used in your diet in a number of ways. Eating raw spinach may be quite a task, but spinach that is cooed in many ways is a real treat for both adults and kids.
Conclusion
Prevention is better than cure. We have heard this time and again, for years together. Although when there is no cure, don’t you think prevention must be our first and only priority.