Right now all across the world people are locked away in their homes trying their best to not touch their faces and to not catch Covid-19. The news cycle is having an absolute feeding frenzy with everything Covid-19, and finding concrete helpful information is far and few between. It also doesn’t help that information deemed to be helpful is quickly overturned or replaced by new information, causing us to feel caught in a fluid state of uncertainty.
It all started with social distancing, stay 6 feet away from anyone you come into contact with and that should help mitigate damage. Then we find out that Covid-19 can live on surfaces for anywhere between 3 hours to 17 days, and right then touching your face is out and hand sanitizing every 15 seconds is in. Now we’ve started hearing that blood type has something to do with the virus, that malaria medication is helping treat the infection, and even seemingly obvious tips, likes working out firing up your immune system to better fight infection.
Perhaps the most obvious tip I’ve heard when it comes to fighting Covid-19, is to make sure that you’re vitamin-C intake is adequate. Are we teaching people how to fight of scurvy? You should always make sure you’re meeting your vitamin requirements, it doesn’t matter if we’re in the middle of a global pandemic.
But the fact that it’s become such a hot topic must mean people are not aware of how much good a daily supplement and well-rounded diet can do. And it is for that exact reason that we will quickly break down how to make sure you get the essential vitamins to boost your immune system, all in hopes of combating Covid-19.
Both vitamin C and E are tried and proven antioxidants that boost immune function, and when it comes to the common cold, these vitamins are really all you need to fight it. Obviously Covid-19 is much more severe, but stocking up on these vitamins cannot hurt your chances of fighting it if you were to get sick. Vitamin C on it’s own is also known for maintaining healthy skin, and creating a buffer for germs, while vitamin E can work reduce and prevent inflammation.
The easiest place to obtain vitamin C is through fruits, anything citrus is rich in vitamin c, and cantaloupe is also a notable source of the vitamin. Vitamin E is easily obtained through nuts such as almonds, peanuts, or hazelnuts, and different variations of vegetable oils.
Zinc is another buzz word that was coming around when Covid-19 was first exploding. And while it isn’t a cure for this threat we are facing, it holds several properties that help to fight the virus. Zinc is known for helping our bodies to have a better response to infection, and has shown to reduce symptoms and the duration of cold & flu’s.
The best way to obtain zinc through food is by eating meat, shellfish, and beans. Beef is the most dense with a 3.5 ounce serving containing nearly half the daily recommended value. If you are going to supplement you zinc, make sure to not exceed the upper limit of 40 mg per day.
Garlic is similar to zinc in a way, because it is widely believed to help people recover faster, and get fewer colds in general. It also contains antioxidants that may help fight dementia and lower blood pressure, and while these benefits might not help fight Covid-19, it’s a nice added bonus. The only price you have to pay is dealing with the monster breath from eating a whole clove of garlic, if that’s the method you choose for ingesting it.
There are also odorless garlic supplements if you don’t feel like dealing with the anti-vampire breath, or you can go about it the standard way and make a heaping plate of spaghetti tonight, topped off with some chopped roasted garlic.
Beta-carotene is known for being converted in your body to vitamin A, which helps by working with antibodies or some sickness fighting organism, in order to better defend against alien substances.
The go to sources for beta-carotene include sweet potatoes, carrots, kale, and squash.
Vitamin D is involved with the production of proteins that work to kill germs, and it may also help change the behavior of certain white blood cells that can fight viruses.
Vitamin D is also created in our bodies naturally when we are exposed to the sun, and the increased number of illnesses in the wintertime is often blamed on a vitamin D deficiency due to to lack of sunlight.
With that being said, it seems that making sure you’re going on a walk or hike to produce your own vitamin D, or supplementing it if you’re staying inside, would not be a bad move.
You can buy vitamin D supplement pills, or good sources of it can be found in foods such as tofu, mushrooms, or eggs.
In summary I think it’s safe to say that none of these vitamins, antioxidants, or foods are going to help prevent Covid-19 on their own, and they probably won’t even prevent it if you’re taking all of them. It seems that some people are going to get this thing and some people aren’t, and the most we can do is prepare to weaken the blow if that does happen. And that’s why making sure you’re getting all of your essential vitamins and eating healthy is important, if you do get sick, you want your body to be as prepared as possible to fight off whatever infections may come.
And achieving this is easy, while trapped at home we can all focus on eating more home cooked meals that consist of whole foods. We’re all one veggie omelette and grilled chicken dinner away from a functioning immune system.
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