The coronavirus pandemic has caused mass panic everywhere and people are doing their best to keep themselves safe from the illness. One
way to ensure that your immunity stays up is by consuming the right kind of diet that could help keep infections at bay. When it comes to building immunity, one must focus on certain food groups so that they can help out in a more specific manner. You could always opt for a more diverse diet but must ensure to also include these food groups that can help.
Vitamins A, E and D, Vitamins C & B, minerals such as zinc, selenium, iron, copper etc, phytonutrients, amino acids, fatty acids etc are all the kinds of nutrients and vitamins that can help build up immunity in your body so you must ensure to consume foods containing these. Basically, balance out your diet with plenty of fresh fruit, veggies, legumes, some carbohydrates and healthy fats. The more balanced your diet is, the likelier you are to prevent any infection.
Some foods that are rich in all the sources mentioned above are:
-Green Leafy Vegetables which contain beta carotene (precursor of Vitamin A), vitamins C and E, antioxidants and fibres.
-Many fruits like papaya, apples, guava etc are also rich in beta carotene, Vitamins B and C, minerals like potassium and folate.
-Citrus fruits like oranges, tangerines, grapefruits, berries etc are quite rich in Vitamin C.
-Legumes like lentils, beans, chickpeas etc are all rich sources of minerals and nutrients like iron and Zinc.
-Meat and poultry contain nutrients like iron, zinc and essential amino acids.
-Fish contain lots of proteins and are also rich in Vitamins A and E as well as essential fatty acids.
While consuming these you must remember that you cannot go overboard with one particular food group. Which means you cannot consume more meat and fewer vegetables or you can't just opt for things like a fruit diet during this time since that could mess up your immunity more and could end up making you more susceptible to infections.
Opt for 450 to 500gm of fresh fruits and veggies per day, fat consumption should not be more than 30gm per day, salt should not be more than 5gm per day and also make sure not to consume too much sugar. Follow a properly balanced diet and you'll remain healthy. Stay tuned for more updates.
