COVID-19 recovery food: 'Feel Better' foods when you are unwell.
Updated: May 4, 2021
Taking care of your health amid COVID-19 is on everyone’s minds these days. One way to keep your immune system strong? Maintaining a balanced diet.
Poor nutrition can compromise your immune function and increase your risk of getting infected.
Guidance for maintaining a balanced diet
In general, protein, carbohydrates, and fat all play an important role in nutritional balance. But more specifically certain foods like lean proteins, fruits, and vegetables are important to target when optimizing your diet for healing or infection prevention. In order to protect and support lean muscle mass, choose lean protein sources such as beans, nuts, or nut butter, and legumes.
Eat fruits and veggies
Fruits and vegetables, particularly citrus fruits and leafy greens, provide a steady stream of vitamins A and C, while nuts, seeds, and vegetable oils are rich in vitamin E, dairy products, eggs, and are good sources for vitamin D. Zinc is also important, which is rich in food sources like meat and nuts.
Eat smaller meals more frequently
Another great strategy to keep your immune system strong is starting meals early in the day. For those with serious respiratory symptoms, eating smaller meals may help prevent early satiety (getting full too quickly), which can allow for easier breathing.
Drink plenty of fluids
Be sure to stay hydrated. It helps to keep mucus thin and easier to remove from the body.
In general, drink 6 to 8 glasses of water a day.
Foods like soups, fruits, and vegetables with high water content, such as melon and cucumber, also count as fluid sources.
Immunity booster shopping list :
Vitamin A-rich foods -
Sweet potato
Spinach
Carrots
Potatoes
Cheese
Eggs
Milk
Yogurt
Red peppers
Mango
Vitamin C rich foods -
Red pepper
Orange
Broccoli
Strawberries
Lemon
Cabbage
Cauliflower
vitamin E rich foods -
Almonds
Pumpkin
Mango
Avocado
Kiwi
Soybean Oil
Peanuts
Spinach
Tomato
Food sources of zinc -
Dark chocolate
Oatmeal
Tofu
Beans
Chicken
Yogurt
Chickpeas
Lentils
Cashews.
It’s important to do your best to eat foods that represent each nutrient, food group, vitamin, and mineral, the ultimate goal is to be sure to have nutritional intake, period. Choose wisely and try to avoid refined sugar, empty calories, and alcohol intake. Remember, there’s a lot you can do when it comes to your health.