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COVID-19 Lockdown: How to build your immunity levels and eat right while working from home

Updated : March 26, 2020 06:07 AM IST

Good fats help immune function by increasing cell membrane flexibility and permeability.

It is not what you eat , but what you assimilate that really makes a difference

So we are all under house arrest for the next three weeks. And we are either working from home (WFH) or taking care of household stuff; either way, it’s a change of scenario and one often reaches out to food for solace or out of boredom or just depression. Whatever the reason, make sure the house is stocked with food that you can actually use to build your immunity in these tough times and not destroy it.

So let's understand how different foods impact our immunity.

1-Carbohydrates: We have all heard that sugar is bad for us. Let's understand what it does to our immune system. When we consume too much sugar, a process called glycation occurs, in which, sugar sticks to proteins and that impairs the function of the immune system.

Sugars can not only greatly reduce immunity through glycation, but also increase inflammation. And we certainly don't need excess of inflammation at this time. Sugars are the single most inflammatory food group.

So avoid juices and candies and excessive white bread and mindless eating of processed chips and biscuits that cause sugar spikes and stick with complex carbohydrates like whole fruits and vegetables and whole grains and vegetables which are good, complex carbohydrates instead.

2-Protein - Protein is essential for building immunity. Especially, to fight viruses, one needs antibodies, so if you don’t have enough antibodies you can’t fight the virus. And antibodies are proteins.

Also, it is not what you eat, but what you assimilate that really makes a difference. Proteins that come, say from eggs, are a great source of usable protein because of the branch chain amino acids in them.

Other sources of protein would be all meats and fish. And vegetarians should have more nuts, seeds, cheese, and vegetables like green peas, mushrooms, and legumes.

3-Fats- Good fats like omega 3 fat are both anti-inflammatory and helpful to your immune system.

Good fats help immune function by increasing cell membrane flexibility and permeability. Immune cells are better able to gobble up viruses and bacteria while vitamins are absorbed better when you have more good fats! Especially vitamin A, D, E and K. So please don't fear eating good fats.

Try to include 1 teaspoon of fish oil every day. And include naturals good fats like coconuts, nuts, seeds and, olives and avocado if available.

4-Vitamin- C Vitamin C is important for phagocytosis, ie engulfing the viruses and bacteria. Vitamin C though must compete with glucose to enter into white cells. so if one has consumed too much glucose from having eaten sugar and simple carbohydrates in their diet, vitamin C won't be able to do its job.

The bottom line, eating extra sugar actually hinders the absorption of vitamin C .

Add lemon, citrus fruits ,amla in your diet.

A good recommended dose of vitamin c is 1000 mg per day. It's a good idea to split the dose into 500 MG twice a day as it only circulates in the blood for a few hours. That way, along with your diet, you'll have adequate levels of vitamin C through the entire day.

5-Vitamin D- So, We call it a vitamin, but it’s actually a hormone and it’s also an immune modulator. most of us Indians are very low in Vitamin D, so we should take supplements to correct the deficiency. Also, given we have to stay indoors for the next three weeks (at least ), try to get as much sunlight as possible by sitting near the window as vitamin D will increase immunity. Sadly, Very little vitamin d is available from food sources. So speak to your doctor and take the required dose as a supplement. Vitamin D deficiency is also linked to depression. So, especially at these times, when morale is already low, please go get that sunlight!

6-Zinc- Zinc helps fight off both bacteria and viruses. Zinc deficient people are known to be susceptible to a variety of pathogens. The body also needs zinc to make proteins which as explained ,is essential for strong immunity.

All meats, especially shellfish are a very high source of zinc . legumes , grains, nuts, seeds, eggs are also rich sources of zinc so make sure to include these in your diet.

And finally, do include natural anti-inflammatories and immune builders which are present in every Indian kitchen.

From turmeric and black pepper to ginger and coconut oil, are all very good to protect against pathogens.

7-Exercise- This not only releases the good happy hormone, endorphins but is also good for immunity. Over-exercising though may actually backfire and lower your immunity.

8-Sleep- Adequate sleep improves immune cells known as ‘T cells’ that fight against pathogens, for example, virus-infected cells, like the flu and kills those cells.

The stress hormone, cortisol is also low when you sleep well. High levels of cortisol are known to reduce immune function.

A lot of people also take sleeping pills. And some of the longer-acting ones, can actually reduce immunity. So please speak to your doctor if you can switch to a shorter-acting one.

Let's do what is in our control through nutrition and lifestyle to increase our immunity and be healthy and happy in these trying times

Stay safe, stay healthy.

Vishakha Shivdasani is a medical doctor specializing in lifestyle and chronic diseases like obesity, diabetes,PCOS etc.

COVID-19 Lockdown: How to build your immunity levels and eat right while working from home

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