The COVID-19 has affected individuals and communities all over the world and many are wondering if there is anything we can do to boost our immune system and protect ourselves from the coronavirus.
In this video I briefly talk about our immune system and enumerate simple, and easy ways to boost it.
When it comes to eating healthy and/or taking supplements, remember that not everything you read out there is backed by strong medical evidence. However, the micronutrients I mentioned are shown to give our immune system a boost, based on small scale studies, and below are their sources and recommended daily values.
Get your NUTRIENTS from these kinds of food:
Vitamin D – salmon, mackerel, egg yolk, shitake mushrooms, tuna, sardines, milk, yogurt, orange juice, fortified cereals, oatmeal and cheese
Vitamin C – oranges, strawberries, papayas, broccoli, kale, spinach and guavas
Vitamin E – nuts (eg. almonds, peanuts, cashew, pecans and pistachios), sunflower seeds, salmon, avocado, mangoes and olives
Zinc – red meat, shellfish, chickpeas, lentils, beans, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, nuts (cashew, pine nuts, almonds, peanuts), mushrooms, chicken, milk, cheese, eggs, quinoa, oats and dark chocolate
Beta-carotene (converts to vitamin A)– sweet potatoes, carrots, kale, spinach, romaine lettuce, moringa, quash, peas and broccoli
Recommended Daily Allowance: Source: International Food Information Council, Office of Dietary Supplements,
Vitamin D Age 1-70: 15 mcg/day or 600 IU
(Calciferol)
(Calciferol) Age 70 and older: 20 mcg/day or 800 IU
Upper limit: 100 mcg/day or 4,000 IU
Vitamin C Men: 90 mcg/day
Women: 75 mcg/day
Upper limit: 2,000 mcg/day
Vitamin E 22.4 IU/day (15mg/day)
(alpha-
tocopherol)
(a-tocopherol) Upper limit: 1,000 mg/day or 1,500 IU/day
Vitamin A Men: 900 mcg/day
Women: 700 mcg/day
Upper limit: 3,000 mcg/day
Zinc Men: 11 mg/day
Women: 8 mg/day
Upper limit: 40 mg/day
There are still so many things we don’t know about the COVID-19, and as we wait for answers, let us all try our best to practice good hygiene and social distancing to avoid spreading the virus especially to high-risk individuals.
