This simple habit reduces the risk of flu and viral infections

The current winter is not making life easy for us, and this year alongside the corona we also got an ugly wave of flu.

Along with the masks and vaccines, it is clear to everyone that it is impossible to completely avoid catching the flu or corona, but there is one simple way to reduce the risk - and it goes through your plate and drinking glass.

Yael Dror

05/01/2022

Wednesday, 05 January 2022, 06:13 Updated: 07:29

• Share on Facebook

• Share on WhatsApp

• Share on Twitter

• Share on Email

• Share on general

• Comments

  Comments

In the video: HMOs begin vaccinating people aged 60 and over with a fourth vaccine (Photo: United and National Health Insurance Fund)

Protecting the body from viral infections is perhaps more important today than ever.

When we talk about viral infections, we can refer to the flu and corona - viruses that are around us all year round but are especially dominant in the winter.

In both cases, the nutritional status of the person is of great importance because it has a direct effect on the immune system's ability to deal with the health threat - number of infections, reduction of disease intensity and shortening the duration of the disease).

More on Walla!

This is what 3 cups of tea a day do to the body, and it's pretty amazing

To the full article

Coping and Prevention: Viral Infections

Acute respiratory infections are a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, as illustrated by seasonal flu illness and coronary heart disease outbreaks. Maintaining public health practices, including hand washing and vaccinations, help reduce the spread and impact of these infections. However, the spread of viruses and the global infection state is particularly high, and these procedures are insufficient.

Acute respiratory infections, for example, were responsible for about 2.38 million deaths worldwide in 2016 and this is as stated even before the corona era. The importance of nutrition in supporting immune system function has been clearly demonstrated in many studies in recent years. Data from clinical and other studies have shown that nutrition is of great importance in strengthening the immune system and thus can help in dealing with various diseases and infections. Studies have also shown that if malnutrition occurs, it can cause the body's ability to cope with infections and increase the risk of disease.

Millions of people around the world are dying from viral infections.

A woman with the flu (Photo: ShutterStock)

The importance of nutrition in maintaining health

In April 2020, an article was published in the scientific journal Nutrients focusing on the issue of the importance of maintaining an optimal nutritional status and its impact on the functioning of the immune system in protecting against viral infections.

The food components that have been found in long-term studies to be essential for maintaining a proper nutritional status and supporting immune system function are:

• Vitamins- A, B6, B12, C, D, E Folic acid

More on Walla!

• 5 Common Eating Habits That Can Weaken Your Immune System

• Between Corona and Flu: Is There a Way to Strengthen the Immune System?

• How much does it cost to treat pain and what is the cheapest solution that is also the most effective?

According to the second article and the most important vitamins for maintaining the proper functioning of the immune system and may be deficient are Vitamin C and Vitamin D. Vitamin C can be found in good amounts in red squash, orange, tangerine, lemon, pomelo, pomegranate, guava, tomato, strawberry, lines, Pineapple, papaya and more.

Vitamin D is found in the liver and internal organs of meat, eggs, salmon, fish oil, butter, and more.

Full of vitamin c and now it's their season.

Strawberries (Photo: ShutterStock)

And what about supplements?

According to the article, there is room to consider a recommendation for supplements and reinforce some of the food ingredients above the daily recommendations of the RDA, but of course to keep not exceeding the upper limit defined as safe for consumption (UL).

In Israel, too, Ministry of Health experts called on the public in 2020 to take vitamin D because of its importance for prevention and to deal with coronary heart disease.

Does green tea lower the risk of the flu?

Before we turn to taking supplements, it is important to be aware of the possibility of strengthening the immune system against the flu virus that can be easily incorporated into the dietary agenda. A study published in June 2021 in the scientific journal European Academy of Nutritional Sciences found that drinking green tea can strengthen the body and protect against the flu virus significantly.

A study conducted in Japan during the winter months (November-April) involved 4,302 people. The researchers collected from the participants data on the amount of green tea they drank and events of flu-like illness. The results of the study showed that consuming green tea was significantly associated with a decreased risk of catching the flu. The best protection of green tea was found when participants drank 5 or more cups of green tea a week. The researchers concluded that drinking green tea was associated with a lower risk of influenza.

Of course further research is needed to examine this effect of green tea on the flu virus and strengthen the immune system, but even now it can be said that regular incorporation of green tea in the diet has many health benefits especially during the winter when the risk of flu increases.

• health

• Nutrition and diet

• Preventive nutrition

Tags

• the flu

• Corona

• Vitamin c

• Vitamin D

• green tea

• diet

• immune system