In the times of infectious disease and pandemic like Covid-19, good immunity is crucial for our body to be resistant and be able to fight back. The interplay among our meal timings, meal composition, nutritional value of our meals and immunity seeks our attention.

Naturiesta presents some pointers on how a day’s meal should look like.

• Prioritise Fresh Foods
  Preferring fresh foods over the canned and preserved foods saves you from consuming excess salt and sugar. Freshly home-cooked meals are healthy in nutritional value.
• Be Mindful of Portion sizes.
  Meal planning varies for everyone, depending upon their age, gender, physical activity, their health amongst other criteria.
• Limited intake of Salt, Sugar and Fats.
  Stress eating (chocolates, chips) or skipping meals during the period of illness can further decline the immune system.
  Consumption of Unsaturated fats for cooking, or options like steaming or sautéing instead of frying should be adopted. Try to avoid trans-fats- processed and fried foods, and baked products.
• Increase Fibre Intake
  Intake of fibres keep the digestive system healthy.
  Sources of fibres are whole grain wheat flour, oats; vegetables like beets, gourds, carrots; legumes like lentils, moong beans, cluster beans (guar phali); nuts and seeds like almonds, chia seeds, walnuts.
• Intake of Fruits
  Fresh fruits like apples, bananas, sweet lemon (mausambi), custard apple (shareefa), peach, plum, papaya are known to restore the health of the sick.
• Staying Hydrated
  Drinking plenty of water throughout the day keeps the body hydrated. Tap water or filtered water should be preferred over bottled water. Consumption of strong tea, strong coffee, alcohol, caffeinated soft drinks, energy drinks should be avoided.
• Low Carb-Diet
  Consuming less carbohydrates keep blood sugar and blood pressure in check.
• Protein-Rich Diet
  Green vegetables like- bottle gourd (gheeya), bitter gourd (karela), ridge gourd (turai), pointed gourd (parval), cluster beans (guar phali); pulses; are rich in proteins- essential for providing energy to the body. Intake of green-leafy vegetables is strictly avoided in flu during monsoons.
• Light-Digestible Meals
  Meals like Khichdi, Porridge- Dalia (sweetened with milk or sautéd with vegetables), Soup from Pulses (Mix Pulses or only Moong Dal) are light and easy to digest for the patients.
• Soups
  One should consume soups, as they are appetisers and ignite the hunger. The soups that can be consumed are soup of seasonal vegetables; soup of lentils and beans. Soup of moong beans (Ayurveda- Mudga Yusha) is the lightest and healthiest of all.
• Milk and Dairy Products
  Milk should be boiled with Turmeric (haldi), or Saffron (kesar), or Almond oil (Badam taila), or Tea leaves before consumption. Milk products like curd, buttermilk should be avoided.

NOTE: These tips can be used by anyone who wants to have a balanced diet. The following meal can be pursued for a week at least for anyone who wants to detoxify their system.

• _{*AYUSH KWATH-
  This decoction powder is available to Ayurvedic stores. the constituents benefit thee patient by increasing his/her immunity.}
• _{*RASAYANA-
  These are rejuvenating herbs and Ayurvedic preparations, that one should consume daily on an empty stomach.}
• _{*SPROUTS-
  Whole moong bean, or chane are energy-giving lentils. These should be soaked till sprouting, and steamed before consumption, for easy digestion in monsoons as well as in times of sickness.}
• _{*LICORICE TEA-
  Water boiled with licorice (mulaithi) soothes throat and digestion, when drank hot after about an hour of having lunch.}

Acharya Charaka says about Suitable and Non-Suitable Habits

Suitable Habits- Pathya

Non-Suitable Habits- Apathya

Healthier food choices and a balanced diet are principles to
rapid recovery and staying fit.

Disclaimer: This is the ideal plan for patients of viral flu, moderately ill Covid-19 patients, and people with low immunity. You can personalise it according to your needs, suitability, availability and seasonal variations. You are open to consult at Naturiesta online in case you need customised should. You should consult with your doctor or at Naturiesta according to your personal symptoms.

The above data has been compiled from WHO Guidelines and AYUSH Guidelines for Covid-19 pateints; Charak Samhita and personal interpretation from practical knowledge.
Naturiesta shall not be held responsible for any suggestion provided on the website, and any adverse reaction, that may or may not occur.