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The 13 Best Foods to Boost Your Immune System to Fight Off COVID-19 Symptoms By Lucy Danziger

Here's what you need to know about fighting off COVID-19: Nothing but your immune system can beat this disease. And to have a stronger immune response to the invaders (virus particles that enter your lungs, blood cells, and organs and wreak havoc and cause inflammation) you need to eat a diet high in plant-based foods. Doctors have begun recommending to patients that they switch to a mostly plant-based diet, especially those in the highest risk groups: Overweight, diabetic, over 60, and male. One doctor urges his patients to eat mostly fruit and vegetables and stay away from inflammation-causing meat, dairy, and processed food, in light of COVID-19.

Talking to doctors and nutritionists about COVID-19 and how to best have the healthiest outcome, that allows you to suffer the least symptoms or side effects: Your immune system's response is the only thing that can fight the disease. If your system is weak or overtaxed with other existing conditions, including obesity or diabetes, it can over-react, creating the "cytokine storm" of inflammation that leads to a cascade of complications that make it harder for your body to self-regulate as it attempts to create antibodies to the virus (essentially molecules that recognize the virus invaders and deploy through the bloodstream to neutralize them)

Immunity is built when your body has to fight off everything from everyday aging to infections. And the building blocks of your immunity are helped by the micronutrients in your food, such as antioxidants and vitamins and minerals, and nothing delivers those better than fruits and vegetables, legumes and nuts and seeds. The flip side is also true, that studies show a diet high in red meat and processed foods can cause inflammation, and in the case of COVID-19, inflammation is the enemy. Patients who do the worst when confronted with this virus are those who are overweight, have chronic inflammation, high blood pressure or are otherwise immune-compromised.

Here are the foods that are shown to fight inflammation and boost immunity. Eat them now for a stronger immune system, whether you are dealing with COVID-19 or another potential disease that requires your body to be healthier now and later. That includes almost every disease known to man. To be healthier, meaning to build cells that are able to function without bombardment from toxins, oxidization, infection, and internal destruction, plant-based foods are your best bet.

13 Immune-Boosting Foods to Eat On Repeat

These foods are known to supercharge your immune system, which is your body's defense against infection and illness. It works by recognizing cells that make up your body and will fight off anything unfamiliar. It destroys germs (bacteria and viruses) and parasites. Eat these to bolster your white blood cells and the supporting teams that keep them ready for battle. Healthline compiled the list and The Beet added even more research to bolster the facts.

1. Citrus for Your Cells and Healing

Your body does not produce vitamin C, which means you need to get it daily to have enough to create healthy collagen (the building blocks for your skin and healing). Also known as ascorbic acid, vitamin C is a water-soluble nutrient found in leafy greens and citrus, especially grapefruit, oranges, tangerines, lemons, limes, and clementines. It acts as an antioxidant, protecting cells from damage caused by free radicals.

How much do you need a day: The recommended daily amount to shoot for is 65 to 90 milligrams a day, which is the equivalent of one small glass of orange juice or eating a whole grapefruit. Almost all citrus fruits are high in vitamin C. With such a variety to choose from, it's easy to get your fill.

2. Red Peppers to Pump Up Skin and Boost Immunity with Twice the Amount of Vitamin C as an Orange Has

Want even more vitamin C, add red bell peppers to your salad or pasta sauce. One medium-sized red bell pepper contains 152 milligrams of vitamin C, or enough to fulfill your RDA.
Peppers are also a great source of beta carotene, a precursor of vitamin A (retinol). Vitamin A is important for healthy skin, your mucous membranes and your immune system. Beta carotene helps keep your eyes and skin healthy, as well. One cooked pepper has 19 percent of your daily recommended amount of beta carotene.
How much beta carotene do you need a day: You should try to get 75 to 180 micrograms a day which is the equivalent of one medium bell pepper a day. But a red pepper has more than two and a half times your RDA for vitamin C so eat them all winter long.

3. Broccoli, But Eat It Nearly Raw, to get the Most Nutrients Out of It!

Broccoli may be the most super of superfoods on the planet. It's rich in vitamins A and C as well as E. The phytochemicals in it are great for arming and strengthening your immune system.

Broccoli is a good source of lutein, a powerful antioxidant, and sulforaphane, another potent antioxidant. It contains additional nutrients, including some magnesium, phosphorus, zinc, and iron. The key to keeping its powerful nutrients intact and ready for helping the body's immune response is to cook it as little as possible — or even eat it raw.

Lutein is one of 600 known naturally occurring carotenoids and is found in high quantities in green leafy veggies such as spinach and kale.

There's another thing you need to know about broccoli, and why it's important to not overcook it. Broccoli contains sulforaphane, a gas that is a killer to a bug in the garden–and in the body. Sulforaphane is a sulfur-rich compound found in several cruciferous vegetables like bok choy, cabbage, and kale, but broccoli delivers the most. When a bug bites into the stalk, leaf, or flowering bud of the plant it releases this sulfuric gas that kills the invaders, thereby protecting the plant. This is the same agent that gives broccoli that sulfuric smell when you cook it, so don't overcook it since you'd rather all of that end up in your body than in the kitchen air. Cook it too much and the gas escapes into your kitchen, so if you want to keep it in the plant, and delivered to your body, lightly steam the green and add it to your meal barely cooked through.

How much lutein should you eat in a day: There is no RDA for lutein, but experts say get at least 6 milligrams.

4. Garlic, Eaten By the Clove

Garlic isn't just a great flavor-enhancer, it's essential for your health. Ancient humans valued garlic as an infection fighter, which is why so much of our traditional diets include it as a first ingredient (making pasta sauce for instance). Value it and use it liberally for fighting infections.
Garlic’s immune-boosting properties are tied to its sulfur-containing compounds, such as allicin. Allicin is thought to improve your immune cells' ability to fight off colds and flu, and viruses of all kinds. (Smelling more garlic on the subway? It could be smart coronavirus management.) Garlic also has anti-microbial and anti-viral properties thought to fight off infections.
How much should you eat in a day: The optimal amount of garlic to eat is more than most of us can fathom: Two to three cloves a day. While that may not be doable, realistically, some people take garlic supplements to get 300-mg dried garlic in a powdered tablet.

5. Ginger is a Power Player for Immunity and Digestion

Ginger is another ingredient that has super properties when it comes to fighting off illness. It has been shown to decrease inflammation, which can help if you get swollen glands or a sore throat or any inflammatory ailment. How much should you eat a day: Most recommendations land on 3–4 grams of ginger extract a day, or up to four cups of ginger tea, but no more than 1 gram a day if you are pregnant. Some studies have linked high dosages to an increased risk of miscarriage.

Other healthy fruits and vegetables are: Spinach, Wilted, Not Steamed (Also Kale and Dark Leafy Greens of All Kinds), Almonds for the Win, Pop Them Like Candy, Turmeric to Fight Inflammation, Put it In Your Tea or Smoothie, Green Tea by the Gallon, Skip the Coffee and Sip this Instead, Papaya, The Tropical Healer to Keep You Vacation-Healthy All Year Round, and Kiwis, a Vitamin Powerhouse.

Culled from thebeet.com