Top 10 Flu-Fighting Foods To Stay Productive for Busy Office Warriors
2023’s flu season is foreseen to be Australia’s largest flu season, breaking all the previous records. Like every adult, are you worried about the elderly or children in your homes and planning to ensure prevention? When playing responsibly, don't forget to consider your health, too! Because things get quite challenging to manage when suffering from flu, folks.
So, whether you are an on-site or remote worker, you need to figure out curing and prevention strategies beforehand to better deal with the flu season. In this ultimate guide, we have shed light on multiple science-backed foods that can prove magical in relieving flu symptoms.
Besides this, we have also explained ways to incorporate flu-relieving foods into your daily diet. So, gather up all the professionals, dive into this amazing guide, and unveil what’s awaiting!
Hot, Plain Broth
On getting sick, our bodies face a shortage of fluids and electrolytes. The same is the case with flu; its common symptoms, like vomiting, diarrhea, and fever, can cause severe dehydration – a notable hindrance during the natural recovery. However, before treating the symptoms directly, you need to support your natural healing system by ensuring optimal hydration.
This is when planned warm broth comes into play! It’s packed with hydrating agents, electrolytes, and more. You can rely on them to optimally hydrate your body. Also, drink warm broth, as warm fluids offer an immediate escape from sneezing, coughing, running nose, and sore throat. Wondering how? These fluids trigger increased saliva production in the oral cavity to lubricate the air passage.
It's up to you whether you want to drink plain broth or make it into a light meal, adding chopped veggies, cooked noodles, and herbs. Prefer drinking it earlier in the morning to give your flu-affected days a perfectly refreshing and relieving restart.
Chicken Soup
Chicken soup is widely known for its flu-relieving effects, especially easing the effects on the head and chest. Where its amazing nutrients help hydrate the body well and offer healing purposes, its steam aids in opening up congested throat and nose. Moreover, it boasts carnosine to treat running nose, fever, and other symptoms with inflammatory action.
According to recent research, the nutrients featured in chicken soups are significantly effective in strengthening the immune system and reducing inflammation during influenza infection. Therefore, the rituals of moms offering their children bowls full of chicken soups are now backed by scientific research to be an amazing homemade remedy.
Add some cloves of garlic and a few inches of ginger to your soup for an instant boost in the healing properties. Both directly contribute to killing the influenza-causing germ.
Garlic
Where garlic adds a flavorful touch to other remedial recipes, it is also a remedy! It’s proven to have antiviral properties that aid in preventing viral infection’s spread, strengthening the immune system. Wondering what’s the science behind it? Garlic is rich in sulfur content that improves the body's ability to absorb and retain trace elements, like zinc. These elements are directly linked with boosting immunity and offering both the purposes of prevention and cure.
Flu is not the only infection garlic can help with. It has been used to treat a plethora of infections and diseases, from chronic cough and toothaches to arthritis, insect bites, and more.
Ancient people used to eat raw garlic in the morning to ensure optimal health. However, you can incorporate this vegetable into your diet, either in raw form or as supplements, or just add them chopped into your pasta sauce or roasted vegetables, dressings, or dips.
Vitamin C-Containing Fruits and Vegetables
Next on the list are the fruits and veggies enriched in Vitamin C. Its sources include everything from citrus fruits to bell paper, tomatoes, and more. They are proven to be beneficial in recovering and minimizing the severity. However, as Vitamin C is known for its immune-boosting action, it can indirectly be a part of prevention.
It fights off free radicals that damage blood cells in search of free electrons and supports the health of blood cells, the main constituents of the immune system. Other benefits are microbial killing, improved phagocytosis, and neutrophil migration. Still, it doesn’t end at this; there are a lot more ways this nutrient can help your body.
You can include Vitamin C-containing fruits and veggies into your diet in multiple ways. Squeeze up a lemon in all your meals and drinks, try adding fruit and veggie salads as meals into your diet, savor bell peppers and oranges as snacks, and sip fruit juices twice a day.
Spices like Ginger and Turmeric
Though scientific research is limited, spices like turmeric and ginger effectively relieve the flu symptoms. Turmeric has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant specialties, whereas ginger extracts have anti-microbial properties. Together, these contribute to removing toxins from the body and offering protection against influenza spread.
You can add these spices to your salad dressing and different sauces to give your recipes a much-needed flavorsome and health benefits-full boost. Got fresh ginger? Just brew it and add it to your teas, making ginger shots you can sip throughout your day. On the other hand, turmeric fits best with a warm bowl of oatmeal. Ensure to sprinkle some black pepper to increase curcumin absorption.
Oatmeal
Oatmeal is heavenly and rich in a plethora of immune-boosting nutrients. From protein, fiber, zinc, and selenium to iron and copper, everything can be obtained from this wholesome meal. Besides this, oatmeal also features Vitamin D for triggering immune system activation. It accounts for the top bland food choices that must be considered when ill, especially after vomiting.
Moreover, it's easy to digest. When struggling with flu, fever, or any other illness, your main goal must be to invest in your immunity and immune system. In such a case, savoring hard-to-digest foods can lead to more energy consumption in digestion than in cure of disease. So, check your food choices and add oatmeal to your diet.
You can start your day with a hot bowl of scrumptious oatmeal topped with the goodness of nuts, bananas, and honey. The best part is that this meal option is customizable. You can include berries, cinnamon, and chia seeds for increased antioxidant action.
Probiotic Foods
Probiotics refer to good bacteria residing in our bodies. These are involved in multiple processes, like digestion. According to a few studies, these microbiome constituents can help reduce influenza's severity. They benefit in improving digestion by keeping in balance the microbiome.
Probiotic foods like kefir and yogurt can be your best bet for relieving flu symptoms. Stick to non-dairy probiotics, not dairy ones, which can disturb the digestive system. These can be anything from fruits and vegetables to fermented soy milk and more.
A few great ways to add probiotic foods are to enjoy a bowl full of probiotic-rich yogurt topped with the goodness of fresh berries and honey. It can make a perfect mid-morning snack. Also, swap your everyday afternoon drink with a refreshing kombucha, ensuring optimal gut health.
Avocado
Loaded with heart-healthy monounsaturated fats and calories, avocados can be a go-to food option when struggling with flu. It offers that much-needed energy boost to help your body fight illness when coping with loss of appetite. These are bland, comparably soft to eat, and easily digestible, so be sure to consider them.
You can eat avocado slices boasting creamy salad to meet your body's need for healthy fats. How can you skip those delish avocado slices? Spread the mashed goodness of avocadoes over a whole grain of toast and top it with poached egg to make a nutrient-filled breakfast.
Leafy Greens
Kale, spinach, cabbage, and other leafy greens are ideal sources of Iron, Vitamin C, and E. They support the immune system and empower it to fight against the pathogens causing inflammation and infection. Moreover, iron is also involved in producing immune cells; more immune cells mean stronger protection against flu and other diseases and widespread infections.
The best way to eat leafy greens is to make a salad with your favorite dressing. You can also include your desired lean proteins and vegetables to make the meal tempting. Otherwise, blend up spinach into your morning smoothie; believe me, you will surely drool over this combo.
Other options include eating raw veggies and adding them to your broth or soup for that nutrient-filled punch. Lastly, for an instant energy source, you can savor frozen veggies.
Lean Proteins
Last but not actually least, we have lean proteins on our list! If we have to count on a few essential nutrients our body requires, one must be Proteins. Proteins are mainly responsible for making up the lean body mass, i.e., muscles. On developing flu, we should eat more proteins to prevent our muscles from wasting, promote fullness healing, and keep blood sugar under control.
Also, these help in increasing the number of white blood cells and antibodies, improving immunity to fight off pathogens entering the body. So, besides curing foods, lean proteins are also involved in prevention. Also, it reduces tiredness. In short, lean proteins are complete packages of nutrients needed for recovery.
Grill a chicken breast and add it to your stir-fries, salads, sandwiches, and wraps. You can also rely on grilled chicken with quinoa and steamed broccoli for a filling yet tempting dinner.
What Foods to Avoid?
After going through the list of foods you should include in your diet when struggling with the flu, you must also skip certain food choices. These include the following:
Processed Foods – Such foods are jam-packed with sodium, salt, and preservatives that can weaken your immune system. However, skip these foods and replace them with whole, nutrient-dense options to fuel their recovery rather than hinder it.
Fatty Foods – As mentioned earlier, you should stick to easily digestible food choices when ill. Also, they can cause GI distress, so fatty foods are a big NO!
Reduced Dairy Intake – Optimal digestion is necessary to boost natural recovery. However, with more and more dairy products in your diet, you can develop viral gastroenteritis, slowing the recovery.
Alcohol – Alcoholic beverages cause dehydration, which lowers the immune system's activity. So, keep a check on your alcohol intake, too. Otherwise, you might end up increasing the severity of your flu rather than curing it.
5 Effective Tips for Quick Relief!
Let's now have a look at some quick tips for quick relief from the flu!
Hydrate, Hydrate, and Hydrate!
Hydration is a key factor in the healing process. Almost all of our body's reactions occur in water as a medium. So, on shortage of water, your entire metabolism will get disrupted. You can increase your water intake by drinking more and more fruit juices and including hydrating meals like chicken soup and broth. Other options include warm water with a splash of lemon and herbal teas.
Rest and Recover
One of the most important things that almost every busy person skips during recovery is resting and giving your body time for recovery. If you don't get time to take off your hectic routine and rest for a while, then at least ensure not to compromise your sleep.
Suffering from sleep disturbance? Opt for sleep-inducing strategies like limiting the use of digital devices before bedtime and creating a sleep-friendly environment with star projectors and dim lights.
Listen to Your Body
Another important thing is to listen to your body. Notice the changes during illness. These can be anything from reduced hunger, fatigued body, and irritated mood. Figure out all the cues and make strategies to better cope with the disease when embracing these changes as a natural response.
If you are facing loss of appetite, try eating filling and nutrient-packed meals. Set reminders for food so you don't skip any meal of the day, whether it’s breakfast, lunch, an afternoon snack, or dinner.
Try Out Herbal Remedies
Let's face it! We all are convinced of herbal remedies' magical effects for several diseases. This is the case with the flu. A flu-fighting herbal tea can be your best buddy during the recovery journey. You can include green or black tea and star anise. However, before opting for any herbal remedies, consult your doctor, as your body can react differently to them, depending on your health condition.
Balance Recovery and Professional Life
Lastly, maintain a clear balance between recovery and professional life. If you have to meet work commitments but are not feeling well enough to make everything up to the mark, be sure to inform your boss beforehand. Or you can ask your colleagues for help. You can also request sick leaves for optimal and quick recovery; otherwise, a deadline relaxation can also work to distribute workload in more days, reducing every day's stress.
Besides working on improving your recovery, do keep a check on the prevention of disease spread. Wear a mask if you have to deal with people, ensure personal hygiene, and take off from work, preferably.
Prevention is Always Better than Cure!
Here comes the most important part: prevention. As mentioned, preventing a disease or infection is much easier than suffering from it and looking for curing treatments. However, be sure to consider the following strategies to prevent influenza:
Practice hygiene – Ensuring your personal hygiene is the last thing we expect from every patient. Take a shower, wash your hands before and after every meal,and never skip doing these!
Manage Stress – One of the best methods to prevent stress is to share your feelings with someone. They can be anyone from your beloved family member to loyal friends or you in the mirror. It might seem ridiculous. But it's not, according to research; forcing yourself to smile when looking at the mirror can make your brain feel happy. This will support your immune system.
Exercise Regularly – Regular exercise also boosts immune function by keeping you refreshed and lively throughout the day. Exercise also elevates your mood, so if some sort of stress is weakening your immune system, you can void that with proper exercise.
Wrapping It Up!
No doubt, dealing with flu symptoms can be daunting when managing a hectic work schedule alone. But by relying on the food choices mentioned above, you can make things much easier. All the foods are quick and easy to make, and some are fruits and veggies that you can eat raw without effort. Do consider quick curing and preventing strategies for more help.
Hope you found this info helpful. Stay tuned for more of such informative and helpful guides! Don't forget to let us know in the comments about the food options you opt for when you are ill or the strategies you might have.