I am writing this article today, 19th of March 2020, in the middle of a pandemic: COVID-19. I am hopeful, doing what I can to control the spread of COVID-19, and sharing my knowledge about the immune system to all of you who want to be prepared. 

It's easy to give in to the "panic mindset". I invite you to try and control that. You can choose today to change your perspective and take advantage of what is available to you and what you "can" do to prevent and control the situation. 

The immune system is our most powerful weapon against any infectious disease. Use the following steps to give it all the tools to do what it is best at: FIGHT.

Sleep

Prioritize going to bed early. Sleeping 7-8 hours straight without interruption will give the immune system the opportunity to work when it most needs to work: during your sleep. You are the best judge of what keeps you from doing that. If you wake up to go to the toilet, stop drinking liquids at 6-7 p.m. If it's too much caffeine, make the last cup of coffee at noon. If you are using screens at night, you might be sensitive to blue light. Shut all screens at maximum 8 p.m. and start your sleep routine: dim the lights, read a book or take a warm bath and add drops of lavender essential oil. Do what you can to get 7-8 hours of sleep and choose to go to bed early.

Ditch the sugar

Sugar is known to shut down the immune system for hours after consumption. Staying at home during the quarantine might make you more susceptible to eat out of boredom. Don't let processed, sugary snacks be available at your house. One study found that after an hour of carbohydrates, the phagocytes (responsible for eating microbes) were significantly reduced. 

Move

Movement and exercise also boosts the immune system. If you can walk around your block in the sun, go for that. Choose a home-workout according to your preference and level, and stick to it. 

Control the stress

Stress is the number one immunosuppressant agent. It is very powerful. Don't underestimate the effect of stress on your body. An easy way to immediately control stress is belly-breathing. Breathing to your lower belly, holding your breath and exhaling slowly is an effective way to stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system, or the 'rest and digest' system. 

Use the sun, it's free!

Vitamin D is best obtained from the sun. If you can, expose your skin for 10-15 minutes to the sun at noon. Do not shower right after. Keep the precursors on the skin as long as you can to do the magic. If you know that your vitamin D levels are below 40 ng/ml, take a vitamin D3 supplement (dose corresponding to your level). However, it's important to know that vitamin D levels above 60 ng/ml will actually suppress your immune system. This cannot happen from the sun, but can happen if you overdo it using the supplement. Keep your levels between 40-60 ng/ml. If you can't test now, but you know that you do not expose yourself regularly to the sun, take 2000 I.U per day. 

Eat real food

The immune system will need tools to work its magic: nutrients. Make sure you eat the rainbow everyday (choose different colors of fruits and vegetables for variety). Eat at least 2 big portions of leafy greens daily. Avoid processed foods. Those will increase the workload on your immune system. 

Some foods have special compounds that boost the immune system: onion, garlic (raw or left for 15 minutes after mincing to allow the heat-sensitive enzymes to act), ginger, mushrooms (especially reishi mushrooms), broccoli and honey. 

Fermented food
 

Eating food that contains friendly bacteria will help the immune system in fighting pathogenic organisms. Yoghurt, fermented vegetables made at home without vinegar or heat like kimchi or sauerkraut (google the recipes), and kefir are great examples of probiotics. Organic miso and natto are soy-based products if you can find them. Even if you make natural cucumber pickles without vinegar, using just sea salt, it will work great. Add at least 2 tablespoons of these mighty fermented vegetables to your meals daily. Prebiotics are the food that you eat that supports the growth of friendly bacteria. Examples are artichokes, asparagus, leeks, onions, garlic and bananas.

Vitamin C

Several fruits and vegetables are abundant in vitamin C. Spinach, broccoli, kiwi, strawberries, cantaloupe , red and green bell pepper, citrus fruits: lemons, grapefruits, oranges, and don't waste the peel. Many vitamins and minerals are in the peel. I use lemon peel in my hot drinks. If you think you need a supplement, there is no harm in taking 1-2 grams per day. 

Zinc

It's one of the less-known immune system supporters. Zinc helps the immune system to fight against invading microorganisms. It also supports the respiratory passages during infection. Zinc is found mainly in animal food like liver and shellfish. But you can also get zinc from legumes like chickpeas and lentils, and nuts and seeds, especially pumpkin seeds. If you're sick, take 10 mg per day of zinc acetate lozenges. Zinc citrate or zinc glycinate are also better-absorbed tablet forms. Taking 30-40 mg per day  for a few weeks will not harm you. Sometimes zinc tablets cause nausea for a few people. In that case, taking the tablet with meals solves this problem. 

Vitamin A

Vitamin A also plays a critical role in the immune system. Animal foods like eggs and cod liver oil are high in vitamin A. Sweet potatoes, carrots, broccoli, spinach and other dark leafy greens contain Beta-carotenes which are converted to vitamin A in the body. Vitamin A supplements are tricky because they usually contain only beta carotenes which might not convert to vitamin A in some genetically-susceptible people. If you take a supplement, make sure it contains beta-carotenes and retinol forms. Also make sure you don't take it for a long time because it is one of the fat-soluble vitamins that can be toxic if it is used more than needed. 

Other supporting herbs

Green tea, Echinacea, Astragalus all support the immune system. You might find them in the form of supplements or drinks. I also use essential oils, either used on the skin after dilution, or used to inhale through a mistifier. Oregano oil, eucalyptus oil, frankincense oil and thyme oil are especially powerful immune-supporters. 

Finally, I would like to encourage you to make use of the time if you're quarantined at home. Staying at home for a long period of time, especially if you have children, can be very stressful if you let it! Make a daily routine. Write a schedule with your child on things that he/she will have to do on their own everyday. Put some quality time together in your schedule. I personally workout everyday with my 10-year old. We put good music and use this time to bond and move our bodies. We also watch something together everyday as well. I'm trying to encourage him to read after he finishes the school work, but yesterday he kept bargaining the 15 minutes until we agreed on 10 :) Make sure you have some time for yourself as well. I will start allocating time for piano playing today. Do something that makes you happy even if it's just for 10 minutes. Stay safe.