•Reveals 7 Foods & Natural Products To Take To Battle COVID-19
About 40,000 Nigerians have been infected with COVID-19 and many celebrities have died as a result of complications from this disease. A cure has not been found yet but experts have revealed that the immune system can be fortified against contracting this dreaded disease.
Governor Seyi Makinde, on Monday, July 20, released a food advisory, which he said experts have certified as immune boosters that could help the human body prevent attacks of COVID-19. The governor, who is also the chairman of the Oyo State COVID-19 Task Force, while addressing newsmen at the Government House, Agodi, Ibadan, on Monday, shortly after a meeting of the Task Force, said that the food advisory was certified by Olatunde Farombi, a Professor of Biochemistry and Head of Department of Biochemistry, at the University of Ibadan.
Prof Farombi is a man who has won many awards in the area of food research with some of his achievements including research in characterization of browned yam flour diet as a liver protective agent. Fellow, World Bank, 1996, United Nations Educational, 2001.
He took his time last week to speak extensively on Fresh FM, Ibadan on the appropriate food, fruits and supplement that can boost the immune system again COVID-19. City People’s DAMILARE SALAMI (08155134152) captured the discourse and he brings you the excerpts. Happy reading.
Not too many people have been talking about Bitter Kola or Orogbo. I may not blame them, it’s probably because they don’t have the understanding of what it can do to prevent this type of disease. We have worked extensively on Bitter Kola for over 25 years and we can say authoritatively, what it can do.
Our fathers have been eating this medicinal plant for so many years and it plays a vital role in the management of Cough. And as you know, Cough is one of the symptoms of COVID-19. Bitter Kola is able to manage cough effectively because of its strong anti-bacterial property. It is also able to manage cold and catarrh alongside the cough I earlier mentioned. Studies have shown that the influenza virus that we more or less know as flu is one of the ailments that Bitter Cola can effectively manage. When you take it, you discover a relief when you are down with flu. You don’t even have to wait until you are down with flu and that is the message today. You see, prevention is better than cure and there is something in science that we call chemoprevention. When you practice chemoprevention, you develop immunity against such disease in a way. I will advise that people practice moderate intake of bitter cola. Moderation is very key because I cannot start talking about the pros and the cons right here. I will recommend that people take between 1-3 seeds of bitter cola daily then you will discover that you are going to be very active and strong because it is going to boost your immunity. It also has anti-inflammatory property and strong anti-oxidant property and with these properties, an individual is going to be strongly protected against COVID-19.
Number two, I will suggest that people should add the consumption of Zinc either as a supplement or otherwise to their diet. Zinc is a trace element and micronutrient that is very useful for the body. It is what individuals should take in minute quantities. Zinc is not a drug as it were, about 40-50 mg of Zinc is very effective for an individual on a daily basis. The reason is that Zinc boosts immunity and studies have shown that it has the capability of inhibiting viral replication. That is to say, if the virus enters into the body system and Zinc is present in that body, it slows down the rate at which the virus is going to be replicated meaning that such a person can actually buy time to raise the immunity against the virus and will be okay in no time. You find out that in many climes, they also administer hydroxychloroquine alongside zinc. I am not prescribing that somebody should take hydroxychloroquine. If you have COVID-19, go to the hospital or isolation centres and if the doctors prescribe hydroxychloroquine for you, it is fine. But studies have shown that hydroxychloroquine is like the transporter; it more or less facilitates the entry of zinc into the system and that is the reason for combining both. Hydroxychloroquine also has anti-inflammatory property and can also be very useful tor arthritic patients. Apart from hydroxychloroquine, there is something that we normally take and people don’t know that it is very and also serve the purpose of hydroxychloroquine and it is non-toxic; that is onions.
Onions contain a lot of flavonoids and one of the flavonoids is called Quercetin. Quercetin is a free radical scavenger, it is an anti-oxidant and also a transporter. So when Quercetin is present with zinc, it also facilitates the entry of zinc into the system. So rather than taking hydroxychloroquine, it is advisable to take onions alongside zinc. Onions can either be eaten raw or cooked. You can serve it with rice or use it as a spice in your food.
There are so many food substances that contain zinc, one is ginger. When you do the analysis of the components of ginger, you will discover that there are so many minerals in it and zinc is one of them. So if you take ginger, apart from its already known numerous benefits, you also have the advantage of enjoying the benefits of zinc; people should take note of that. Ginger is very important, it is an ancient plant that has an active ingredient called the gingerroots. It has a very strong anti-inflammatory property. Inflammation is a very strong way by which COVID-19 destroys people. When you have anti-inflammatory agents, the inflammation is attenuated and abated and at the end of the day, it disappears because the unresolved inflammation that the disease causes is what actually makes people go down and eventually die. Ginger also known as Ata Ile Funfun in Yoruba is available in the market. All you need to do is remove the skin, you can slice or grate it, it can be taken in form of tea, or it can also be sued as a spice to cook meat or other foods. Some also take it in the form of powder but for you to really benefit from its medicinal property, it is important that you take it fresh as against the powdered form. Because when you take it fresh, you have all the mentioned active ingredients very intact and available for the system.
The next one I would like to quickly talk about is garlic. People don’t like to take it because of the smell but it is very important and germane at this time. When you take garlic, you also find out that it begins to smell. The reason is because of the presence of Sulphur that it contains. One of its most potent ingredients is called allicin. Allicin is formed as a result of certain reactions which individuals benefit from. Garlic has strong anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. It helps in the management of viral infections. Garlic is also a blood thinner because one of the things that happen during COVID-19 is that you have a blood clot. When there is a blood clot, apart from pneumonia and other things, somebody can show emboli and when that takes place, the person can die. When you take something that thins the blood like an anti-coagulant, you find out that it is very relevant. That is one of the things that garlic does in the system. It is important that people take note of that because it is very important during this COVID-19. When you have garlic, ginger and zinc in your system, you will be soundly protected from COVID-19.
Another thing I would like to talk about which is the number sixth is Vitamin C. Vitamin C is very important at this time, in fact, some people have referred to it as an anti-viral vitamin. In our research, we call it water-soluble vitamin because when you take it, it dissolves in your mouth and you can always add water. It is very important in the management of cold and symptoms of COVID-19. That is why you see vitamin c is part of what they give them in isolation centres. 1000 mg of Vitamin C that is being administered to COVID-19 patients daily, aids their speedy recovery. It boosts the immune system and is very important in the management of flu. You can take it in the form of tablets (the white one) and if you see the one that is called the lypospheric vitamin c or liposomal vitamin c, it is stronger. It enables vitamin c to be more available and deployed to different parts of the body and perform its functions in the system. It can also be taken in fruits such as citruses that are available at this time. Fruits like lemon, lime, tangerine, oranges, etc. that are available at the disposal of everyone. People are encouraged to also invest in that at this particular time.
Another thing that people can take apart from Vitamin C is what trado-medical practitioners know very well, which is in the form of seeds is Alligator pepper which the Yorubas call Atare. Alligator pepper is also known as Aframomummelegueta is very important in the management of viral infections. About 3-6 seeds can be chewed which when you do, it becomes very spicy and can mildly burn the throat. After chewing, you can then swallow. When you do that, you are benefitting from the strong anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties of alligator pepper. It also contains some of the ingredients of ginger because they belong to the same family which is called Zingiberaceae. It is not advisable for an ulcer patient to take alligator pepper on an empty stomach but it can be taken after a meal.
The next one I also want to talk about is Turmeric. It is more or less similar to ginger. It has been used for several years as a very strong anti-inflammatory agent because of its curcumin content. Curcumin is what is responsible for the pharmacological properties of turmeric. Turmeric is known as ata ile pupa in the Yoruba language.
Lemongrass is used to treat malaria. One of the symptoms of covid-19 is fever so when people take lemongrass, it has an antipyretic property which reduces the pains and feverish conditions.
The other food I will mention finally is the bitter leaf. Bitter leaf and Bitter Cola earlier mentioned are very bitter and people don’t like them but there is this school of thought that says if you take anything bitter, it is likely going to do you good. And on the contrary, anything sweet that you take must be with caution because many researches have shown that sugar may cause a lot of damage.
The above-listed items should only complement your intake of a balanced diet all the time. You must have the correct intake of fat, protein, carbohydrate, vitamins and minerals. Eating a balanced diet at this particular point in time is not negotiable.
READ ALSO: HOW I DECIDED TO TREAT MYSELF OF COVID-19 ATTACK – LAGOS ENTERTAINMENT GURU, WALE OLUWALEIMU
Send Us News, Gist, more... to citypeopleng@gmail.com | Twitter: @CitypeopleMagz
