A balanced diet and 30 minutes of exercise a day, enough sleep, reading books and watching movies, can help citizens to preserve their psycho-physical health during the days of the new coronavirus epidemic, when they are confined to their homes.
Internal medicine specialist, Radmila Starčević, in an interview with "Vijesti" says that now we have plenty of time to devote ourselves, although many believe that it is not the time to start a special nutrition program because citizens are under stress.
She says that for those who, for a long time, due to lack of time or due to some other excuses, have fallen into the trap of addiction to clutter, negligence towards themselves and health, which included eating fast food, she now recommends that it is time for a change.
"Refined food is without vitamins and minerals, poor nutritional value with empty calories of high energy value, with a lot of chemistry - aromas, colors, additives, emulsifiers, flavor enhancers, which burdens our body, makes it tired and makes it old, therefore vulnerable to of various external microorganisms, whether it is already known or, as in this case, unknown viruses".
Starčević claims that good immunity means that our defense cells, which is our army, recognize and eliminate the virus in time, without destroying the cells, and that depends a lot on what, when and how much you eat, how much you move and how much you are sleeping.
"Many feel that now is not the time to start a diet program because they are under stress. But what deterred many from the idea of starting is the lack of time. And now we have it in abundance. The program that I have been advising for 10 years is chronic nutrition, which was aimed primarily at treating addiction to sugar and flour (because white flour contains up to 80 percent of carbohydrates) as well as hormonal imbalance that occurs due to excessive use of the same foods. , she says.
Starčević points out that this type of diet results in a feeling of constant hunger, chronic fatigue, bloating, headaches, allergies, lethargy, depression and other metabolic syndromes that lead to various diseases that are on the rise in modern man.
She explains that earlier, during the crises, it was always announced through the media that flour, yeast and sugar were available in sufficient quantities.
"And I remind you that more than 50 percent of the population is obese, and the other half has some other health problems due to improper nutrition," says Starčević and adds that we don't need thousands of snacks that contain sugar, flour, margarine and other bad things. trans fats.
The doctor says that citizens, now that they have enough time and the Internet, should have a ritual game, which means getting up by eight or nine o'clock to begin with.
"Drink a glass of water or lemonade. Do a couple of exercises that suit your state of health and existing fitness. After that, take a notebook and a pen, keep a food diary...".
She says the morning is forgiving because we have digestive enzymes, hormones that order energy to be used up. He explains that now, while we are in isolation, our body also consumes energy in the phase of total rest, which is called battle metabolism. In this way, women consume an average of 1.000-1.500 calories, and men from 1.500 to 2.000.
"This means that the intestine (which is up to 10 meters long and muscular in structure) can use up a lot of energy if you give it fiber. There is fiber in vegetables and stone fruits, primarily almonds. From 15 to 20 percent of energy is consumed by the immune system, and 25 percent by the brain. So even without movement, if you focus on nutrition, it can enable you, if nothing else, at least not to gain weight or endanger your health in this state of emergency," says Starčević.
She advises that there should be a gap of five hours between meals, during which you drink water, coffee without sugar, milk and sweeteners, and herbal teas.
“Watch the news no more than twice a day. It's time for a movie, reading or a hobby that you neglected in the previous period. Let me not forget that even though we keep our distance, we have to take care of our housemates. You can also repeat the exercises again for 15 to 30 minutes. If you have any equipment for exercise, massage, trainers, pilates balls... feel free to take them out, dust them off and start".
She says that the citizens, who are already implementing some dietary regimes during self-isolation, should continue with them, but pay attention to the portion size - it should be reduced by a third, while children can have one snack in addition to three main meals.
"With the already published recommendations for implementing personal hygiene, from washing hands, teeth, showering, airing and cleaning rooms, and now my recommendations, you will understand that the day can pass quickly. And don't think about the disease and what will happen after this crisis, because the individual cannot control it, nor solve it. The only thing you can control is yourself, and that's exactly what this story about distance, personal and internal hygiene is all about. So do your best as an individual to enable us to get out of this pandemic as quickly as possible".
Do not take supplements and medicines on your own
The doctor warns about the flood of various preparations and the abuse of the pharmaceutical industry, which reflexively lead us to buy and drink supplements to improve immunity.
"It has been shown that vitamin D is needed for immunity, so go out on the terrace or in front of the house to stimulate its production, while the elderly should take it in the form of tablets. Zinc and selenium also proved to be good".
However, she says it goes without saying that a balanced diet comes first, and 30 minutes of exercise second - walking is best, and now only those with a treadmill can do that.
In third place, he claims, is supplementing the diet with supplements, primarily with minerals that are lacking, while vitamins are mostly found in fruits and vegetables.
The doctor warns that citizens should not take supplements on their own, let alone medicines, because they can endanger their health and make it difficult for doctors who have long training to be able to prescribe them properly. So that side effects would not appear in interaction with other drugs, which especially chronic patients have as regular therapy.
One feels as confused as 500 years ago
Starčević says that man today, with all the technological and medical progress, feels as confused as he did 500 years ago, at the time of plague, cholera, smallpox or some other plague.
"We have given too much importance to the ego, threatened the balance in nature, and medicine has given too much importance to curative, that is, treatment. The message is that in the future, medicine will be based more on prevention, which is actually a story about immunity and psychophysical health. Because then we will have a better chance to get out of situations that will surely happen again in the future with as few consequences as possible".
Bonus video:
