Nutrition and COVID19

Hello Everyone!

My name is Dr. Ellen Thomas, DC. I am a Chiropractor and have a masters in Human Nutrition. I am a strong advocate for Functional Medicine and Nutrition. It has helped me immensely in treating my patients! There are so many lifestyle and diet changes that you can incorporate into your daily routine that will make a huge difference in how you feel. I wanted to share with you some thoughts on nutrition and health. Everyone is very concerned of their health these days with this ensuing COVID-19. The leading Functional Medicine experts make it clear that inflammation in our body is the leading cause of dysfunctional health. As stated by Jeffrey Bland, PhD, in his article ”COVID 19: A Pandemic Within a Pandemic”, “Inflammation is a hallmark of immune system dysfunction and is also strongly associated with COVID 19 infection….” This means we have to think very carefully about how our immune system can become dysfunctional.  Are there any early signals that might tell us when things are going wrong? Actually, there are several. Here are just a few:

If your waist is wider than your hips. 

If you have GI issues- GERD, bloating, constipation, diarrhea or both

  If you are overweight.

If you don’t exercise and feel very sluggish. 

  If you don’t sleep well. 

There are many signs we should take notice of. As it turns out, there is a condition called metabolic syndrome which is characterized by altered immune function. In fact, it overlaps with the comorbidities that contribute to COVID-19 severity. (High blood pressure, cardiovascular issues, diabetes, obesity, etc.) And this metabolic syndrome has been steadily rising in our population over the last several decades

 I think in these trying times, it’s important to be as healthy as possible to give our bodies a chance to fight off this virus if we come in contact with it. One of the main ways to decrease inflammation in our body is to watch what we eat. Processed foods are a major source of creating inflammation. Eating foods that are higher in fiber, like plant-based foods, help lower our inflammation. They help fuel our good bacteria in our intestines, which creates a lot of positive pathways and helps keep us healthy. Eating “whole foods” rather than processed foods is a great start in changing your eating habits. Another major contributor to inflammation is SUGAR. Yes, sugar! It lowers your immunity for a several hours after you consume it not to mention it can even elevate your cholesterol. And it is very addictive.! Not good if you are trying to maintain healthy immunity! High fructose corn syrup falls into the sugar category. Look on the food labels of the food you are consuming to see how much sugar you are actually eating. You will be surprised. If you have allergies to food, this also can cause inflammation. Gluten intolerance is becoming more and more common. This is an allergy to gluten, which is in many foods we eat- pasta, cookies, breads, baked goods to name a few. Many people don’t know they are intolerant because the symptoms are so individualized. They don’t relate the symptoms to the gluten intolerance. Some people experience bloating after eating gluten containing foods, other develop rashes, others develop leaky gut that leads to other diseases.  I am not saying this is easy to make these changes, and many times baby steps work best, but you will be doing yourself a huge favor by making better choices when it comes to what foods you eat.

Sleep is another important aspect of maintaining good health. Without sleep, your body won’t recoup or regenerate or heal.  Having a sleep cycle that is consistent, going to bed at a regular time between 10-11 and waking up at 6-7 am, on a daily basis is very important Getting 7 to 8 hours of sleep a day is optimal.  Without it your body won’t be as healthy. 

If you feel you would like to make changes and are confused in how to make them, or how to get started, please contact me and we can work together to make this happen for you.

I encourage you to read the full article I cited. It is very enlightening on the health of our nation and the world!

COVID-19: A Pandemic Within a Pandemic | by Jeffrey Bland ...