Top tips for Filipinos to beat viruses

Here in the Philippines people have been suffering during the corona virus pandemic due to prolonged lockdowns causing loss of work and misery. With many restrictions and foreign tourists still not allowed to enter the Philippines, the economy is taking a huge hit.

Fortunately, there are many ways that you can make you body healthier and able to fight viruses and infections, without it costing you a lot of money.

You body has a natural defence system against infections, such as viruses, known as the immune system. SARS-CoV-2 (corona virus 2019) that causes the Covid-19 illness, the flu and the common cold are all caused by different viruses. If your immune system is weak you are more likely to get sick from them. But, if your immune system is healthy you will be much more able to beat viruses like Manny Pacquiao beating his opponents – BAAAAAM take that virus – KO!

What can boost your immune system to help fight viruses?

• Eating healthy foods
• Exercise
• Supplements
• The sun
• Reduce stress
• Smiles and laughter

What can reduce your immune system giving more chance of infection?

• Eating sugary or processed foods/junk foods
• Lack of exercise.
• Fear and depression

Here are some simple tips to boost your immune system and KO viruses.

Eat Healthily
I’ve travelled to many countries across the world and I’m sorry to tell you, but I haven’t seen so much sugary, processed and junk foods in people’s supermarket shopping carts, as I have in the Philippines. Wow – you guys really love junk foods and sugar like I’ve never seen before!

It wasn’t surprising to me at all when I found out that the Philippines has a really high rate of diabetes with over 33,000 deaths from it in 2016. In 2019 – 7.1% of Filipinos had diabetes. This is so much higher than most other countries in the world. Not only can too much sugar cause diabetes and other health conditions, but did you know that eating all this sugar also weakens your immune system?

So, my biggest tip to my Filipino friends is to really think about what you eat. Have you ever heard the expression – ‘you are what you eat?’ Well eating healthily is one of the most important steps to being healthy.

Tips
Cook food from fresh ingredients and stop buying sugary and processed foods.

Sometimes it’s hard to tell if foods are healthy or not – especially as the ingredients lists are written in such small writing. Products like 3-in-1 coffee and powdered milk are also loaded with sugar. I was really shocked to see that the milk you buy for you kids is so loaded with sugar!

An easy way to tell how healthy your diet is when you reach the checkout:

If your cart if full of raw ingredients like rice, other grains, vegetables and fruit – it’s healthier.

If your cart is full of foods packed in brightly coloured plastics packaging, it’s most likely very unhealthy. If you can’t even read the ingredients list out loud – it’s mostly likely junk!

Get more fruit and veg

Camotes/sweet potatoes and squash (pumpkin) are to really healthy alternatives to rice. Green leafy vegetables like kang kong (water spinach) and camote tops are also packed with vitamins, calcium and iron. And don’t forget beans such as mungo (mung) beans – toot toot!

Here in the Philippines you are so blessed with delicious sweet fruits like mangoes and pineapples. Right now I seem to have avocados and calamansi dropping on my head when I go in the garden! Mangoes, pineapples and calamansi contain lots of vitamin C, which is a great immune booster. In the UK we refer to avocado as a super food because it’s super good for you.

Bear in mind that some fruits contain a lot of sugars, so think about those calories as part of your overall diet. Avocadoes are low in sugar (only about half a gram in one fruit) and are full of fibre and healthy fats. But, please guys – don’t just load you avocados with sugar!

If you really have to eat your avocado sweet – use honey (dogos) instead of sugar. I love making avocado ice cream with gata (coconut milk) and honey.

Malunggay!
Wow – this stuff seems to grow everywhere in the Philippines and is another super food! Malunggya (also know as Moringa) is believed to have many nutritional and health benefits, which include boosting your immune system. Why not chuck a handful in your tinola or other favourite soup?

Reduce sugar
Here I’m talking in particular about refined sugar or added sugar, the stuff that Flipinos buy by the kilo and put in nearly everything! Eating a lot of this type of sugar weakens your immune system, as well as risking many other health conditions like diabetes. If you are eating a lot of sugar, you many as well get Manny Pacquiao to punch your immune system instead of the viruses!

To make foods sweet, add a little honey or ripe fresh fruits instead of sugar. Pineapples, mangoes and sugar bananas are my favourites. Just chuck some in your kids kilisan (rice porridge) – no need for sugar and it tastes Lumiiiiii Kaaaaayo!

How about supplements?

Vitamins C and D along with Zinc are real immune boosters. These can be bought as supplements, but you can also get them naturally.
Vitamin C can be found in many fruits and vegetables (as discussed above). Some great sources of Zinc are meat, shellfish, beans, nuts, seeds, dairy and whole grains. You can get vitamin D from fish such as tinapa (sardines), egg yolks, milk, yoghurt, almond milk, oats, fortified products such as cereals or fortified tofu. But, did you know that vitamin D is also produced in your skin when you go in the sun? Read on to see how to get this benefit.

Should I even buy supplements?
I love eating lots of fruit, vegetables and healthy foods, so I don’t often take supplements. If however, you don’t feel you are getting enough from your diet or lifestyle – consider buying some.

Back in England it gets damp, cold and dark in the winter, so I always have a stock of supplements ready to take at the beginning of winter season. When people around me start getting sick during flu season, I take them to boost my immune system and keep smiling though the winter months. When I do get a cold or flu, I make sure I buy extra fruit and veg and increase the supplements I’m taking. I generally recover much faster than those around me.

Here in the Philippines, I am always swimming in the sea and juggling pineapples and mangoes so I don’t feel the need to take supplements.

Probiotics
Did you know that the health of our guts also affects our immune systems? Our guts are full or friendly bacteria that aid our digestion and also contribute to our overall health. If our guts are healthy – this make our immune system stronger.

Taking antibiotics can destroy the friendly bacteria in our bodies. I only take antibiotics if I really, really have to. If ever I take antibiotics, I always take probiotics afterwards to help restore my gut health. If you’ve had antibiotics recently, I’d definitely consider taking probiotics. The strongest types of probiotics are the ones that dissolve in your gut instead of your stomach. These are known as encapsulated or enteric coated – if you are not sure just ask the pharmacist.

As well as buying probiotics in supplements, you can also get them in foods like kimchee, natural yoghurt and kambucha.

Exercise and get some sun
Depending on your local restrictions – go out and exercise. Avoid the mid day sun so you don’t get burnt, but get some sun on your skin. When you are in the sun vitamin D is produced in your skin. Vitamin D is a really great immune booster. Hanging out on the beach and swimming in the sea will do wonders for your mood as well as your fitness.

At home you can following fitness programmes online, jump rope or just play energetic games with the kids. Basically, do something that increase your physical movement and gets your heart pumping. I can think of some other things that really get your happy hormones pumping, but I’ll leave that to your own imagination, as maybe there are kids reading this ;-).

Locked-down in your house? Well, at least get out in the garden and do some exercise there with the sun on your skin.

Fun and Laughter
Have your ever heard the expression – laughter is the best medication? Well, there is a lot of truth in that. When you smile, chuckle or laugh – your body produces happy hormones known as endorphins. The release of these also boosts your immune system. So, play silly games, watch funny movies – even do some crazy tik-tok buang-ness to make you and others laugh.

Reduce stress
This piece of advice may surprise you. Stop watching the news so much!

The media love scary and shocking news stories. They sell more papers and get more viewers by reporting on negative news stories. By living in fear, your body is staying in a state of stress. When you get stressed your body produces stress hormones, which have many negative effects on your body including – a weakened immune system, delayed wound healing and can even lead to cancer.

If you must watch TV – forget about the news and watch some fun movies that will make you laugh and smile instead. Remember what I said above? – Laughter is the best medicine.

Overall
Stay fit or get fit, eat healthily, get out as much as you can and have some fun. By doing this your body will be healthier and more able to kick virus ass!