8 Mistakes That Can Affect Your Immune System in Quarantine

Our immune system, which has a more complex structure than is thought, is affected by many factors, including the foods we consume. Yeditepe University Kozyatağı Hospital Nutrition and Diet Specialist, who reminded us that the immune system prepares the body to fight infections and diseases with lifestyle factors such as healthy nutrition, regular sleep, active life, and low stress, also pointed out that there are things that should not be done as well as what should be done in this regard. It was pointed out that the long hours spent at home, especially during the restriction periods such as the weekend and the approaching New Year's Eve, may adversely affect the immune system after the mistakes to be made from nutrition to sleeping…

Increasing Number of Unhealthy Snacks

Saying, “During these periods when we stay at home, when we finish our work in front of the screen, our hands may constantly go to the snacks. In addition, the increase in the convenience of ordering at home leads us to make unhealthy choices”, Yeditepe University Hospitals Nutrition and Dietetics Specialist gave the following information: “The snacks we eat during the day without noticing can increase our daily consumption of sugar, salt and saturated fat and suppression of our immune system. For more positive effects, try not to take packaged products into your home as much as possible. Instead, try to support the consumption of fruits and vegetables. A fruit basket we can put in front of you, a bowl of raw nuts, or snacks made from healthy recipes can help you with this.”

Wrong Diet and Supplements

Our specialist, who said that many people gained weight during the pandemic period and that they are making an effort to lose this weight during this period, explained that mistakes made towards this can also pose a risk in terms of health. Stating, “Restricted and unhealthy diet scenarios that you will apply to lose weight will reduce your strength against diseases due to the lack of nutrients that will strengthen our immune system”, Yeditepe University Bağdat Street Clinic Nutrition and Dietetics Specialist gave the following information: “Consuming adequate amounts of a variety of food groups is essential for the health and function of all cells, including immune cells. However, it is also possible that multivitamins, vitamins, and nutritional supplements that we take without the advice of a physician in order to protect our immunity may have a toxic effect or interact with other medications used. So let food be our medicine, as Hippocrates said.”

Not Sleeping Enough

Reminding that sleep and immunity are closely linked, Nutrition and Dietetics Specialist said that insufficient or poor-quality sleep can increase your risk of getting diseases by adversely affecting your diet. However, our specialist stated that it is possible to strengthen natural immunity by resting enough and said, “If you're having trouble sleeping, try limiting screen time to an hour before bed, as the blue light from your phone, television, and computer can disrupt your body's natural wake-sleep cycle. Most adults need at least 7 hours of sleep per night.”

Dehydration of the Body

Water plays many important roles in our bodies, including supporting our immune system. A fluid called lymph in your circulatory system, which carries important infection-fighting immune cells in our bodies is largely made up of water. For this reason, being dehydrated can slow down lymph movement, as well as disrupt the immune system. For this reason, the Nutrition and Dietetics Specialist said that water is constantly lost through breathing and urine, and bowel movements without exercise or sweating, and stated, “Being dehydrated can cause headaches and interfere with your physical performance, focus, mood, digestion, and the proper functioning of your heart and kidney function. Being dehydrated can make you more susceptible to illness, so make sure you drink enough water each day.”

Inability to Manage Stress Level

One of the factors that have a huge impact on the immune system is stress. Nutrition and Dietetics Specialist pointed out that the stress normally created by our body is beneficial, but long-term stress can cause imbalances in our immune system, especially in periods such as quarantine periods. Our specialist talked about the relationship between stress, weight, and immunity: “It increases your risk of health problems, including anxiety, depression, digestive problems, heart disease, sleep disorders, excess weight gain, and memory and concentration problems. In quarantine, stress can cause you to consume more unhealthy foods, as stress management activities that we can do at home are limited. This, along with your immune system, can disrupt the way your body works healthily. You can reduce your stress level and keep your immune system working properly through activities such as meditation, yoga, exercise, dealing with the soil, and various hobbies.”

Sedentary Lifestyle

Physical activity is an important part of not only building muscle and relieving stress but also being healthy and supporting a healthy immune system. Exercise supports your immunity by allowing general immune cells and other infection-fighting molecules to circulate more easily throughout the body. Reminding that research shows that doing moderate-to-vigorous exercise for as little as 30 minutes every day helps to revive your immune system, a Nutrition, and Dietetics Specialist said, “During the quarantine period, you can try to stay more active at home during the day. You can dance, clean, exercise, or use sports equipment.”

Smoking

Stating, “Smoking can cause a decrease in lung capacity and nutrient absorption, and therefore a decrease in your immune system. With the emergence of Covid-19, more than 1 million smokers quit smoking and took a very useful step not to block their immune systems”, our specialist said, “In addition, cigarette consumption changes the sense of taste, causing us to not be able to taste properly from the foods we eat, thus causing us to consume more food. This cycle adversely affects our immune system.”