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While supplement companies may be trying to sell you a bill of goods to keep your immune system humming while COVID-19 spreads, your best defense is likely in your pantry. Rather than popping zinc and vitamin C, let’s take a look at how you can keep your immune system strong through addition and subtraction of certain foods or beverages.

Put Your Plants On

For starters, how much fiber are you eating? According to the USDA, fiber recommendations are 38 grams per day for men and 25 grams per day for women up to the age of 50. After the age of 50, these numbers drop slightly to 30 grams daily for men and 21 gram per day for women. Eating more fiber has been found to be beneficial to good health.

A recent analysis of nearly 250 research studies suggested that individuals with a diet containing more fruits, vegetables and whole grains have a lower risk of dying due to cancer and heart disease — two chronic illnesses that raise the risk of contracting COVID-19. Individuals with the highest fiber intakes cut their risk of death from cardiac disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and/or colon cancer by 16 to 24%, compared to individuals with lower fiber intakes.

One big reason why fiber is so important to your immune system comes down to 2 words: gut health. When high-fiber foods are fermented in the gut, they produce short chain fatty acids which help modulate the immune system. Short chain fatty acids improve nutrient absorption and reduce transit time in the colon, which helps rid the body of harmful byproducts of metabolism, along with other toxins. In addition, diversity of gut microbiome (the DNA of microbial communities in the gut) impacts the risk of obesity. A recent study of female twins in the UK found that high fiber intake and high gut microbiome diversity improved energy metabolism and were associated with lower term weight gain regardless of calorie intake and other confounders.

Move More!

Another natural way to protect your immune system is through regular exercise. Multiple studies have shown the benefits of physical activity on immune function including an increase in T cell function, improved uptake of nutrients, improved immune regulation, improvements in metabolic and bone health and improvements in sleep. The Department of Health and Human Services and the 2018 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition advise 150 minutes of aerobic physical activity and two days of strength training per week. This can be accomplished with 30-minute bouts of exercise, five days per week or multiple bouts of exercise to meet the suggested goal. While gyms and recreation centers are closed during this pandemic, take advantage of walking outside, riding a bike or kicking a ball around with your kids. You can also stream in-home workouts that don’t require any special equipment.

Go to Bed

With less structured work hours, it’s easy to get in the habit of staying up later or ignoring slumber cues. After all, Netflix is calling! But, getting adequate sleep gives your body and brain time to recharge and protects your immune system by mobilizing leukocytes, releasing cytokines and regulating T cells. Having poor sleep or insomnia has been linked with increased risk for viruses, including colds and flu.  Participants sleeping fewer than 6 hours per night were at an increased risk of developing a clinical cold following virus exposure in a 2015 study. Limited sleep is also associated with high blood pressure, elevated blood sugar, cholesterol and increased risk for depression and memory loss. Most health experts suggest a minimum of 7 to 8 hours of solid sleep for best health.

Get More Vitamin D

Kill two birds with one stone by getting outside for exercise and a dose of vitamin D. While fortified dairy products provide vitamin D, have you looked on a yogurt or cheese label lately? Most varieties don’t contain much, if any, vitamin D. Getting enough vitamin D helps your immune system in a few ways. The fat-soluble vitamin receptor of vitamin D is expressed on immune cells including B and T cells as well as antigen presenting cells. A deficiency of vitamin D is linked with autoimmune disease such as MS, type 1 diabetes and systemic lupus. It’s also been implicated with an increased risk for infection.

Back Off on Booze

In times of stress, it’s easy to turn to the bottle for relief of anxiety. But this is not the time to stock up on alcohol. Research indicates that alcohol negatively impacts the gut microbiome and increases the chance of gut permeability — where bad bacteria can roam freely in the blood. In addition, alcohol affects the number and function of 3 major players in the immune system: macrophages, T cells, and C cells. So, if you consume alcohol, stick to moderation — one drink per day for women and two drinks per day for men. Excessive alcohol intake is linked with cancer, liver disease and a host of other problems in both men and women.

Tips for Consumers:

• Choose high-fiber foods throughout the day including fresh, frozen or dried fruit, fresh or frozen vegetables, whole grains like oatmeal, bran cereal, and 100% whole grain bread. Add beans to soups, salads, and stews.
• Move more. Walk, ride a bike, dance in front of your TV. Aim for 30 or more minutes at least 5 days a week.
• Hit the sack! Keep a consistent sleep and wake cycle. Aim for 7 to 8 hours of sack time per night.
• Consider a vitamin D supplement. A supplement of 1000 to 2000 IUs (international units) is safe for most people. Check with your doctor or pharmacist on what’s right for you.
• Limit alcohol. A cocktail now and then is fine, but can be a slippery slope if you’re using alcohol to cope. Stock up on seltzer water, green tea or flavored coffee if you find yourself grabbing a wine glass too often.

By Lisa Andrews, MEd, RD, LD

© Food and Health Communications

Woodholme encourages a healthy diet and proper nutrition as one aspect of maintaining heart health. The nutrition information and recipes are presented for informational purposes only and are not intended to take the place of one-on-one advice from your doctor. Please follow your personal physician’s recommendations if any recipes, ingredients, or advice found here conflict with what your doctor has told you.

Veggie burgers originated in England in 1982 as a plant-based ‘hamburger’ option for people who preferred a vegetarian eating style. That first product was sold as a dry mix; simply add water, form it into a patty, and cook. Gardenburger released the first commercial veggie burger in 1992 and in 1993 Boca Burger produced their first products. These original veggie burgers didn’t claim to taste like hamburgers; they were simply a non-meat option usually made from legumes, vegetables, and soy.

Fast forward to today with two plant-based burgers that are designed to taste like meat. The Impossible Burger and Beyond Burger are non-meat burgers that are marketed both as a vegetarian burger option as well as a way for responsible consumers to protect the climate. But are they healthier than hamburgers?

Beyond Burger

The Beyond Burger was developed in 2014 and updated in 2016. It relies on pea, mung bean, and rice proteins to provide a meaty taste and texture. Coconut oil and cocoa butter simulate the marbling found in hamburger to create a juicy texture similar to the fat in hamburger. Beets provide the red color we expect in a burger. The company’s goal is to use plants instead of animal products to make a burger with similar nutrients found in animal burgers and address four global issues: human health, climate change, constraints on natural resources, and animal welfare.

Impossible Burger

Impossible Burgers also use a variety of plant products to produce their burgers, with some differences. The protein comes from soy and potato, the fat from coconut and sunflower oil, and methylcellulose and food starch hold it all together. Impossible Burgers contain one additional ingredient: heme. Heme is a molecule found in both plants and animals and is an essential component of iron that carries oxygen in the blood from the lungs to all parts of the body. The scientists at Impossible Foods determined that heme is the component that provides the taste we expect in red meat. While heme is also found in plants, Impossible Foods decided to make their own heme by genetically engineering yeast with the gene for soy leghemoglobin (the type of heme naturally found in soy foods) and then adding the heme from the yeast to the Impossible Burger ingredients.

Because the heme in Impossible Burgers is genetically engineered, the back of the package has a circular symbol that says ‘bioengineered’, in compliance with the National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Law passed by Congress in July 2016 that establishes a national mandatory standard for disclosing bioengineered foods. The Impossible Burger contains two bioengineered ingredients: soy leghemoglobin and soy protein.

You can find symbols for bioengineered foods here.

Nutrition Comparison:

The Harvard Health Blog put together a comparison chart of the calories and nutrients in a single serving of different types of burgers.

Important points to note:

• Impossible Burgers and Beyond Burgers contain similar amounts of calories, protein, total fat, and saturated fat as 85% lean ground beef burgers.
• The Impossible Burger and Beyond Burger contain over 4 times as much sodium as the 85% lean ground beef; a significant difference if you’re reducing sodium for healthy blood pressure reasons. If you’re choosing one of these plant-based burgers instead of a lean ground beef burger to improve your cardiovascular health or for weight loss, think again.
• On the positive side, Impossible Burgers and Beyond Burgers contain small amounts of fiber and no cholesterol. This balance can help promote a healthy cardiovascular system.
• Because they’re made from plants, both Impossible Burgers and Beyond Burgers contain some carbohydrate, but not as much as a traditional veggie burger made from legumes. The legume-based veggie burger, however, contains 3 times as much fiber.
• If health is your primary reason for choosing a burger, opt for a ground turkey burger. It contains fewer calories, less fat, and saturated fat to protect your heart and help with weight loss.
• B12 is an essential vitamin for optimum health that is naturally found only in animal products. Impossible Burgers contain added B12, which is important for people who do not eat any type of animal foods such as milk, cheese, yogurt, eggs, chicken, fish or meat.

Choosing more foods from plants is part of an overall healthy diet, but so is eating fewer processed foods. Both the Impossible Burger and the Beyond Burger are highly processed, and the Impossible Burger also contains bioengineered heme.

If your primary goal is to protect animals and help preserve the planet, choose a standard veggie burger made from legumes. You’ll get the fiber and nutrients found in plants without lots of processing.

If your primary goal is to choose the burger that is best for your health, choose a ground turkey burger or a standard veggie burger. You’ll enjoy a burger that is low in harmful saturated fat and sodium.

If your primary goal is to eat a plant-based burger that actually tastes like a hamburger, choose either the Impossible Burger or the Beyond Burger.

By Lynn Grieger, RDN, CDE, CPT, CHWC

References:

1. Smithsonian.com The History of the Veggie Burger. K. Annabelle Smith. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/history-veggie-burger-180950163/ published 3-19-14. Accessed 10-27-19.
2. Beyond Meat. https://www.beyondmeat.com/products/the-beyond-burger/ Accessed 10-27-19
3. Impossible Food. https://impossiblefoods.com/food/ Accessed 10-27-19
4. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA Authorizes Soy Leghemoglobin as a Color Additive. https://www.fda.gov/food/cfsan-constituent-updates/fda-authorizes-soy-leghemoglobin-color-additive published 7-31-19. Accessed 10-28-19
5. Impossible Food. FAQ: How do you make heme? https://faq.impossiblefoods.com/hc/en-us/articles/360034767354 accessed 10-28-19
6. Harvard Health Publishing. Harvard Health Blog. Impossible and beyond: How healthy are these meatless burgers? Emily Gelsomin. https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/impossible-and-beyond-how-healthy-are-these-meatless-burgers-2019081517448 published 8-15-19. Accessed 10-28-19

© Food and Health Communications

Woodholme encourages a healthy diet and proper nutrition as one aspect of maintaining heart health. The nutrition information and recipes are presented for informational purposes only and are not intended to take the place of one-on-one advice from your doctor. Please follow your personal physician’s recommendations if any recipes, ingredients, or advice found here conflict with what your doctor has told you.