This has kept me up at night.
It’s something that has become so simple to me, but I feel people put at the bottom of the barrel. My heart aches knowing that people disregard this or find whatever reason they can do put this off. Before people begin to change, some need a major event, like a heart attack, stroke, or diagnosis of cancer or type II diabetes, before they realize that they need to change. Doctors don’t talk about it nearly as much as they need to. Perhaps they assume people just want a pill.
During this COVID-19 crisis, we are shown the importance of moving our bodies, eating plants, and staying hydrated with clean, filtered water. Moving our bodies help to increases our immune response and decrease stress. Eating plants means we’re getting the nutrients we need to better fight off illness & disease. Staying hydrated means our cells are able to transport these nutrients around the body and help us perform better when exercising.
Why You Need to Get Your Butt in Gear Now 
You can and do have the power to take care of yourself. Stomp whatever limiting belief you have out of your mind! You don’t have to love salads to slowly get yourself eating more plants. You’re not too old or too fat. You do have access to healthy things if you know where to look. (Grab this fella to see how introducing plants into your diet can be easy and is better for you!)
These statistics from the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Week Report show that having an underlying health condition (like heart disease, type II diabetes, obesity, chronic lung disease) significantly increases your risk of going to the ICU if you fall ill with COVID-19. Guys, these are lifestyle diseases. Genetics may have a slight role in them, but, in most cases, you CAN fight them off by taking care of yourself.
The US CDC COVID-19 Response Team evaluated data on 122,653 US COVID-19 patients identified between February 12 and March 28. despite representing just over a third of the data set, patients with at least one underlying health condition were 78% of COVID-19 related ICU admission, 73% of COVID-19 related admissions had existing diabetes, cardiovascular and/or chronic lung disease. (emphasis mine)
If that’s not a slap in the face I don’t know what is. Your health matters. YOU matter. Your family deserves better than you falling ill then getting thrown into the ICU where they can’t visit you right now due to the hospitals being strict on visitors. You dog/cat/hamster (whatever!) shouldn’t have to wonder why you never came home. I cannot emphasize them enough.
What Can You Do to Help Fight Off COVID-19?
First off, don’t panic. Don’t be fearful. Your spirituality and mental health matter just as much as your physical health. It plays a roll in your stress and immune response. Remember though, you cannot out work a bad diet. Diet and exercise work together to keep you healthy. But act today. Here are a few blog posts I’ve wrote up for you that can help you take action today
- Meal inspiration can be found here.
- Getting your body moving while you’re stuck at home is here.
- Needing an accountability buddy? Read on here.
- Feeling fearful and/or mentally stress? Then you need this.
In the USA, you’d think that we’d have an abundance of nutrients! But the problem is, we are just eating calorie dense foods. So we’re seeing obesity malnutrition. Some important vitamins and minerals we’re missing are magnesium, zinc, vitamin C, A, & D while our blood sugar is running high! These added sugars, in addition to being deficient in the above nutrients, means our immune system isn’t running optimally.
Last Thoughts
During this crisis, so many are crying for people to stay home to protect others. You know what, I’m gonna say it. I’m gonna go out on a limb and say something no one is acknowledging for some reason:
Eat more plants so your immune system can fight off and stop the spread of COVID-19 & other illnesses.
Take that as you want, but eating healthy isn’t just necessarily about you!
Are you needing more? What can I help you with? Honest to goodness I want you to be as healthy as you can during a pandemic as well as every other day. Please, share this with those you think need it most.
With love and kindness, I believe in all that you’re capable of. XO – Meg
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