Panic Erupted Once Celebrities Were Affected by Coronavirus
A panic storm erupted when news came out the Trudeau’s wife was infected. Tom Hanks, Kevin Durant, and Idrees Elba are also on the list of positively-tested individuals. It’s the biggest scare in the world since the Swine Flu and SARS. CoronaVirus (also known as COVID-19) has officially become a pandemic internationally. While the doomsday preppers continue putting toilet paper out of stock, we’re beginning to realize how much confusion the public has on beating the coronavirus. Unfortunately, one reason why is that we are REACTING to this problem as opposed to being PROACTIVE about it.
We’ve Dealt With CoronaVirus Before
Let me be clear – we’re not experts on the disease. However, this is NOT the first time we’ve dealt with a virus like this. It’s a new form of a family of existing coronaviruses. Both the 2002 SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) and the 2012 MERS (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome) outbreaks were also coronaviruses.
Why haven’t we learned from our past experiences dealing with it? Based on Michael Osterholm’s opinion (infectious disease expert, CDC), it’s simply because we don’t give these viruses enough respect.
Once the SARS and MERS outbreaks settled down, our efforts to create vaccines for these coronaviruses also did the same. There wasn’t an increase in the health expenditure for disease prevention/management. No sufficient planning for the next outbreak. Even the production of N95 masks (the most effective available) didn’t ramp up in production. Yet, experts would time and time again state that another outbreak is imminent.
Act PROACTIVELY to Beat the Coronavirus
Social isolation is difficult. Humans are social by nature and the act of isolation is hard to implement. Because coronavirus is something that’s potentially months from being dealt with, now’s a good time to plan for the future. Besides, experts say this isn’t the last time we’ll deal with an outbreak. So why should we be proactive? So we can avoid developing a condition that makes us much more vulnerable and susceptible to viruses like coronavirus and its symptoms.
Such conditions include: obesity and high blood pressure.
Obesity is an inflammatory condition that weakens the immune system. The likelihood of developing stronger symptoms upon infection is increased substantially. Mild symptoms of coronavirus can be managed by simple social isolation. However, moderate to severe symptoms can have serious implications such as hospitalization. High blood pressure poses the same threat.
Both of these pre-existing health conditions can be avoided (or greatly reduced) by taking the correct proactive approaches NOW. I understand that facilities are closed and it’s harder to access gyms, but we can’t keep waiting on improving our health. We need to begin living a good, healthy life. This involves the following 4 Pillars to help proactively beat the coronavirus and all future outbreaks:
1. A Healthy, Balanced, Nutrient-Diverse Diet
DIVERSITY: We’re not asking you to become rabbits and eat veggies only. In fact, the moment you eat one food group only, you’re losing out in what we call nutrient diversity. We need multiple options when it comes to the food. When you’re eating vegetables, make sure you are getting multiple colours (greens, oranges, and reds). With meat, try to get a mix of chicken, beef, and fish. If you really want to get diverse, organ meat (particularly liver) has the highest nutrient profile available.
CARBS: Balancing between carbs, proteins, and fats is ideal. Complex carbs like sweet potato, whole grain breads, large flake oatmeal, and more will sustain your fullness without causing an insulin spike. On the other hand, simple carbs like candies, cakes, pastries, most cereals, chocolates, etc. should be minimized as they offer little nutritional value and typically cause unhealthy insulin spikes.
PROTEINS & FATS: Make sure you’re also getting adequate protein levels. About ⅓ or 0.3 grams of protein per pound of your body weight is recommended (for example, a 180lb individual should be consuming around 60 grams of protein each day). Consuming both saturated and unsaturated fats is important as well. Saturated fats typically come from beef, butter, coconuts, milk, and dairy products. Unsaturated fat includes sources like olive oil, avocado, fish oils, and nuts like almonds.
2. An Exercise Regimen Involving Weights, Mobility, & Cardio
I’m almost certain everyone is aware of the importance of exercise. Benefits include a stronger immune system, increased energy, improved functional and movement, and more. But the type of exercise is often where people get confused. I’m going to keep it as general as possible. The following 3 categories should be implemented in some way to your program to proactively beat the coronavirus.
WEIGHT TRAINING: You need to lift some weights to get your muscles stronger. The effects include stronger bones, muscles and joints. You’ll also improve your natural testosterone (if you’re male), and get better sleep, stress relief, and so on. This can’t be neglected.
MOBILITY TRAINING: You should keep your body mobile. This means safely using full range of motion on all exercises. Do the necessary mobility exercises that’ll keep your joints nice and limber. Mobility work helps reduce the risk of injury from training, preps your body for the workout, and leaves you feeling like gold.
CARDIOVASCULAR TRAINING: You also need to incorporate a good cardio program to work your heart muscle. Use the talk test when determining intensity. When doing cardio (treadmill, elliptical, stationary bike, stair climber, rowing machine, etc.), if you’re able to talk but not sing, that’s a good intensity to begin with. The goal is to achieve an increase in heart rate, but not enough to make you too out of breath. Balance is key with this one. Running outside or doing functional movements for high reps (ask us about this) are also great ideas for cardio. Better heart and lung health are the rewards – and we know how important this is to protect you against this virus. Best of all, you’ll feel more energized if you can turn this into a routine.
3. A Sufficient & Consistent Amount of Sleep to Beat the Coronavirus
Sleep is highly underrated. Losing even an hour has drastic effects on your health and immune system. People don’t understand that when you’re not catching enough Z’s, a lot of the negative effects are realized later on. Studies have consistently linked a lack of sleep with weight gain, reduced memory retention, poor attention, and you guessed it, a compromised immune system.
If you’re having a hard time falling asleep, consider the following 10 tips:
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- Avoid a well-lit room within an hour of sleep
- Don’t use your phone/TV within an hour of sleep
- Bedroom needs to be cool to promote better sleep (studies show your brain needs to cool down for effective sleep)
- Don’t do anything active within 2 hours of sleep
- Avoid caffeine 6 hours before sleep
- Put your work away completely at least a couple hours before sleep
- Try melatonin 2 hours before sleep (it’s an over-the counter supplement; Consult a healthcare professional for more information)
- Fall asleep at the same time every night
- Have at least one morning without an alarm clock for a natural wake-up
- Ask us for more tips!
4. A System to Manage Stress (and Panic) Effectively
Stress management, I feel is most relevant for our current situation. It’s absolutely important that you don’t panic and stress yourself out. Cortisol is the stress hormone released during panic, anxiety, and worry. In turn, it releases your body’s energy resources and puts it in an active state. When stress is prolonged, so too is the cortisol response to it. Your immune system eventually begins to weaken in response to sustained cortisol release. To beat the coronavirus and other viruses, you need to consider stress management as well.
The more you stress, the more likely you are to compromise your immune system. We’re aware that most people don’t understand the mind-body connection, but it’s there!
Conclusion
This article is not meant to convince you to take Coronavirus lightly. We’re arguing that we need to be more proactive in our health and health-care policies/funding to beat the coronavirus. Self-isolation is definitely the most effective method to respond to the current outbreak, so stick to it. Click here for a helpful link to the GTA’s coronavirus response team for more updates. However, we need to prevent the extent that future outbreaks can affect you and your loved ones. It’s time to start worrying more about your health and how you can improve it.
Found this article helpful? Let us know in the comments, and it would mean the world if you share this on social media to help others! We definitely don’t feel like enough people are talking about the proactive approach.