15 easy-to-prepare drinks for COVID recovery

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Currently Covid-19 pandemic is a leading challenge throughout the world. Adequate nutrient and water intake play a beneficial role in recovering the patient from the infection and preventing serious complications. Vitamin-C intake is helpful to improve immunity. An adequate intake of zinc, iron, and vitamin-A, pyridoxine is also essential for the maintenance of immune function [1].

Generation of excess free radicals during Corona attack leads to oxidative stress which is a major factor that increases the severity of COVID-19 disease. For this reason, supplementation of antioxidants is beneficial for the infected persons [2], [3].

A recent scientific study in October 2020 pointed out that a diet rich in zinc, vitamin D, vitamin C, curcumin, cinnamaldehyde, probiotics, selenium, lactoferrin, quercetin, etc. boosts immunity and reduces the severity of the disease [4]. Antioxidants, especially flavonoids, have certain antiviral actions in coronavirus infections [5].

Instead of supplements, it is better to include more vitamin, mineral, and antioxidant-rich foods in the daily diet [6]. Proper hydration of the body is very important for all ages of people but it is more important for corona-positive patients.

15 easy-to-prepare drinks for COVID recovery1

Why adequate hydration is essential during a corona attack?

Proper hydration helps to

Prevent dehydration due to fever and /or diarrhea
Ensure efficient elimination of toxins
Maintain good digestion
Avoid complications
Ensure rapid recovery of the patient.

How adequate hydration help to fight against COVID-19?

Adequate hydration play beneficial roles during corona infection for the following reasons-

Water helps to regulate our normal body temperature. During fever, body temperature rises above normal, water losses via the skin – both insensible perspiration and sweating. If sweat loss is not compensated for with fluid intake, it may cause dehydration.

Moderate to high fever is a common symptom of COVID-19, adequate water intake is essential to cope up with the fever.

Difficulty indigestion is also a common problem of corona patients. Adequate water intake is needed for proper digestion of the patient and prevention of constipation. Usually, soft or semi-soft foods are better tolerated.
Moderate to severe diarrhea is also a symptom of COVID-19 infection. Inadequate water intake during diarrhoeal episodes invites dehydration and increases the risk of serious complications. Adequate hydration should be ensured for these patients having gastrointestinal symptoms like diarrhea and/or vomiting.
For proper renal function and efficient elimination of waste material from the body, adequate water intake is necessary.
During illness, increased amounts of toxins are generated. Adequate hydration ensures the flushing of toxins from the body.

15 easy-to-prepare drinks for COVID recovery

What type of drinks should be taken by the corona patient?

Adequate intake of plain water is obviously good for corona patients. Moreover, other drinks should also be taken by these patients which are rich in [7]-

Vitamins like vitamin-C, Vitamin-E, beta carotene and folic acid
Minerals like potassium, magnesium, iron, zinc and selenium.
Probiotics
Antioxidants
Phytochemicals

How to Hydrate your body during COVID-19 infection

To ensure adequate water and proper hydration of the body you should take various types of drinks. Home-made drinks are always a better choice than commercially available drinks. Vegetarian foods play a vital role to enhance the immunity of people [7].

Today, I like to suggest few home-made, drinks for corona patients which are easy-to-prepare, easy-to take, easy-to-drink. These drinks are rich in several vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.

Depending on the preparation time needed, healthy drinks can be divided into 4 groups. These are-

Ready-made Drinks	Two Minute recipes	Five Minute recipes	Ten Minute recipes
Coconut Water Oral rehydration salt Glucose Water	Home-made ORS Honey Lemon Water	Amla water Guava Juice Sweet lime (Mousambi) juice Watermelon juice Pomegranate juice	Garlic tomato soup Green soup Probiotic based drink Turmeric milk Harbal Tea

Ready-made Drink

Coconut water

15 easy-to-prepare drinks for COVID recovery2

How to Prepare:

An average green coconut contains around 250 ml of water. Serve the freshly cut coconut water as it is. Do not add anything to it. Drinking water from one green coconut is good for corona patients [8].

Health Benefits[9], [10], [11]

Coconut water is the best natural drink which supplies ample electrolytes like potassium, magnesium and zinc, vitamins, and phytonutrients.
Tender coconut water helps to reduce oxidative stress.
It also effective to detoxify the body.

Oral re-hydration solution (ORS)

How to Prepare:

Dissolve one 20g sachet in 1 liter of water and keep sipping throughout the day. Finish it within 24 hrs or discard the liquid.

Health Benefits [12]

ORS hydrates the body and prevents dehydration and electrolyte imbalance.
It supplies potassium to the body.
It should be given if the patient is suffering from diarrhea or vomiting

Glucose Water

How to Prepare:

Just dissolve a teaspoon of glucose into a cup of water and give it to the corona patient. Do not give glucose water to diabetic corona patients, because it may raise their blood glucose level.

Health Benefits[15]

Tiredness is the most common complaint of COVID-19 positive persons. Drinking a cup of glucose water gives instant energy.

Two Minute recipes

Home-made ORS

How to Prepare:

Take a glass of water and add 2teaspoons of sugar and a pinch of common salt. Mix well and serve to the patient. You can also add a spoonful of lemon juice to make it more nutritious. A glass of homemade ORS can be given to any corona patient [13].

Health Benefits[14]

Help in hydration of the body
Drinking this drink is essential if diarrhea or vomiting is present.

Honey Lemon Water

15 easy-to-prepare drinks for COVID recovery3

How to Prepare:

Prepare a refreshing drink by adding a spoonful of honey and a pinch of black salt to a glass of water and squeezing a fresh lemon on it. It is a good drink for corona patients.

Health Benefits[16], [17], [18].

It is rich in vitamin C which helps to boost immunity.
Honey acts as a natural medicine due to its wound healing capacity and antimicrobial property. It has the ability to boost the immune system and fight against viruses.

Five-minute Recipes

Amla water

How to Prepare:

Remove the seeds of 2 fresh amlas and cut them into small pieces. Grind them into a smooth paste. Add 2 teaspoons of amla juice and 1 teaspoon of honey in a glass of water and serve the freshly prepared drink to the corona infected person.

Health Benefits[19], [20], [21].

Amla is the richest source of vitamin-C, 100g amla provides as high as 600mg of vitamin-C.
A wide range of phytochemicalsand polyphenols are present in amla. These include alkaloids, tannins, gallic acid, ellagic acid, flavonoids like quercetin and rutin etc. Amla possesses a potent free radical scavenging and antioxidant property.
This vitamin-C rich herbal drink act as an immune boosting medicine.

Guava Juice

How to Prepare:

Cut ripe guava into small pieces and grind them along with a half cup of water, sugar, and a pinch of rock salt using a grinder. Strain the semi-solid mass, discard the seeds and serve juice to the patient.

Health Benefits[22], [23]

Guava is a superfruit loaded with several nutrients, antioxidants, and bioactive compounds. It is a good source of vitamin C and beta carotene.
Viral fever reduces the blood platelet count in most cases. Guava juice is effective to increase the platelet count.

Sweet lime (Mousambi) juice

15 easy-to-prepare drinks for COVID recovery4

How to Prepare:

Mousambi or sweet lime is a common fruit, available throughout the year. Preparation of sweet lime juice needs only 2 minutes. Cut the fruit horizontally into two halves and remove the seeds and squeeze the juice out of it. Drinking a cup of sweet lime juice is beneficial for corona patients.

Health Benefits[24], [25]

This tasty, juicy fruit is a rich source of vitamin C, copper, zinc, iron, calcium, potassium, etc. This fruit is rich in antioxidants like flavonoids. It helps to flush out toxins, improves digestion, and boosts immunity.

Pomegranate juice

How to Prepare:

Just extract the juice from fresh fruit and serve it to the patient. The juice is naturally sweet therefore no need to add any sugar.

Health Benefits[26]

Pomegranate is a very good source of vitamins and minerals.
They are the ideal fruit for sick patients.
They are useful to reduce oxidative stress.
Pomegranate is a source of potent antioxidants like flavonoids, anthocyanins, punicic acid, ellagitannins, alkaloids.
Home-made pomegranate juice is a natural immune-boosting drink.

Watermelon juice

15 easy-to-prepare drinks for COVID recovery11

How to Prepare:

Peel the watermelon, cut it into small pieces. Take the pieces on a big strainer and apply pressure on it using a spoon, the juice will be extracted. Serve the juice to the patient. This refreshing juice help in the early recovery of the patient.

Health Benefits[27], [28], [29]

Watermelon is a good source of minerals like potassium and many other electrolytes and antioxidants like beta carotene and lycopene.

Ten Minutes recipes

Garlic Tomato soup

How to Prepare:

It is very easy to prepare garlic tomato soup. Heat half teaspoon of butter, add chopped garlic to it. Fry for few seconds. Now add chopped tomatoes and a pinch of black salt. Cook for 2 minutes. Add 1 cup of water and cook for another 2 minutes. Cool it. Mix the content in a grinder and it through a strainer. Serve the freshly prepared healthy soup to the patient. Regular intake of garlic tomato soup boosts the immunity of COVID-19 patients.

Health Benefits[2],[30], [31], [32], [33], [34], [35], [36]

Tomato is a rich source of vitamins like vitamin C, beta carotene, folic acid, folic acid, and vitamin E.
It is an excellent source of antioxidants like carotenoids and lycopene, flavonoids, and phenolic compounds (Caffeic acid, Procatchoic acid, Vanillic acid, and Catechin acid).
It is also a very good source of several minerals like potassium, calcium, magnesium, and zinc.
The antioxidants present in tomato helps to neutralize free radicals and prevent oxidative stress. Oxidative stress during corona infection increases the severity of the disease, so tomato juice is very beneficial for these patients.
The inclusion of garlic in the daily diet improves antioxidant status and reduces oxidative stress.
Garlic is known to contain natural antioxidants that can remove reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reduce lipid peroxides and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) oxidation.

Green soup

https://in.pinterest.com/pin/221450506739076343/

How to Prepare:

To prepare the tasty spinach soup, clean the spinach leaves and blanch them in hot water for 2 minutes. Cool it and grind them into a smooth paste. Heat little butter, add finely chopped coriander leaves and mint leaves to it. Now add a little ginger paste and a pinch of black salt to it. Mix well. Now add the water previously used to blanch the spinach. Your spinach soup is ready. Serve the green soup to the corona patient. It will help to maintain water and electrolyte balance. This soup also boosts immunity and ensures rapid recovery of the patient.

Health Benefits[37],[38]

Spinach is a healthy green leafy vegetable, loaded with vitamins like vitamin-K, vitamin-A, folic acid and vitamin-C, riboflavin, pyridoxine and vitamin-E.
This green is rich in important minerals like manganese, magnesium, iron and potassium.
It also a good source of dietary fibre and omega-3 fatty acids.
Inclusion of spinach in the diet help to cope up with theoxidative stress.

Probiotic Based Drink

How to Prepare:

Corona patients should take care of their gut health. Probiotics are friendly bacteria that help to prevent gastrointestinal complications like diarrhea and vomiting. Chaas, buttermilk, lassi are healthy choices of drinks for those suffering from COVID-19 infection.

Chaas or lassi can be prepared by diluting curd or yoghurt with water and adding little salt, sugar, cumin powder etc. according to your personal choice.

Health Benefits[39], [40], [41]

Probiotics also help to boost immunity and prevent viral infections.
A glass of buttermilk ensures better digestion, gut health, and immunity.

Turmeric milk

15 easy-to-prepare drinks for COVID recovery8

How to Prepare:

Turmeric milk is a healthy drink for corona patients. Cut the fresh turmeric into small pieces, add them into milk, boil for minutes. You may also add a spoon of sugar but it is purely optional. Strain the milk. This yellow drink is an antiviral food for the COVID-19 patients.

Health Benefits[42], [43], [44]

Turmeric is an antiviral food. Curcumin present in turmeric has a good antiviral potential.
Turmeric may be used to reduce the severity of lung damage in corona disease.
Curcumin is effective to reduce the severity of corona disease.

Herbal tea

15 easy-to-prepare drinks for COVID recovery9

How to Prepare:

Take a glass of water, add grated ginger (half teaspoon), chopped raw turmeric (half teaspoon), cinnamon powder (a pinch), and whole fennel seeds (half teaspoon), add 2 bay leaf and 5-6 basil leaves. Boil for 5 minutes, your herbal tea is prepared. Now strain it and consume it.

Health Benefits[45], [46], [47], [48], [49], [50]

This drink is loaded with antioxidants which are beneficial for corona infected persons.

Which liquids should be avoided?

Avoid alcohol consumption as far as possible[51]

Alcoholic drinks have little nutritive value and are mostly high in calories. Alcohol use, especially excess consumption, weakens your immune system and thus reduces the ability to cope with infectious diseases. Excess alcohol consumption during corona attacks may cause complications. So, alcohol intake should be avoided during illness.

2. Do not drink soft drinks

Soft drinks are loaded with sugar but do not provide any nutrients like vitamins and minerals. They should be avoided during corona. Intake of cold drinks may further deteriorate throat infection.

Which is the best soft drink in India?

3. Restrict the intake of commercially available fruit juices

Commercially available fruit juices contain little amount of processed and preserved fruits along with added sugars, colouring and flavouring agents. The intake of these drinks is of no health benefits. So,try to reduce the intake of such drinks.

Bottom Line

Proper hydration is essential for corona patients to prevent dehydration., flush out toxins from the body, and speed up the recovery process.

Plain drinking water is obviously good but they should also take other drinks which are rich in vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. These nutrients and phytochemicals have medicinal property which helps to boost immunity. It is effective to reduce the severity of the disease.

So COVID-19 patients should take more and more soups, juices and probiotic drinks which are effective for early recovery.

References

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