Throat itchy and want to cough? Strengthen your respiratory tract by eating this way...

"Doctor, why do I often feel an itchy throat and want to cough?" I clearly don't have a cold, but my respiratory tract just feels uncomfortable. In fact, part of the reason is that the air quality has been poor in various places recently, which can easily cause dysfunction of the respiratory cilia and foreign objects to enter the respiratory tract, resulting in some uncomfortable symptoms. Nutritionists remind us that to strengthen respiratory function, we need to supplement vitamin A and vitamin C which can attack pathogens. When preparing New Year dishes during the Chinese New Year, you might as well include foods rich in vitamin A and vitamin C in the dishes.

To strengthen respiratory function, it is necessary to supplement vitamin A. When preparing New Year dishes during the Chinese New Year, you might as well include foods rich in vitamin A and vitamin C in the dishes. (Photo courtesy of Tainan Chi Mei Hospital)

Strengthen respiratory function to prevent pathogens from entering the respiratory tract

The air quality has been very poor in recent years, with the "purple explosion" phenomenon often occurring. Because PM2.5 particles are so small, even the human immune system cannot detect them. In order to avoid inhaling PM2.5, in addition to trying not to go out during the purple burst period, it is actually more necessary to quickly maintain the respiratory tract and strengthen the function of the respiratory system to prevent foreign objects and pathogens from entering the respiratory tract.

The respiratory tract is the human body's "first-line defense system" against the external environment. Be sure to wear a mask when going out to prevent foreign objects and pathogens from entering the respiratory tract. In terms of diet, we should pay attention to the principle of balanced intake, especially fresh fruits and vegetables rich in vitamins A and C. They are indispensable whether it is on ordinary days or on the dining table during the New Year.

The function of vitamin A is to allow epithelial cells to form normally and strengthen respiratory function. In the current environment of poor air quality, it is very important to maintain normal respiratory function. As for vitamin C, it promotes the production of intercellular collagen to maintain the connection between skin, blood vessels and mucous membranes. It can also destroy the nucleic acid of pathogens in the immune system and help the body produce interferon to attack pathogens.

Supplement vitamin A and C foods to build good protection

Xue Yijun, a nutritionist at the Department of Nutrition at Chi Mei Medical Center, said that foods rich in vitamin A are mostly yellow, orange, red and green vegetables, including starchy foods such as pumpkin and sweet potato; vegetables such as carrots, leeks, tomatoes, basil, spinach, Chinese cabbage, asparagus; and fruits such as oranges, tangerines, papayas, cantaloupes, and tomatoes are all good food sources. You can use healthy vegetable oil to cook it, or cook it at the same time as meat, which can help the body absorb vitamin A.

In addition, most foods containing vitamin C are green, including: broccoli, pea pods, coriander, cucumber, asparagus, spinach, mung bean sprouts, cabbage, bell peppers and other vegetables, as well as guava, kiwi, lemon, strawberry, tomatoes and citrus fruits. If you want to increase the absorption of vitamin C in food, you can choose to eat it raw in the form of cold salad to reduce the loss of vitamin C due to the heating and cooking process.

New Year dishes add red, yellow, green and nutritious fruits and vegetables

The end of the year is approaching, and when making your own New Year dishes, you may want to refer to brightly colored red, yellow, and green fruits and vegetables, and pay attention to the principle of balanced intake. New Year's Eve dinner is about convenience in cooking. Not only is it rich in ingredients such as fish and meat, but the choices are also dizzying. But wise mothers always feel like something is missing? A closer look at the ingredients in the meal revealed that they were mostly proteins, fats and starches, and it turned out that there were no brightly coloured yellow, green or red fruits and vegetables.

Chi Mei Medical Center nutritionist Xue Yijun uses commercially available New Year's Eve dinner gift boxes to teach mothers-in-law how to add red, yellow, and green to the New Year's Eve dinner preparation process, so that it can be both nutritious and delicious while having a sumptuous meal, so that when the reunion New Year's Eve dinner is served on the table, it will have all the color, aroma, taste and nutrition.

Red, yellow and green sample menu:

1. Qianxiangyunji─Sakura Shrimp Rice Cake

Open the Sakura Shrimp Rice Cake from the New Year's Eve Dinner Package, put in the diced pumpkin and steam them together, then sprinkle with chopped coriander and serve. It will become one of the staple foods rich in vitamin A on the table.

Sakura shrimp rice cake. (Photo courtesy of Tainan Chi Mei Hospital)

2. Money-making sauerkraut and pork hotpot:

Place the washed cabbage in the pot, pour in the New Year's meal package, add pea pods, leek greens, spinach, bean sprouts, mushrooms and carrot cubes, and after cooking, it will become a dish rich in vitamin A.

Sauerkraut and pork hotpot. (Photo courtesy of Tainan Chi Mei Hospital)

3. Ox brings good luck - braised beef tendon:

Heat the beef shank in the cooking pack and cut it into slices. Chop the cilantro and bell pepper into small pieces and serve them together. This will be a dish rich in vitamins A and C.

Braised beef tendon. (Photo courtesy of Tainan Chi Mei Hospital)

4. Good Luck - Chestnut Spare Ribs:

Add chopped red and white radishes to the chestnut-flavored spareribs dish and stew them together, then serve it with blanched broccoli. It is a dish rich in vitamins A and C.

Chestnut-flavored spareribs. (Photo courtesy of Tainan Chi Mei Hospital)

**5. Eating red, yellow and green seasonal fruits after meals can replenish vitamin C.

Eating red, yellow and green seasonal fruits after meals can replenish vitamin C. (Photo courtesy of Tainan Chi Mei Hospital)

A reminder: During the Chinese New Year holidays, do not eat too much due to the joyous atmosphere. Patients with high blood sugar should pay attention to the amount of food they intake, and do not feast on the family reunion table, which will cause a surge in blood sugar after the meal. People with chronic kidney disease need to pay attention to the amount of protein they can consume daily, and the choice of high-potassium and high-phosphorus foods to avoid excessive burden on the kidneys. People with high blood lipids need to be careful not to overindulge in red meat, seafood and other foods.