Impact of dietary nutrients (functional foods/nutraceuticals) and micronutrients on COVID-19: a review

Abstract

The world health organization (WHO) announced that coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) is a pandemic. Considering the pandemic spread of Covid-19, many researchers have shown immense interest in various functional foods/nutraceuticals and dietary supplements to improve immune function and overall health status and thus lower the risk of COVID-19 infection. Studies have indicated that a balanced diet rich in various nutrients especially micronutrients plays a huge role in recovering and preventing COVID-19 related health issues. Improvement of obesity could reduce the risk of COVID-19 infection owing to the less angiotensin-conversion enzyme 2 receptors and increase the effect of vaccination. This review signifies the importance of various food bioactives along with dietary supplements (balanced diet) rich in various micronutrients against COVID-19 and its related anomalies. Moreover, this contribution helps non-specialists to understand the importance of various functional foods/nutraceuticals based on the dietary/supplementation recommendations indicated by various popular nutritional or dietary or health organizations. To sum up this contribution, healthy life style and balanced nutrition play important role on immune system. Reducing obesity becomes a critical point on the COVID-19 infection. The most important is to find the potential and effective food bioactives, which might act as supportive or complementary therapy (prophylactic) for mitigating the risk and comorbidity associated with COVID-19.