Eating for Healing!

Any type of surgery can take a serious toll on the body and getting back to 100% health should always be the first priority. Similarly, if you are recovering from an illness, then focusing all of your energy on recovery can help to avoid potential complications and further illness. In both of these instances, your diet plays a huge role in how your body heals and opting for proper nutrition is one of the best things you can do.

There are several  foods that are perfect for this purpose and including them in your meals regularly will give your system the much needed help that it requires.

Zinc

Zinc is essential for a healthy immune system and it is also useful in helping your body to heal wounds. There are several delicious plant based sources of zinc, such as mung beans, mushrooms, spinach and cashew nuts. It is not difficult to include any of these foods in your daily diet. For example, you can keep a stash of cashew nuts with you to snack on throughout the day and opt for a spinach based salad for your lunch.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is another vitamin that is great for helping your body to heal faster after surgery. Fortunately, this isn’t a vitamin that many people are deficient in and you should already have ample supply in your body. However, it is true that you can never have too much of a good thing and opting for certain foods, such as broccoli, kiwi, tomatoes and leafy green vegetables, will give you the extra boost that you might need. Upping your vitamin C intake a few weeks before surgery and for a few weeks afterwards is a great idea and also incredibly simple.

Vitamin B

There is limited research to suggest that vitamin B is also effective during the healing process. It is thought that as well as speeding up the rate at which wounds heal, vitamin B can also increase the rate of protein synthesis. Additionally, it is known to help reduce inflammation, which is of course commonly associated with injuries. Foods that are high in B vitamins include whole grains, beans, legumes, green leafy vegetables and a wide variety of fruits.

Sometimes it’s hard to predict when surgery will have to occur and of course it’s impossible to predict when an accident might take place which could lead to injury. However, when you do know that such an incident is going to take place, it’s completely within your power to look after yourself by improving your diet. And, of course, going one step further and living well all the time will bring your body many more benefits!