Many opt for protein-rich diet to boost immunity amid pandemic

PATNA: The raging pandemic has forced people in the city to make substantial changes in their dietary preferences.
While consumption of multivitamins and Vitamin C supplements have been on the rise ever since the outbreak of Covid-19, dietary protein, which is known to cure damages caused to body tissues, has emerged as an important choice in many households.
Punaichak resident Abhilasha Prakash, who once hated consuming ‘tuar daal’, now eats variety of lentils and legumes twice a day. “My diet was always loaded with carbohydrates, rice being my favourite. I used to hate pulses. But after reading several articles about the potential benefits of a protein-rich diet, I have started including it in my meals,” she said.
City-based nutritionist Meghna Krishna said that protein helps in building muscles and greater muscle mass implies strengthened immunity. “The dietary reference intake (DRI) of protein is 0.8 gm of protein per kg of body weight for females and 1 gram of protein per kg of body weight for males. Unfortunately, due to lack of dietary awareness, many people do not get the required amount on daily basis,” Meghna said.
However, busting the myth about popular protein supplements, Meghna said, “Not everybody needs to take protein supplements. Our traditional food such as ‘rice-daal-sabzi’, ‘rajma-chawal’ and ‘chole-chawal’ is a great combination in itself and has sufficient amount of protein in it,” she added.
While vegetarian sources of protein including lentils, peanuts, milk and curd are used in many households, non-vegetarian sources such as eggs, meat and fish are also making their way to the dining table, more often than usual. People who were wary of consuming meat owing to irrational fears during the initial days of Covid-19 outbreak are less-hesitant now.
Rajbansi Nagar resident Nikesh Kumar said that now his mother willingly cooks non-vegetarian meal. “She now prepares ‘ghee roast chicken’ and ‘mutton curry’ once every week,” Nikesh said.
“My mother has been doing a lot of dietary experiments ever since the outbreak of the pandemic. She recently learnt about the immunity-boosting properties of animal protein from her friends. I now get to savour my taste buds with non-veg delicacies every week,” he said.
The price of goat meat in the city is hovering around Rs 700 per kg since the last two months. Whereas fish (rohu/katla) and chicken are sold in the price range of Rs 280-300 per kg and Rs 200-220 per kg respectively.