What Your Body Needs Right Now: Nutrients, Not Just Calories (written 03/31/2025)

When recovering from Long COVID or post-infection conditions, your body is doing hard work behind the scenes—repairing tissues, calming inflammation, regulating immunity, and rebuilding resilience. That work needs raw materials to help it along.

Last week’s blog, Micronutrients: A Small but Powerful Piece of Your Recovery Puzzle, dove deeper into micronutrients - small but mighty nutrients that support energy, immunity, and nervous system health. 

This week, we want to point out that food can have more or less of those nutrients. Many processed foods are high in calories but low in the nutrients your body needs to repair, regulate, and feel better. Also, due to the impact of a virus or past nutritional choices, your digestive system may not be absorbing nutrients you take in as well as it could. That’s why we focus on nutrient density - choosing foods that pack in vitamins, minerals, fiber, and antioxidants without overloading your system. 

While processed foods might fill your stomach for a short time, they don't fuel recovery. The difference matters - especially when your energy levels are limited and your digestive system may not be functioning as well as it could.

Here are a few examples and simple swaps to consider:

Nutrient-Dense Option          Instead of                    What It Offers

Oats with berries +                Cereal bar                 Fiber, polyphenols, iron,          seeds                                                                     magnesium

Hard-boiled eggs +               White toast                Protein, B12, choline,
seeds                                                                         antioxidants

Lentil soup or hummus         Packaged                   Zinc, iron, plant protein,
                                               sandwich                    fibre

Nuts + fruit                            Crackers or chips      Healthy fats, vitamin E,
                                                                                   steady energy

Sardines or salmon               Deli meats                  Omega-3s, vitamin D,
                                                                                   selenium

When you're recovering and want to become more resilient, every bite matters. Not in a restrictive way—but because the right foods can do more than fill you up. A supportive Diet can help your systems to function better, which leads to more energy and better repair. You want to give your body what it needs to work with you, not against you.

As another example you can try today, here's an easy, fresh recipe that brings nutrient density to life:

Simple Recovery Bowl
6 ingredients • 1 serving • 100% real food

Ingredients (serves 1–2):

• 1/4 cup lentils 

• 1 small sweet potato cut in cubes, steamed or gently boiled until soft 

• 1 cup zucchini, lightly steamed or raw and thinly sliced

• 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil

• Pinch of sea salt, pepper, and paprika

• Fresh herbs like parsley or basil
  
  

Optional Add-ins (if tolerated):

• A sprinkle of hemp or pumpkin seeds for extra minerals, energy, and healthy fat 

• Squeeze of lemon (or splash of vinegar)
  
  

Instructions:

1. Rinse lentils well and soak for about 30min.

2. Cut sweet potato in cubes and zucchini in bite size pieces. 

3. Cook lentils until soft (about 10–20 min depending on lentils).

4. Steam sweet potato for a total of 15min and add zucchini after 8 minutes.

5. Combine all ingredients in a bowl, drizzle olive oil, and add sea salt, pepper and paprika. Serve warm or at room temp.
   
   

• Easy on digestion
• Fresh, nourishing, and MCAS-aware (when skipping optional add-ins)
• Done in 20 - 30 min

Your Next Step
This week, try swapping just one processed meal or snack for something nutrient-dense. Even small changes can make a big difference - just take them one step at a time.

Warmly,
Katie & Andrea

PS: Want more guidance? Recovery Kitchen Essentials is available and shares evidence-based insights and dietary approaches, as well as recipes. Use the foods you eat every day to reduce inflammation, support your immune system, and take in nutrient rich foods.