Nutrition for the cold months

Studies show the effect over and over again: regular exercise is good for the body, strengthens the immune system and reduces the risk of numerous chronic diseases. The WHO currently recommends 150 minutes per week for the general population. However, for people who exercise regularly and also train far more than 150 minutes a week, the immune system is already being challenged significantly more. With this increase in exercise, it is also important to pay attention to a few points in the diet so that the body remains healthy. Why? The high level of stress due to intensive training or competition weakens our immune system in the short term. If athletes manage to counteract this through targeted dietary adjustments, it reduces the risk of infections and illnesses.

Sufficient energy intake

If you move a lot, you also use more energy. While no adjustment is required for short exercise sessions, the energy requirement increases significantly with more intensive and continues, low-intensity regular exercise. Our diet and energy intake must reflect our energy expenditure. Since everyone has different energy needs, individual diet planning is important, best through support from accredited sports dieticians and nutritionists.

In the cold months and during flu season it's dangerous to create a huge energy deficit (e.g. for weight loss).

A training program varies, hence the energy requirement changes, too. As a result, the diet also needs to change. The better it is tailored to the load and the better the calorie requirement is met, the better for the immune system. If there's insufficient energy supply, the immune system weakens while the risk of infection increases.

Carbohydrates for intensive, long training

The days when almost exclusively endurance athletes paid attention to meeting their carbohydrate requirements are over. Thanks to the latest scientific findings, we know that weight athletes and athletes in gaming sports also benefit from the adjusted carbohydrate intake. The muscle ultimately needs carbohydrates for its muscle work. As soon as the sessions become longer or more intense, an intake of 30-60 grams of carbohydrates per hour is recommended. For sessions of two or more hours, the recommendation is up to 90 g/h and in some cases even up to 120 g/h.

Nutrient density

If I work out a lot, I can eat whatever I want. You often hear statements like this, but the quality of your diet becomes important, especially when you are under heavy stress. All this training puts a strain on our immune system. High nutrient density in the diet helps to support the immune system. The nutritional value of the diet makes the difference. The higher the quality of the diet, the more healthy nutrients are in a portion of food. Calories alone do not provide any information about the nutritional value of a food; only a look at the nutrients it contains reveals what is good in it. For example, although two foods may be identical at first glance (calories), they may differ significantly in the variety and concentration of nutrients. Fiber content, iron content, vitamin C content, selenium content, etc. You can't tell from calories and grams of sugar, but it makes a big difference.

A poor diet and nutrient-poor foods cannot adequately support the immune system and, especially during the cold season, this can lead to more frequent infections and problems.

As physical stress increases, so does the importance of nutritional quality. A poor diet and nutrient-poor foods cannot adequately support the immune system and, especially during the cold season, this can lead to more frequent infections and problems. Furthermore, a good nutrition makes the use of supplements unnecessary. A balanced diet with a high nutritional value covers the micronutrient requirement. Especially in winter, there are many types of vegetables that are wonderful sources of vitamin C. Anyone who consciously uses them in the kitchen is doing themselves a lot of good! The only exception remains vitamin D, as supplementation in winter seems necessary.

Adequate nutrient intake leads often to the question whether dietary supplements are necessary to meet daily needs. We do not have convincing scientific evidence that high-dose supplements prevent the cold or flue, not even for vitamin C. A homemade vegetable soup with fresh vegetables seems the better option - together with all the points mentioned in this article.

Intestinal health

Of course, a healthy GI tract is also important during the cold season. The frequent change of hot and cold temperature stresses our organism. Irregular or insufficient energy intake (even during exercise!) can trigger or aggravate digestive problems. Athletes must therefore provide themselves with sufficient energy during exercise. They should incorporate fiber-rich foods into their daily nutrition and in some cases also use a probiotic to support intestinal health.

Other

However, a balanced, adjusted diet alone does not keep us healthy. Anyone who does a lot of exercise also needs rest periods. Relaxation and full recovery are important factors in the concept of training and in the prevention of overtraining. They also help to minimize the risk of illness, as the immune system can rebuild itself after intense exercise.

Finally, let's not forget personal hygiene. Simple things like washing hands regularly during the day and before and after meal times helps to significantly reduce the risk of infection.

Further reading:

Bucher A, White N. Vitamin C in the Prevention and Treatment of the Common Cold. American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine. 2016;10(3):181-183. doi:10.1177/1559827616629092.

Hemilä H, Chalker E. Vitamin C for preventing and treating the common cold. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2013;(1), https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD000980.pub4.

Jeukendrup A (2014). A step towards personalized sports nutrition: carbohydrate intake during exercise. Sports Med, 44, 1, S25-33. doi: 10.1007/s40279-014-0148-z.

Thomas DT et al. (2016) American College of Sports Medicine Joint Position Statement. Nutrition and Athletic Performance. Med Sci Sports Exerc, 48(3): 543-568 | doi: 10.1249/MSS.0000000000000852.

Walsh NP (2019). Nutrition and Athlete Immune Health: New Perspectives on an Old Paradigm. Sports Med, 49, 153-168. doi: 10.1007/s40279-019-01160-3.

World Health Organisation (WHO). Physical activity recommendations. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/physical-activity.