Vitamin E: A Diabetic’s Protection Against Viruses

If you are someone with diabetes, watching what you eat is an essential part of daily life. You have to monitor your blood glucose levels and keep them balanced carefully; otherwise, you risk having too high or too low levels, which can lead to some severe health problems.

Vitamin E and the Immune System

People with diabetes are at higher risk when it comes to contracting viruses, so they must boost their immune systems while still keeping their blood sugar in check. One thing you will need to help boost your immune system is vitamin E.

The main draw of vitamin E is that it is an excellent antioxidant. Antioxidants essentially protect your cells from things that might cause cancer, such as UV radiation or second-hand smoke.

Antioxidants also help reduce your chances of developing cardiovascular diseases, which are very dangerous. In addition to its antioxidant properties, vitamin E also provides your body with the necessary resources to have a well-functioning immune system.

You can think of your immune system as a type of network spanning throughout your body. The cells all need to communicate with each other to spot viruses early and converge on them quickly.

Without proper communication between cells, viruses can easily take hold in your body and start to spread. This leads to your body having a more challenging time getting rid of it, which can mean worse symptoms and a longer time spent being sick.

Where to Get Vitamin E

With a properly functioning immune system, your body should have a much better time eliminating the virus when it is first spotted. To improve your vitamin E intake, you need to start eating certain foods, but if you have diabetes, you need to choose ones that will not interfere with your blood sugar levels.

For this, a great option to consider is walnuts. Walnuts give you a nice vitamin E boost that can help your immune system, but they’re low in carbs. One cup of them only contains about 4 grams of carbs.

They are mostly comprised of protein and healthy fats instead. You want to be sure you are getting regular raw walnuts, though, because some can come with additional flavors and other unhealthy ingredients on top of them.

Having some walnuts with your lunch or dinner can be a great way to get some additional immunity-boosting benefits while still staying well within your limits as a person with diabetes, allowing you to stay healthy in more ways than one.