How pregnant women can boost their immune system during COVID-19

For pregnant women in UAE, specialist OBGYN Dr Rajul Matkar emphasizes the importance of boosting immune system especially during COVID-19 pandemic.

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Dr. Rajul Shailesh Matkar

Specialist Obstetrician & Gynecologist
Medstar Day Surgery Center

What precautions pregnant women need to take during COVID-19?

Generally speaking, during pregnancy, there’s this stage of your immunity being a little lower as compared to others. So they are at a higher risk of the infections. Although we don’t have enough studies with COVID-19 and pregnancy yet, but considering all the other infections that have come, like the flu and like the MERS and SARS, you have to keep in mind that because their immunity is lower, they are at a higher risk and so that is why you have to keep building your immunity.

How can we boost our immune system? 

Taking supplements would not help if you are stressed, not having an adequate diet, or not sleeping well. Especially if you have other co-morbidities and other illnesses then you need to be more careful about your immune system. So, your diet, along with sleep, the way you think, plays a very important role in this whole management of disease at the end of the day. Therefore, I think one has to become mindful, even though we are all stressed at the moment in terms of jobs gone away, staying at home, and etc. I think over everything else, life is more important at the end of the day. If you don’t manage to find your space of happiness in this, you’re actually making yourself more susceptible to this disease by reducing the strength of your own immune system to take care of the problems that would come.

What is the best way to get Vitamin D during COVID-19? Walking outside or taking supplements?

At the moment, getting sun in your balcony is also perfect. You don’t need to really walk outside. You can just go out to your terrace or walk out to your balcony. You need about 20 to 30 minutes of exposure to the sun. Have your face, neck and hands open. You can wear a sleeveless and just expose your legs up to your knees. If you take in that mid-morning sun, then that it is perfect. Don’t really need to be going out for a walk to get your vitamin D.

However, if your vitamin D is low, as we see it in multiple patients over here in the UAE, definitely supplements are required. Having your Vitamin D low and waiting for it to go up by just waiting for the sun, especially if you can’t get adequate sun, then it’s not something that’s going to be good for your immune system either. So, I do recommend supplements until you come to the point where you are at the optimum level. There is nothing like a normal level. A lot of people remain just about 30 to 50 ng/mL level because they think that is enough. But it just tells you the level is not insufficient, it’s just above that. So I would recommend that it shall remain between 60 and 80. That’s when your cells work at their optimum, and that is the optimum level.

*Disclaimer: Please consider the information in this video/article most recent as per date and medical recommendations towards COVID-19 may change as the situation evolves.