Covid's Cloudy Beginning and Future
From eNewsletter 4/7/2021
DID YOU KNOW that two very important studies were published last week regarding prevention and treatment of respiratory infections? A study from The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology was fervent in its conclusion that supplemental vitamin D3 at doses as little as 400-1000IU for one year prevents, and reduces the duration of, respiratory infections. Authors of a study in Pediatrics are just as fervently urging health professionals to delay antibiotic prescriptions for respiratory infections in children unless bacterial infection is confirmed by culture. Moreover, there was no difference in duration of infection for children who received antibiotic treatment versus those that didn't. Children who did not take antibiotics had significantly less gastrointestinal side effects.
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UPDATE - COVID-19 Vaccine Information We updated this document Monday April 5th.
Virus Prevention And Treatment Vaccines will minimize COVID-19 related mortality and hospitalizations, but SARS-CoV-2 is not going away, as evidenced by its ever-mutating variants. Moreover, SARS-CoV-2 is not the only virus we fight. There are influenza (flu), norovirus (stomach flu), adenovirus (common cold), and four other coronaviruses (common cold), among others.We highly recommend continuing your immune support. For more information, refer to our Prevent and Fight Viruses 2.0 Protocol.
COVID-19 Condition Monograph For those interested in conventional and integrative treatments for COVID-19 with over 250 references, this is our COVID-19 Condition Monograph.
Post-COVID Syndrome The official diagnosis for post-COVID syndrome (PCS) are symptoms that last for 12 weeks or more. If you, a family member, friend, coworker, or neighbor is suffering from PCS, diligently following our Post-COVID Syndrome Action Plan for purchase, or free to paid members, can bring measurable improvement.
COVID-19 UPDATE
Steve and Bonnie: While it would be nice to know the origin of SARS-CoV-2, the World Health Organization's published findings do not have us brimming with confidence. It is incumbent to allow complete transparency and unencumbered access to all potential clues so the world can strategize on how to prevent something like this from happening again. Until then, we have two major arrows in our quiver: preventive steps including diet, lifestyle, and supplements; mRNA vaccines, which adeptly teach our immune systems to stave off COVID-related severe disease and death, and will be quickly adjusted to attack virulent, SARS-CoV-2 mutations.
Healthy Strategies for COVID-19 Prevention
While the conclusions from a new study from British Journal of Nutrition should not come as a surprise, they highlight the importance of food choices considering their inflammatory effects. Healthy eating habits, micronutrients, bioactive compounds in supplements and probiotics are strategies for COVID-19 prevention. Therefore, a diversified, balanced, and nutrient-dense diet can contribute to the improvement of the immune response to viral infections such as COVID-19.
New COVID-19 Risk Factors
Centers for Disease Control added several new medical conditions to its list of those that predispose adults to more severe COVID-19 illness.
Conditions that had previously been categorized as "might be" placing individuals at increased risk, but now are listed as high risk, include type 1 diabetes (in addition to type 2), moderate-to-severe asthma, liver disease, dementia or other neurological conditions, stroke/cerebrovascular disease, HIV infection, cystic fibrosis, and overweight (in addition to obesity). Substance use disorders, which hadn't been previously listed, are now also considered high-risk.
The new list groups together certain categories, such as chronic lung diseases (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, cystic fibrosis, etc) and heart conditions (heart failure, coronary artery disease, hypertension, etc). Both diabetes types are now grouped under "diabetes."
Vitamin D
Yet another study, this from American Journal of Clinical Pathology, concludes that low 25(OH)D levels on hospital admission are associated with COVID-19 disease stage and mortality. Interestingly, age, ethnicity, chronic lung disease, coronary artery disease/hypertension, or diabetes were not confounding factors, showing that it doesn't matter who you are, if you are low in vitamin D, you're at much greater risk.
Children Leading the Spread of New COVID-19 Variants
In SARS-CoV-2's never ending quest to infect as many humans as possible, because older persons are mostly vaccinated, children and teens are now the "age group du jour".
Public health officials are now worried that, like influenza, children will bring the infection to their parents and infect them. "I can just tell you from my 46 years in the business, I've never seen dynamic transmission in kids like we're seeing right now, younger kids," said Michael Osterholm, PhD, who directs the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.
Luckily, according to a press briefing from Dr, Anthony Fauci and other epidemiologists, of the 45 noteworthy genetic mutations in three main SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern, variants first identified in the United Kingdom, South Africa, and Brazil, only a single one occurs at a location on the virus where T cells attach and alert the immune system that reinfection could be underway. This should provide a sense of relief that the variants of concern are not as concerning as some have made them out to be.
For Pregnant and Breastfeeding Women
Pregnant women with COVID-19 are at increased risk of severe COVID-19, particularly if they are from ethnic minority backgrounds, or if they have pre-existing conditions like obesity, high blood pressure and diabetes, concludes research led by World Health Organization and published in the BMJ.
COVID-infected breastfeeding mothers don’t transfer SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID, through their breast milk. The mBio study authors also report that COVID antibodies appear to pass from mother to child during feedings, giving infants protection.
KEEP YOUR SYNOVIAL FLUID SUPPLE
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