For most of this year, your life has been inundated with the most important things that you need to know for COVID and the FLU. Things like social distancing, lockdowns, hand sanitizer, face masks. All of these things have become very controversial due to the varying opinions that have been spread through social media and the other media outlets. This article is not going to address whether or not masks work or was it a good or a bad idea for lockdowns. It is going to discuss some very scientifically sound, evidence-based information that is arguably more important topics of conversation for you and those you associate with, over Zoom of course.
First, are there things that we have control over that will boost our own immune system? Things that when we are exposed to the novel Corona virus, the flu or any other germ, our own internal strength to fight can do it’s job.
Second, what can I do?
The first question, can we help with our own internal prevention against COVID and the Flu?
This recent article in Frontiers in Physiology found that supplementation with fish oil is beneficial:
“Based on the available data, the supplementation of EPA and DHA in COVID-19 patients appears to have potential beneficial effect in managing the “cytokine storm.””
“Therefore, the use of EPA and DHA supplementation should be considered as both a supportive therapy and a prevention strategy in SARS-Cov-2 infection.”
Grant et al found some benefits regarding Vitamin D3 supplementation
“To reduce the risk of infection, it is recommended that people at risk of influenza and/or COVID-19 consider taking 10,000 IU/d of vitamin D3 for a few weeks to rapidly raise 25(OH)D concentrations, followed by 5000 IU/d.”
And in the Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine:
“Vitamin A and vitamin D balance, enhance, and contain each other through the retinoid X receptor (RXR).”
“Because they share a receptor, if we supplement either vitamin D or vitamin A in an unbalanced fashion, we create a functional deficiency of the one not supplemented.”
To answer the second question, what can I do, Dr. James Chestnut summarizes as follows:
Based on the above, and the enormous amount of evidence from the peer-reviewed literature it can be confidently stated that:
- Sufficient intake of omega-3 fatty acids and Vitamins A + D is essential for immune function, especially immune defense against Influenza (flu), Rhino (cold) , and Corona (covid) viruses,
- Deficiencies in these essential nutrients leads to reduced baseline immune defense against these viruses and/or to increased hyper-inflammatory responses to these viruses leading to cytokine storm and Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS)
- Supplementation with sufficient daily amounts (not mega or bolus doses) of these essential nutrients has been clinically shown to decrease inflammation and thus the risk of cytokine storm and/or ARDS and/or to decrease the risk of infection and/or reduce severity of infection from these viruses
- The Vitamin A and Vitamin D receptors on immune cells (phagocytes and T-cells) require proper synergistic amounts of both Vitamins A and Vitamin D to properly up-regulate these receptors to allow sufficient intake of these vitamins into the immune cells to express proper immune function
- Innate Choice OmegA+D Sufficiency is the only supplement in the world that combines fish oil, cod liver oil (with naturally occurring pre-formed Vitamins A and D), and extra vitamin D in order to provide sufficient amounts of Omega-3 and Vitamins A and D, AND, provide the proper synergistic amounts of Vitamins A and D
These evidence based supplements are available in house at Synergy Spine and Nerve Center and also online here.
GEL CAPS:
First month – 4 caps of OmegA+D Sufficiency™ and 12 drops of Vitamin D Sufficiency DAILY;
This provides 10,000 IU/day of Vit D and sufficient and synergistic amounts of Omega-3 and Vit A.R
Ongoing – 4 caps of OmegA+D Sufficiency™ and 2 drops of Vit D Sufficiency DAILY;
This provides 5,000 IU/day of Vit D and sufficient and synergistic amounts of Omega-3 and Vit A.
LIQUID:
First month – 2 TSPS of OmegA+D Sufficiency™ and 12 drops of Vitamin D Sufficiency
This provides 10,000 IU/day of Vit D and sufficient and synergistic amounts of Omega-3 and Vit A.
Ongoing– 2 TSPS of OmegA+D Sufficiency™ and 2 drops of Vit D Sufficiency
This provides 5,000 IU/day of Vit D and sufficient and synergistic amounts of Omega-3 and Vit A.