More research confirms that maintaining optimal vitamin D levels is extremely important for reducing the risk of infection with SARS Cov-2. A six-week observational study of 154 people published in Nature found that 97 percent of individuals with severe COVID-19 had vitamin D deficiency (mean concentration was 14 ng/mL) compared to 33 percent of people…
Some of our favorite polyphenol-rich foods, including green tea, muscadine grapes, cacao, and dark chocolate appear to block an enzyme in the SARS-CoV-2 virus, inhibiting its replication. A docking simulation and in vitro study published in Frontiers in Plant Science found that these flavan-3-ol and proanthocyandin-containing foods can block and bind the function of this enzyme, or protease, which…
Supplementing with melatonin may decrease the likelihood of contracting COVID, particularly among African Americans. Researchers analyzed data from an observational study of over 26,000 people from a COVID-19 registry at the Cleveland Clinic Health System and found that melatonin use is associated with a 52% reduced likelihood of a positive SARS-CoV-2 test in African Americans.…
People who have been exposed to a seasonal “common cold” may experience less severe COVID-19 symptoms. While we’ve discussed this topic previously, a study from the Journal of Clinical Investigation reports the first clinical evidence of cross reactivity with the common cold and COVID. This is due to previous immune responses against the four endemic…
A huge part of our immune resilience comes down to the inputs we give our immune system – the food we eat and the lifestyle choices we make. These choices can either help build a strong and balanced defense system or it can weaken those defenses, encouraging them to flop, misfire or overshoot. If you’re…
Long COVID is now recognized as a post-viral syndrome of chronic debilitating symptoms that can last for months. Similar post-viral syndromes that have been observed follow other infections such as influenza, pneumonia, Epstein-Barr virus, and HIV. New data from a recent study by Kings College London of 4 million individuals in the United Kingdom indicates that: It’s relatively…
Vitamin D is a superstar nutrient for supporting the immune system and reducing the risk of a cold, flu and acute respiratory tract infection. Researchers are now linking low vitamin D status (less than 20 ng/mL or 18 pg/mL, respectively) to an increased risk of COVID-19 in a study published this week. Vitamin D levels were tested in nearly 500 patients…
UPDATE: A clarification was issued by Penn State university the doctor was unintentionally citing outdated numbers. “During his discussion with board members, (Sebastianelli) recalled initial preliminary data that had been verbally shared by a colleague on a forthcoming study, which unbeknownst to him at the time had been published at a lower rate,” said Scott Gilbert,…
As with most things biology, there is a relatively tight range for optimal: insufficiency of compound X is a problem and excess of compound X is a problem as well, for a different, but related, set of mechanisms…. I have been particularly interested in this concept for the duration of my career, seeing this U…
What do you think is going on here? The main report is that the death counts lag behind infection rates. But the pandemic (I like the term “patchwork pandemic”) has been raging through Florida, Arizona and Texas for quite some time now. Are we looking at a less lethal SARS CoV-2? It would appear so.…
