The pandemic continues… and continues… and continues. With no end in sight, we continue to have a lot of questions about this virus.
Is there anything we can do to help keep us from getting this infection or to boost our immune systems?
The coronavirus is out there and continues to infect millions of people—some close to home, or maybe even you’ve experienced this yourself. The same basic principles apply—wash your hands, socially distance, wear a mask when in public, and avoid the public when you can. Interestingly, it’s almost January and we’ve seen very little of the flu in our office. The flu season might be coming later this year, but it’s also possible that enough people are taking the above precautions that’s it’s helping prevent the normally widespread outbreaks that we usually experience. We’ll have to wait and see. A double whammy of Covid-19 and the flu is something that none of us want.
As far as “boosting our immune systems” is concerned, there are a couple of things I advise my patients to consider. First, it’s probably a good idea to increase your intake of vitamin C. I recommend 500 or 1,000 mgs twice a day, in the form of a supplement. Twice a day because we rapidly metabolize this vitamin and maintaining a significant blood level makes sense. Secondly, there is anecdotal evidence that zinc may be helpful. 30 mgs a day, or even every other day should be sufficient. And lastly, there’s vitamin D. We know this vitamin is important with regards to bone, muscle, and even heart function, but now there’s solid evidence that adequate blood levels can lower the incidence of acute respiratory infections and the severity of these infections in both adults and children. This goes for Covid-19 as well. A recent study published in JAMA indicated that those of us who are deficient in vitamin D have twice the risk of getting the infection, and when infected, have worse outcomes than those with normal levels.
But what’s an adequate blood level and how do I know if my level is low?
This is easily checked with a blood study, with currently accepted levels being between 30 and 100 ng/ml. And I can tell you that a lot of us are deficient in this important vitamin. Around 75% of the people we test in our office have levels that are below the norm. And it’s estimated that as many as 1 billion people around the world are deficient. That’s alarming, especially since this is something that is easily corrected. (More exposure to the sun is not the answer. And for those of us over the age of 60, our skin doesn’t convert sunlight to vitamin D as well as it did when we were younger.) Safe, effective, and inexpensive supplements are widely available. The goal is to get your blood level into the normal range.
I’m taking a multivitamin and it has vitamin D in it. Shouldn’t that be enough? And what if I can’t afford the blood test?
Most multivitamins don’t contain enough vitamin D to correct a deficiency. And some insurance companies don’t cover this test, which doesn’t make any sense to me. But that’s something you can work around. I think it’s reasonable to take a supplement containing 1,000 to 2,000 IU of vitamins D3 without knowing your blood level. Some of us need more, depending on individual health factors and guided by blood studies, but this amount of supplementation is safe and effective.
That sounds great! I’m going to load up on this and just checked the prices on the internet. Not very expensive, and I’m going to order some right now.
Not so fast. As with most things, more is not necessarily better. It’s possible to take too much of this vitamin. 2,000 units should be the max (unless recommended by your healthcare provider) since excessively elevated blood levels can lead to problems with bone density and other things.
So this is important and something to consider—vitamins C and D, and zinc.
Okay. Now what do you think about the vaccine, and what’s the science supporting the use of face masks?
Those are important questions, but we’ve run out of space. We’ll consider these and other Covid questions next time. In the meanwhile, drink plenty of water, get enough sleep, exercise, socially distance, and if you smoke, stop.
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