The Coronavirus Prevention Conversation - Air Hugs ONLY

In the space of a few months, we have coronavirus spanning the globe.  While the World Health Organisation, doctors, politicians are working diligently at curtailing and finding the vaccine for this virus, let’s discuss PREVENTION.  Let’s be proactive and ignite our immune system and cultivate a strong inner ecosystem within ourselves.

Arianna Huffington sums it up beautifully: 

“If you throw a lit match into a dewy wet forest, what happens? Nothing. But toss that same incendiary device into a parched landscape that hasn’t seen rain in a long time, and you’ll soon have a quickly moving fire on your hands. The difference between these two environments — one damp and saturated and another dry and thirsty — means everything in terms of how they respond to that spark.”

CORONAVIRUS PREVENTION TIPS

1. For overall wellness, hydrate and eat real whole foods. I am the author of Beating Sugar Addictions for Dummies advocating eating whole food and lower sugar consumption to avoid food with no nutritional value, and to prevent inflammation.  Hydration is also key - hydrate with water with a splash of lemon or lime for vitamin C.  Drinking water also helps you from confusing hunger with thirst.
2. Sleep your way to wellness. A minimum of seven hours of sleep per night will equip your body to be better coronavirus prepared. Bragging about running on 6 hours of sleep is so out of fashion.  Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco and Carnegie Mellon University monitored the sleep of participants for one week. Test subjects were then given nasal drops containing the common cold virus.  Those who slept 6 hours per night were four times more likely to catch the cold.
3. Nutritional supplements have a role in coronavirus prevention:

   Fish Oil- Omega oils are thought to act more like vitamins than fats. They are the starting point for a range of immune and inflammatory signalling chemicals in the body and that's why they are great for your immune system. To boost immune function and rebalance, take a fish oil supplement (which is high in the omega 3 fats DHA and EPA). Include hemp and flax oils as well as lower omega 6 nuts such as walnuts and macadamias. Reduce the common, higher omega 6 vegetable oils like safflower and sunflower.

   Vitamin D deficiency is associated with increased susceptibility to infection, and 35 percent of adults in the U.S. are clinically deficient in Vitamin D. Talk to your doctor about checking your vitamin D levels, particularly during this coronavirus pandemic.

   Vitamin C- Vitamin C is an antioxidant that may help prevent cytokine-induced damage to the lungs. Cytokines are small proteins released by cells, which trigger inflammation and respond to infections.

The Department of Critical Care Medicine at Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University recently registered a phase 2 clinical trial to test the efficacy of vitamin C infusions for the treatment of severe acute respiratory infection (SARI) associated with coronavirus. Vitamin C reduces the inflammatory response, and both prevents and shortens the duration of the common cold. Insufficient vitamin C is related to an increased risk and severity of influenza infections. The trial aims to see if vitamin C has similar effects against viral pneumonia associated with COVID-19.  In my opinion, despite the results, Vitamin C will not hurt but can only have an upside. 

4. Practical steps

• Social Distancing - Don’t touch or kiss. Air hug, please.
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or scarf when coughing or sneezing. It just may prevent those around you from getting sick. Don’t rely on your arm!
• Wash your hands well and often to help protect you and those around you from germs.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
• Practise other good health habits. As well as good sleeps, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids, and eat nutritious food.
• Reduce stress- Stress is a big suppressor to our immune systems and has a knock-on effect on poor sleep.

RELIABLE SOURCES ON CORONAVIRUS

 While no one source of information is perfect, some are undeniably better than others! 

• rely on experts who use well-accepted scientific analysis and publish their results in reputable medical journals
• have a mission to inform and protect the public, such as the CDC and the WHO, which recently added a myth busters page to its information on 2019-nCoV
• beware os sites which are promoting or selling product related to the information provided.
• Other good online sources of information on the virus include:

1. Medline Plus, from the US National Library of Medicine
2. The UK’s National Health Service
3. https://www.ready.gov/pandemic