Vitamin D Deficiency Found In 80% COVID-19 Patients
In this article I will outline the benefits of taking health food supplements. Have a read and decide for yourself if this is something you might include in your daily health regime
There has been a lot of talk in the media lately, backed by excellent studies, about the benefits of taking a Vitamin D supplement to help boost your immunity and protect against Covid, including helping you prevent getting it and reducing the severity and rate of death if you do get it
A study that was published in ‘The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism‘, found 80 percent of 216 COVID-19 patients admitted in a hospital in Spain to be vitamin D-deficient. The researchers also noticed that men had lower vitamin D levels than women.
Another recent study, published in ‘Plos One’ journal, had claimed that vitamin D sufficiency may lessen the oxygen requirement in COVID-19 patients and fasten the treatment process.
Vitamin D has moved a step closer to being used as a potential way to prevent and treat coronavirus after Matt Hancock asked government health advisers to produce new guidelines on its use.
The health secretary told the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) and Public Health England to create guidelines for the use of the “sunshine” nutrient two weeks ago, before it was reported that the government was planning to give four months worth of vitamin D supplements to more than 2 million vulnerable and elderly people, following the lead of Scotland.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Nice, which sets NHS clinical guidelines, told the Guardian: “Nice and PHE received a formal request to produce recommendations on vitamin D for prevention and treatment of Covid from the secretary of state for health and social care, Matt Hancock, on October 29.”
The move comes after the government began considering giving vitamin D supplements to elderly people and those who are shielding as the UK enters winter. There is growing concern that many people may have poorer vitamin D levels than usual as a result of staying indoors for longer periods during the pandemic.
Vitamin D’s effect on immune systems has long been debated among experts. A number of studies have suggested that low vitamin D levels are associated with a higher risk of death from coronavirus, and some believe sufficient levels of it can reduce tissue damage from lung infections.
In order to give yourself the best defence, take a good multi nutrient, vitamin C, D and zinc
Should I take supplements?
Many surveys conducted of eating habits show that even those who said they ate a balanced diet failed to eat anything close to the recommended daily allowances (RDA’s). But these RDAs are set by governments to prevent deficiency diseases such as scurvy; they are certainly not designed to ensure optimum health. And there is a big difference between lack of illness and the presence of wellness.
For example, the average person gets 3.5 colds per year. In a study of 1038 doctors and their families, those who took 410mg of vitamin C per day had the least signs of illness and the lowest incidence of colds, this intake is roughly 7 times the RDA of 60mg.
Since the 1980’s, proper scientific studies using multi nutrient supplements have shown that they boost immunity, increase IQ, reduce birth defects, improve childhood development, reduce colds, stop PMS, improve bone density, balance moods, reduce aggression, increase energy, reduce the risk of cancer and heart disease, and basically promote a long and healthy life.
Most people are putting up with “feeling all right”. The idea behind supplements is to go beyond this and aim for optimum health. In 1982, the Institute for Optimum Nutrition put 76 volunteers on a six-month supplement programme. At the end of the six months, 79 reported a definite improvement I energy, 60 percent had better memory and mental alertness, 66 felt more emotionally balanced, 57 percent had fewer olds and infections, and 55 percent had better skin.
What is optimum?
The RDAs are not enough for optimum health. In a 15-year study by the University of Alabama, 13,500 people living in various areas were studied. Each participant completed an in-depth health questionnaire and was given various extensive health examinations. The object was to find which nutrient intake levels were associated with the highest health ratings.
The results consistently revealed that the healthiest individuals, meaning those with the fewest clinical signs and symptoms, were taking supplements
The researchers found that the intake of nutrients associated with optimal health was often ten or more times greater than the RDA levels.
Numerous studies have shown that people of all ages, conditions and state of health showed better overall health by taking supplements. They also show much lower rates of various illnesses including heart disease and cancer.
There are numerous scientific studies published in medical journals proving that an intake of vitamins above the RDA levels vastly improves every area of health.
The decline of fruit and vegetables
The sad truth is that food today is not what it used to be. Fruit and veg are only as good as the soil in which they are grown. The artificial pesticides and fertilisers used in modern farming rob the soil of nutrients and this directly affects the quality of the food.
Whereas we used to eat the food we grew ourselves, or at least, locally grown food, now we may be eating food that comes from other countries and has been stored for a long time. This greatly reduces the nutrient content
Food manufacturing and processing further reduce the nutrient content of food
For the above reasons, supplementing our diets with vitamins and minerals in the form of tablets may be the only way of getting the optimum amount of nutrients.
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