OPTIMIZE YOUR IMMUNITY TO FIGHT COVID-19

Supplement Information

 

Ideally, we will obtain all the vitamins and minerals our bodies need from food.  However, that isn’t always possible. Supplements have their origin in nature. Some, in concentrated form, may give additional benefit to the immune system. Consider taking them to keep your defenses high. 

+ Vitamin D. Vitamin D plays an important role in maintaining a healthy immune system. Our bodies produce vitamin D when our skin is exposed to the sun or we get it by supplementation.  People with optimal blood levels of Vitamin D recover faster from COVID-19 and are less apt to die from it.   

+ Zinc. Zinc helps the immune system to defend against invading viruses and bacteria. As you age, your body doesn’t produce as much, so especially those over 50 should consider supplementation. Good food sources of zinc include legumes, seeds, and nuts.

+ NAC. N-acetyl cysteine, or NAC for short, helps boost antioxidants in your body that support the immune system. It reduces inflammation in the cells of the lungs. Studies recommend 600 mg. twice a day for optimal benefit.

+ Quercetin. Quercetin is a flavonoid found abundantly in plant foods, such as onions, greens, and fruits. It is an anti-inflammatory and antioxidant. Quercetin may assist zinc getting into cells, allowing the zinc to lower the viral load and inhibit viral replication. It has been successfully used in the treatment of Ebola and Zika viruses. It is being studied for COVID-19.

 

SUGGESTED SUPPLEMENT SCHEDULE

For Optimal Health During COVID-19 times…

 Supplement  Daily Dosage  When to Take
 Vitamin D  1000-5000 IU  At breakfast or lunch
 Zinc  8-11 mg, up to 40 mg max  At breakfast or lunch
 Selenium  1-2 Brazil nuts  At breakfast or lunch
 N-acetyl Cysteine (NAC)  600 mg twice daily  At breakfast and lunch
 Melatonin  2-3 mg if needed  30 minutes before bedtime

 

Supplement References
  1. Melinda A. Beck, Orville A. Levander, Jean Handy, “Selenium Deficiency and Viral Infection,” The Journal of Nutrition 133, no 5 (May 2003): 1463S-1467S, https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/133.5.1463S.

 

  1. Melinda A. Beck, “Selenium and Host Defence Towards Viruses,” The Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 58, no. 3 (August 1999):707-11, https://doi.org/1017/s0029665199000920.

 

  1. Janina Geiler et al., “N-acetyl-L-Cysteine (NAC) Inhibits Virus Replication and Expression of Pro-Inflammatory Molecules in A549 Cells Infected with Highly Pathogenic H5N1 Influenza A Virus,” Biochemical Pharmacology 79, no. 3 (February 2010): 413-420, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bcp.2009.08.025.

 

  1. Manuel Mata et al., “Respiratory Syncytial Virus Inhibits Ciliagenesis in Differentiated Normal Human Bronchial Epithelial Cells: Effectiveness of N-Acetylcysteine,” PLOS One 7, no. 10 (October 2012):e48037, https://dx.doi.org/10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0048037.

 

  1. Jose Antonio Boga et al., “Beneficial Actions of Melatonin in the Management of Viral Infections: A New Use for This ‘Molecular Handyman’?” Reviews in Medical Virology 22, no. 5 (Sep 2012): 323-338, https://dx.doi.org/10.1002%2Frmv.1714.

 

  1. Russel J. Reiter, Qiang Ma, Ramaswamy Sharma, “Treatment of Ebola and Other Infectious Diseases: Melatonin ‘Goes Viral,’” Melatonin Research 3, no 1 (2020), https://doi.org/10.32794/mr11250047.

 

  1. Tejabhiram Yadavalli et al., “Drug-encapsulated Carbon (DECON): A Novel Platform for Enhanced Drug Delivery,” Science Advances 5, no. 8 (August 14, 2019): eaax0780, https://doi.org/1126/sciadv.aax0780.

 

  1. Press: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/08/190814144500.htm

 

  1. Cynthia Aranow, “Vitamin D and the Immune System,” Journal of Investigative Medicine 59, no. 6 (August 2011): 881-6, https://doi.org/2310/JIM.0b013e31821b8755.

 

  1. Meenu Singh and Rashmi R. Das, “Zinc for the Common Cold,” Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (June 18, 2013), https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD001364.pub4.

 

  1. Thi Thanh Hanh Nguyen, “Flavonoid-Mediated Inhibition of SARS Coronavirus 3C-like Protease Expressed in Pichia Pastoris,” Biotechnology Letters 34, no 5 (May 2012): 831-8, https://doi.org/1007/s10529-011-0845-8.

 

  1. Asif Mir, Humaira Ismatullah, Sobiah Rauf, and Umar H.K. Niazi, “Identification of Bioflavonoid as Fusion Inhibitor of Dengue Virus Using Molecular Docking Approach,” Informatics in Medicine Unlocked 3 (2016): 1-6, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.imu.2016.06.001.

 

  1. Clay Gorton and Kelly Jarvis, “The Effectiveness of Vitamin C in Preventing and Relieving the Symptoms of Virus-Induced Respiratory Infections,” Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics 22, no. 8 (October 1999): 530-533, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0161-4754(99)70005-9.

 

  1. Michael J. Gonzalez et al., “High Dose Vitamin C and Influenza: A Case Report,” Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine 33, no. 3 (June 2018), https://isom.ca/article/high-dose-vitamin-c-influenza-case-report/

 

  1. Wei Li, Nobuyo Maeda, and Melinda Beck, “Vitamin C Deficiency Increases the Lung Pathology of Influenza Virus-Infected Gulo-/- Mice,” The Journal of Nutrition 136, no. 10 (October 2006): 2611-2616, https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/136.10.2611.

 

  1. Harri Hemila, “Vitamin C and Infections,” Nutrients 9, no. 4 (March 2017): 339, https://doi.org/10.3390/nu9040339.

 

  1. ZhiYong Peng et al., “Vitamin C Infusion for the Treatment of Severe 2019-nCoV Infected Pneumonia,” ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier NCT04264533, 2020.

 

  1. Janina Geiler et al., “N-Acetyl-L-Cysteine (NAC) Inhibits Virus Replication,” https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bcp.2009.08.025.

 

  1. Francis L. Poe and Joshua Corn, “N-Acetylcysteine: A Potential Therapeutic Agent for SARS-CoV-2,” Medical Hypotheses 143 (October 2020): 109862, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mehy.2020.109862.

 

  1. Jaiswal, M. Bhatnagar, and H. Shah, “N- Acetylcysteine: A Potential Therapeutic Agent in COVID-19 Infection,” Medical Hypotheses 144 (November 2020): 110133, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mehy.2020.110133.

 

  1. Oliver Van Hecke and Joseph Lee, “N-Acetylcysteine: A Rapid Review of the Evidence for Effectiveness in Treating COVID-19,” The Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine website, University of Oxford, April 14, 2020, https://www.cebm.net/covid-19/n-acetylcysteine-a-rapid-review-of-the-evidence-for-effectiveness-in-treating-covid-19/

 

  1. Yo-Han Lee et al., “Serum Selenium Levels in Patients with Respiratory Diseases: A Prospective Observational Study,” Journal of Thoracic Disease 8, no. 8 (August 2016): 2068-2078, https://dx.doi.org/10.21037%2Fjtd.2016.07.60.

 

  1. X Forceville et al., “Selenium Systemic Immune Response Syndrome, Sepsis, and Outcome in Critically Ill Patients,” Critical Care Medicine 26, no. 9 (September 1998): 1536-44, https://doi.org/10.1097/00003246-199809000-00021.

 

  1. Melinda A. Beck and Orville A. Levander, “Host Nutritional Status and Its Effect on a Viral Pathogen,” The Journal of Infectious Diseases 182, no. 1 (September 2000): S93-S96, https://doi.org/10.1086/315918.

 

  1. Ting-Shuo Huang et al., “Effect of Parenteral Selenium Supplementation in Critically Ill Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis,” PLoS One 8, no 1 (2013): e54431, https://dx.doi.org/10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0054431.

 

  1. John R. Arthur, Roderick C. McKenzie, and Geoffrey J. Beckett, “Selenium in the Immune System,” The Journal of Nutrition 133, no. 5 (May 2003): 1457S-1459S, https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/133.5.1457S.

 

  1. Institute of Medicine (US) Panel on Dietary Antioxidants and Related Compounds, Dietary Reference Intakes for Vitamin C, Selenium, and Carotenoids, National Academies Press, Washington, DC, 2000.

 

  1. Russel Reiter et al., “Melatonin Inhibits COVID-19-Induced Cytokine Storm by Reversing Aerobic Glycolysis in Immune Cells: A Mechanistic Analysis,” Medicine in Drug Discovery 6 (June 2020): 100044, https://dx.doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.medidd.2020.100044

 

  1. Golnoosh Torabian, Peter Valtchev, Qayyum Adil, Fariba Dehghani, “Anti-Influenza Activity of Elderberry (Sambucus nigra),” Journal of Functional Food 54 (March 2019): 353-360, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jff.2019.01.031.

Advanced Immune Builders: Fighting COVID-19 When Ill


For additional tips on fighting COVID-19 if ill, click here.  We encourage you to review this document in its entirety and share it with your physician.  


Sample Daily Routine if You Feel Ill

6:30 am Rising time. Rise, drink 16-24 ounces of very warm water.

Charcoal. If your throat feels sore, hold 1-2 charcoal tablets in your mouth, letting them dissolve.

7:00 am Shower. Take a hot and cold contrast shower, 3-5 minutes of hot, 30-60 seconds of cold up to three times each. End with cold. Dry off. Get dressed. Avoid drafts. Do not allow even your feet to be chilled; put on socks.

8:00 am Breakfast. Eat a simple whole-food, plant-based breakfast. Eat plenty of fresh fruit, nuts, and grains but don’t eat too much. Avoid sugars in food. Take supplements with your meal based on the chart above.

8:45 am Walk. Take a 5-30-minute walk after your meal, as you can tolerate. (If you feel weak, you may not be able to walk far.)

 9:15 am Rest. It’s best to sit and rest but lie down if you must.

10:30 am Water. Drink 16 more ounces of water. Room temperature is best.

11:00 am Hot foot bath. Do a hot foot bath for 20-30 minutes following the directions in the Hydrothermal Therapy section. After the foot bath, lie down, covered, for 30-60 minutes to allow for the reaction. If you have perspired, take a cool shower afterwards.

1:00 pm Lunch. Eat a whole-food, plant-based lunch. Eat plenty of fresh vegetables, legumes, and whole grains, but don’t eat too much. Avoid sugar in food. Take supplements with your meal based on the chart above and how much you took at breakfast.

2:15 pm Walk. Take a 5-30-minute walk as you did in the morning. 

3:00 pm Rest. It’s best to sit but lie down if you must.

3:30 pm Water. Drink 16 more ounces of water. Room temperature is best.

4:00 pm OPTIONAL: Do another hydrothermal therapy treatment, such as a hot foot bath or fomentations.

6:30 pm Supper. Eat a light supper, such as fruit and plain toast. 

7:30 pm Water. Drink 8 ounces of water. Room temperature is best.

9:00 pm Shower. Take a short hot and cold contrast shower just before bed. End with warm water. 

9:30 pm Bedtime. Get in bed right after your shower.

 

The views expressed by the authors on this site are the views of each individual and do not necessarily represent the views of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The information provided is not intended to replace or to be applied as definitive treatment. Please consult with your regular healthcare provider regarding your personal diagnosis, treatment and care.