OPTIMIZE YOUR IMMUNITY TO FIGHT COVID-19
AMEN adheres to a biblical model of health. The Bible says our bodies are a temple of the Holy Spirit. Because of this, even if for no other reason, it is important that we take care of our bodies.
We believe in a holistic view of life and health in which all dimensions – physical, mental, emotional, social-relational, spiritual, and environmental – are optimized.
Our everyday wellbeing can be enhanced by living in harmony with God’s will for each of us. This includes our physical behaviors and habits, our environmental exposures, our relationships with others, as well as our belief in God and faith in His gift of salvation.
“… your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit…you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” – 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
Three Lines of Defense
COVID-19 is an intruder. It did not announce its arrival nor did it come with management instructions. COVID-19 has resisted treatment, precipitated death, and sometimes carries on its mercenary work for months following initial infection. There are three lines of defense that can be used against COVID-19 in its various stages.
- Pre-COVID-19: Public Health measures – reduce transmission of the disease from one person to another through means such as masks, social distancing, and vaccine development. Public health efforts function like a home security system to keep the enemy out.
- Pre- and Early-stage COVID-19: Immune Enhancement – includes all the things you can do to keep yourself and your immune system healthy and bolster your body’s defenses against the virus in its early phase.
- Late-stage COVID-19: Medical Intervention – supports patients who are sick enough to be hospitalized due to COVID-19. Advanced medical care attempts to undo damage once the intruder has ransacked the house.
The most formidable defense of all is the body’s innate immune system. It functions like an internal armed security force. Everyone has one. It just needs to be activated.
Nature’s Immune Builders Tells You How
Since the best defense is a good offense, it’s important to keep your immune system as strong as possible during the COVID-19 pandemic — as well as anytime viruses are in season. Incorporating these immune-strengthening suggestions will not guarantee that you won’t get sick but may reduce your risk of falling ill or may minimize the impact of the virus. Here are some important things you can do daily to help strengthen your immune system.
Please note: The information presented here does not replace public health or acute care management strategies, but can be used alongside these approaches to enhance the body’s ability to stay well and fight disease.
Topics Covered
COVID-19 Vaccination – In addition to optimizing our immune systems to fight COVID-19, vaccination is another way to help prevent infection with the COVID-19 virus. Three vaccines are currently approved by the FDA for emergency use. Learn more about the development of the vaccines, what mRNA is, and risks of the vaccines. The AMEN physicians will also discuss their view of faith and the vaccine. They will answer the question, “If I trust God to protect me, why should I get the vaccine?”
Sunlight and Vitamin D – Vitamin D plays a critical role in supporting the body’s immune function. In fact, many studies show a correlation between low vitamin D levels and an increased risk of death from COVID-19. Learn more about how to fight disease with vitamin D.
Sleep – Getting enough sleep is vital to optimal health. Losing even an hour of sleep reduces the effectiveness of your immune system by up to 50%. Learn more about how to get a good night’s sleep and fight disease with adequate rest.
Hydrotherapy – Using water to do hot and cold treatments increases blood circulation, boosts the immune system, and helps speed healing. Learn how to fight disease with simple, safe water treatments that can be done at home.
Stress – High levels of chronic stress suppress the immune system and place you at increased risk of contracting viral illnesses such as the cold or flu and likely COVID-19 as well. Stress cannot be avoided completely but there are strategies to help you cope. Learn tips to find peace in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Underlying Conditions – Obesity and diabetes are chronic diseases that increase your risk of severe complications and death from COVID-19. Learn how to reverse these conditions through a healthy lifestyle that includes outdoor exercise and eating a plant-based diet.
Natural Substances – Scientists are always looking for naturally occurring substances and their beneficial effect on man. Learn about how eucalyptus oil can enhance your immune system.
Water – Water is essential to keep your immune system working optimally. Water is a universal cleansing and hydrating agent.
Exercise – Our bodies are designed to move. Exercise evens the circulation and enhances the immune system.
Healthful Eating – Have you heard the expression ‘we are what we eat’? That is actually not far off. Good nutrition is essential to optimal immune function. Learn how eating whole plant foods can help avoid chronic disease.
Fasting – Short periods of fasting (complete abstinence from food) reduce inflammation in the body, improving the immune system’s function. Learn how intermittent fasting on a regular basis aids not only in immune function but in increased mental alertness, weight loss, and reversal of diabetes.
Harmful Substances – Smoking, Alcohol, and Caffeine are harmful addictive substances. Learn how they weaken the body’s immune response and may increase the severity of COVID-19.
Social Support and Faith – We are designed as social beings. We all long for human connections. Learn how people who worship together, pray together, and support each other in communities of faith experience greater life satisfaction and lower all-cause mortality than those who don’t.
Supplements – Ideally, whole plant-based food provides us with the vitamins and minerals our bodies need but sometimes we may need an extra boost. Learn about supplements that may help fight COVID-19.
COVID-19 VACCINATION
SUNLIGHT and VITAMIN D
What is vitamin D and why is it important?
Vitamin D plays many important roles in the body. It is actually a hormone, not a vitamin. Most people know that vitamin D helps build strong and healthy bones. However, vitamin D also plays a critical role in supporting the body’s immune function.
Preliminary studies on COVID-19 indicate that vitamin D supplementation may reduce time to recovery and reduce markers of inflammation. Other studies have shown an association with improved survival. Studies are ongoing. Vitamin D supplementation has been shown to reduce the incidence of acute chest infections in randomized clinical trials.
We acknowledge that there are studies with mixed results and in some cases, supplemental vitamin D did not improve COVID-19 outcomes. Sunlight exposure has been shown to reduce mortality rate in those with COVID-19.
How do we get Vitamin D?
- Sunlight
- Supplementation
Sunlight
Your body produces vitamin D naturally when your skin is exposed to bright sunlight.
Sunlight not only produces vitamin D naturally which boosts your immune system, it also energizes the body’s T cells that play a vital role in immunity. Spending time in the sun during the day can improve your sleep at night and improve your immune system’s resilience.
Recommendation: Aim for 10-20 minutes of sunlight daily. Don’t overdo it and get a sunburn.
So when was the last time that you went into the sun? Is most of your day spent indoors? So long as there is no contraindication to doing so, getting out into the sun can be very helpful and improve your health.
How do I know if I should take a Vitamin D Supplement?
We encourage you to have your vitamin D level checked by your physician. The normal range for vitamin D blood levels varies but is generally 30 to 100 ng/dl.
Vitamin D deficiency is defined as a blood level less than 20ng/dl but levels less than 40 are associated with increased risk for getting COVID, having more serious symptoms, ending up in the hospital, requiring critical care support, needing a ventilator and dying from COVID.
The minimum vitamin D level for protection from COVID is 40+ ng/dl but we recommend a blood level between 50 -75 ng/dl for optimal benefit.
Because vitamin D is fat-soluble you can get too much. Data indicates that complications occur with blood levels of 100 ng/dl and higher. Therefore, we do not recommend you take high doses without knowing your blood level and consulting with your physician.
Ask your doctor if your vitamin D level should be checked and see about supplementing it if needed.
How much Vitamin D should I take?
The best way to know if you should take a vitamin D supplement is to have your blood checked and base your need for supplementation on those results as explained above. However, with the protective effect of vitamin D for COVID-19, you may want to begin supplementation right away, especially in the wintertime.
Suggested Dose: Consider vitamin D supplementation of 1,000-5,000 IU daily. Unless contraindicated, a dose of up to 5,000 IU/day is safe for most people.
| Age | Dose |
| 0-6 m | 1000 IU/d |
| 6m-1y | 1500 IU/d |
| 1y-3y | 2500 IU/d |
| 4y-8y | 3000 IU/d |
| 8y+ | 4000-5000 IU/d |
Does it matter what kind of Vitamin D supplement I take?
Vitamin D3 is readily available and is effective regardless of whether you take it in liquid, capsule or chewable forms.
Would you like to learn more?
Click below to watch “Delving Deeper: Vitamin D”
Vitamin D References
Vitamin D References:
Jain, A., Chaurasia, R., Sengar, N.S. et al. Analysis of vitamin D level among asymptomatic and critically ill COVID-19 patients and its correlation with inflammatory markers. Sci Rep 10, 20191 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/
SLEEP
SLEEP – Getting regular sleep and enough of it powerfully boosts your body’s ability to fight disease.
Get Enough. Adults need 7-9 hours each night; children and teens need more. The hours of sleep before midnight are the most beneficial.
Avoid These. Reduce stress, screen time and bright light exposure one hour before bedtime.
Stress
STRESS – One of life’s great immune suppressors is stress. How do you avoid stress? You can’t. However, we can work to eliminate non-essential stressors and cultivate a trusting, cheerful spirit.
Move. Walking outside in nature is calming. Spend at least 20 minutes outdoors every day.
Breathe. Inhale through your nose, exhale through your mouth. Deep breaths energize every cell in your body.
Be Grateful. “In all things give thanks.” Cultivate “an attitude of gratitude”. Feelings of gratefulness increase the number of protective antibodies you have.
NATURAL SUBSTANCES
NATURAL SUBSTANCES – Many types of trees give off life-giving, immune building substances. Eucalyptus oil activates the immune system to eat and clear foreign substances from the body.
Trees. Walk outside in fresh air and breathe in the life-giving properties of trees.
Inhale. Soak your feet in a basin of warm water with several drops of eucalyptus oil (or fresh eucalyptus leaves) or use a diffuser. Inhale the air.
SOCIAL SUPPORT and FAITH
SOCIAL SUPPORT and FAITH – People who worship together, pray together, and support each other in communities of faith experience greater life satisfaction and lower all-cause mortality than those who don’t.
Connect. Stay in touch with friends and family. Write, call, video chat, or meet up for an invigorating walk outside. Watch for people that are lonely and reach out to them.
Prayer. “Pray without ceasing.” You can talk with God anytime, anywhere.
Fear Not. “Be not afraid.” God loves you. No emergency catches Him by surprise.
Find. Read your Bible and discover more life-giving principles to live by. Share what you learn.
Worship. “As His custom was, [Jesus] went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day.” When possible, make weekly church attendance a priority. Join a small group Bible study.
AMEN members believe that human beings were created by a loving God to experience life at its best. Optimum health is achieved when we care for the whole person, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. For this reason we encourage you to explore the spiritual dimension of life more deeply through the Search for Certainty Bible Guides written by Pastor Mark Finley, our AMEN advisor. The Search for Certainty Bible Guides will answer your deepest questions directly from the ancient scriptures. Click here to enroll in this free online Bible study series.
If you would like to connect with a local Seventh-day Adventist church, or simply have questions, please feel free to contact us at bible@amensda.org.
HYDROTHERAPY
HYDROTHERAPY – Water is a potent purifier. Simple moist heat application followed by cold can be effective in enhancing the immune system.
Contrast. Take a hot and cold shower daily. Start with hot water for 5 minutes followed by cold for 30-60 seconds. For an extra boost, repeat up to three times (see video).
Foot Bath. Take a hot foot bath and finish with cold water (see video).
When sick. Do a chest treatment using hot fomentations (see video).
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.