Covid-19 Editorial: Moving Out of Quarantine. Zinc Facts and Benefits.

As we move out of Covid 19 quarantine, many are left with just as many questions, or more, as when we began. One thing for certain is everyone is tired of being quarantined and would like to get on with their lives. One emerging problem is some are afraid to move on, some don’t want to move on, and some are ready to start back to normal life without a care in the world about Covid 19. One of the more difficult lessons in life is how to get along with people with differing views. My advice continues to be, please respect each other and respect whatever stance another person is taking. You don’t have to agree with it. We are all different. Covid 19 is teaching us so much about one another. Learn the lesson.

Fear is usually either because of what you know or what you don’t know. In the case of Covid 19, it seems it is mostly what you don’t know. Because opinions rather than facts have been delivered by the media, it has been confusing! We have been told Covid19 won’t be controlled until there is a vaccine or a drug to treat it, and right now we have neither. I’m here to explain why that is not true. The biggest natural defenses we have, have been shoved aside and fear instilled, ‘Vit D decreases morbidity and mortality but you may get toxic, don’t take it without your doctor’s advice’. Why does hydroxychloroquine work one day and not another? Why is it, dangerous one day and not another? Why are doctors not in charge of treating their patients in the patient’s best interest, rather than following what is dictated by people not treating patients. None of this is new to medicine, it is just being exposed by Covid 19. It is time for doctors and patients to take a stand to search for that which will protect and treat us against any infection.

So this week and next I am giving you some facts that may help you enter the world with more confidence, and facts you can apply to the next flu or viral pandemic. They are natural. The science is there. Shame on doctors for not researching and sharing these therapies with their patients. I encourage you to read the NIH articles and studies at the end of this blog.

Zinc 100-200 mg a day:

My colleague Mark Gordon, MD, founder of a Traumatic Brain Injury program, reached out to 2800 people in his Southern California practice to see if anyone had tested positive for Covid 19. No one had!! Why? Dr. Gordon starts everyone on zinc and quercetin to help decrease inflammation in the brain. By doing so, this combination may have prophylactically treated his patients against Covid 19, as it does with other viral infections and flu.

Why Zinc?

Zinc inhibits viral replication which in turn helps the immune system to work more effectively. However, zinc needs a carrier to get into the cell to do its job. This carrier is called an Ionophore. Examples of Ionophores are Quercetin, Green Tea Extract (EGCG), Curcumin, Bismuth, and guess what else…our controversial Hydroxychloroquine!! To have the best therapeutic effect, combine zinc with an ionophore. Why Hydroxychloroquine sometimes work and sometimes doesn’t, could be related to the zinc level in different patients. Then it would start making sense that sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t dependent on the nutritional level of zinc. Very few doctors check zinc levels on patients even though zinc is critical for immune system functioning. Why do they not check zinc levels?

Zinc Facts

• Zinc may decrease the activity of angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), the receptor for Covid 19.
• Zinc may improve antiviral immunity through up regulation of interferon α production and increasing antiviral activity.
• Zinc possesses anti inflammatory activity by inhibiting signaling and modulation of regulatory T cell functions that may limit the cytokine storm in COVID 19.
• Improved Zinc levels may also reduce the risk of bacterial co infection by improving mucocilliary clearance in our nose and lungs, and enhance the barrier to viral and toxins entering the lungs.
• Zinc has direct antibacterial effects against S. pneumoniae.
• Zinc deficiency is also associated with risk factors for severe COVID 19 infections, including aging, immune deficiency, obesity, diabetes, and atherosclerosis.
• Effect of Quercetin on Prophylaxis and Treatment of COVID-19 – ClinicalTrials.gov
  • https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04377789
  • https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32319538/
  • https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7202847/

Next week, I will let you know what else you can do prophylactically to protect yourself from Covid 19 as you emerge from quarantine.

Have an awesome day. Dr. D