There is information overload regarding COVID with 24/7 news and social media posts bombarding us continuously. Many of us in lockdown, unable to tear ourselves away from all of the COVID hysteria, and the outside world feels like a much scarier place. This article is designed to give you some perspective and practical steps to be happier and healthier.
It is important to say from the outset that each death from COVID or other causes leads to much sadness and irrevocably changes people’s lives - this article is not intended to be flippant or cold to this sadness but simply to give perspective in the hope that more people can live with less fear and therefore more health and wellbeing.
1. HOW BAD ACTUALLY IS COVID19?
Coronavirus is not new – about 20% of common colds are caused by coronavirus. This is a novel variant of Coronavirus that we are learning about and the truth is that we are still gathering data. We cannot properly assess how dangerous COVID is until we know:
- How many people have actually been infected which requires mass testing of even the healthy population.
- How many people have actually died BECAUSE of COVID rather than those that have died from other conditions who would have died within a short time period anyway.
This data is a long way off but what we can be sure of is that those numbers shouted at us every day overexaggerates the mortality rate of this condition. This is because the reports consist of significantly lower than accurate numbers of people infected (we tend to only test people with severe symptoms) and most likely higher than accurate numbers of people who have died directly because of COVID19.
Estimates of actual mortality rate diverge wildly from 2% all the way to below 0.1%. The now-famous Dr Fauci (USA’s lead doctor in COVID policy) has suggested that the mortality rate may ultimately be more akin to severe seasonal influenza at around 0.1%. Whatever the actual figure, the key takeaway is that 98-99.9% of those infected will recover.
Every day many thousands of people sadly die. For example, every year between 300,000-600,000 people die from the flu (despite existing vaccinations). Even more distressing is that approximately 45,000 people die every day from cardiovascular diseases – you don’t see 24/7 news coverage advising us to take care of our cardiovascular system even though there are simple, natural ways to prevent and treat these diseases. If the objective is simply to save lives, then the media and political messaging should be different but perhaps CVD is not as sensational as an apocalyptic, killer, invisible virus?
TAKE AWAY: COVID19 is sadly killing people but the actual global mortality rate is still being determined and current estimates are that it certainly won’t be higher than 2% and may be lower than 0.1%. Be wary of non-evidence based statistics, modelling and media exaggeration in general.
2. WHAT CAUSES DEATH AND THE IMPORTANCE OF THE IMMUNE SYSTEM
How does COVID19 actually cause death? The respiratory damage which sadly causes people to die may not actually be caused by the virus, but the body’s immune reaction to the virus called a ‘Cytokine Storm. This is a matter for continued research but it is likely that a proportion of people dying are doing so because their immune system is attacking themselves in a desperate attempt to fight the virus. This is similar to other viral infections.
The way that it works is this – a weakened immune system has trouble fighting off an infection and resorts to an uncontrolled immune response, triggering the release of huge amounts of Cytokines which signal immune cells to attack the area ruthlessly. This causes damage to the lungs and ultimately the patient can no longer breathe. We want to avoid this Cytokine Storm (imagine a cluster bomb attack instead of a targeted one) and the only way to do this is to fortify the immune system to handle the virus without resorting to these desperate measures.
Everyone says that there is no cure for COVID19 but that is not true – your immune system is the cure – the vast majority of people infected will cure themselves using their immune response. But those who have weaker immune systems such as those with underlying conditions or the elderly must be careful and try to fortify their immune system to avoid this Cytokine Storm.
TOP TIPS FOR A FORTIFIED IMMUNE SYSTEM
Here is our advice but please do your own research (some useful academic studies are listed at the end of this article). I am not trying to monetise this pandemic - please read the important notes towards the end of the article.
This is a specially formulated blend of potent immunomodulating tisanes and extracts to balance and fortify immunity. It has been created by our team of Doctors based on classic Chinese formulations and the experience of the treatment of COVID19 from China. Please read IMPORTANT notes below about our decision to release this formulation.
L-Theanine and catechins in Green tea have potent immune-modulating actions. I recommend drinking a shot of Matcha every day and supplementing with other tea. We have placed Matcha, Imperial Green, Melon Seed Green and Jade Sword pouches all on sale to try to help you to increase your uptake of Green tea.
SLEEP
Your overall health and immune system need good sleep.
STAY HYDRATED
Drink plenty of tea and water.
OPTIMISE DIET
Fill up on whole foods and plant foods of all colours rich in phytonutrients.
SPICE UP YOUR COOKING
Use plenty of turmeric and black pepper in your foods.
SUPPLEMENT
We would recommend increasing your supplementation of vitamins A, C and D as well as Zinc tablets.
MEDICINAL MUSHROOMS
If you don't want to take the Pro-iM Restore tisane then at least look into getting some medicinal mushrooms rich in beta-glucans such as Reishi (which is in this formula) or Maitake or Cordyceps.
TAKE AWAY: Your immune system is the cure for COVID19 and it is highly possible that it is an impaired immune system rather than the virus itself which is causing severe illness and death by Cytokine Storm. Fortify your immune system as a priority.
3. FEAR – THE OTHER KILLER PANDEMIC
The most effective way to shut down your immune system is fear and anxiety. Our body is programmed to channel all energy into the ‘fight, flight or freeze’ response when faced with imminent danger – it will shut off your digestive system (causing butterflies in the stomach and poor digestion) and your immune system.
There is good reason for this – if our ancestors were faced with a sabre-tooth tiger, the last thing that they should direct energy to is fighting off bacteria or digesting foods. Once the encounter has been survived, then the body can rebalance energy to other bodily functions.
Stress is so successful at shutting down our immune system that people having transplant surgery are given stress hormones to stop the host immune system from attacking the ‘foreign’ organ.
The problem is that we are designed to encounter short bursts of life-threatening stress and long periods of relative calm. In the modern world, many of us are continuously under low to high stress, and this is causing so many of the contemporary stress-related conditions. BUT with all of the media hysteria regarding COVID, we have created a worldwide pandemic of socially reinforced fear which will ultimately lead to a globally impaired immune system and inevitably more deaths.
Social isolation is making everything a hundred times worse. Humans are social creatures, and when we are fearful or anxious, we often turn to others for support and reassurance. Lockdowns mean that we have lost the healing potency of human contact, instead, we spend even more time scaring ourselves with the news, and when we do talk with loved ones, their fear exacerbates the problem.
The good news is that love, peace and happiness change your blood chemistry to fortify your immune system. So follow these tips to reject the fear and stay healthy:
- GET PERSPECTIVE
Recognise that the media is taking full advantage of your fear and will create the most sensational headlines possible. Look past the headlines at the actual evidence-based data (see point 1) rather than being spoon-fed anxiety.
- TURN IT OFF
Sure, you want to stay updated but choose your sources and check in once a day and then TURN IT OFF. This is one of the best things that you can do to protect your immune system.
- MAINTAIN SOCIAL CONNECTIONS AND STOP TALKING ABOUT IT
Pick up the phone, call friends and family, re-kindle old friendships. It is vital to stay social. Conversations with loved ones should not be all consumed with COVID discussion. Try to make rules to talk about other things.
- POSITIVE, CALM & MINDFUL
It is so important to ACTIVELY bring yourself to a place of calm – this can be through breathing techniques, meditation, thinking about things that make your grateful, light exercise and sitting and spending a moment brewing some tea with your favourite, relaxing music or sounds.
TAKE AWAY: Fear is the biggest ally to the virus as it causes your immune system suppression. Reject fear by turning off the news and getting some perspective. Stay social, feel grateful and actively work on staying calm using any methods which work for you.
4. TREATMENTS FOR COVID19
The internet is awash with purported treatments for COVID, and it Is hard to know fact from fiction. However, it is important for doctors and medical professionals to be able to provide their opinions without fear of being banned or blocked by social platforms.
A lot of noise has been made about the anti-malarial drugs Hydrochloroquine and chloroquine and some counties have authorised it for treatments.
During the early 2020 outbreak in China, media reports that about 85% of patients were treated with Chinese Herbal Medicine. The most successful formula being recommended by China’s National Health Commission is a Lung Anti-inflammatory formulation called ‘Qing Fei Pai Du Tang’ (QFPDT). This formulation is a well-known medicine used traditionally in the Chinese medicine treatment of lung issues pneumonia, emphysema and bronchitis.
Some initial studies have been done in China. According to the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, QFPDT was used to treat 214 patients witrh COVID19 related pneumonia with a 90% success rate and other reports show positive results when GFPDT was given to 701 patients.
All of this requires more study and we hope that there will be more evidence to inform the public of potential benefits of QFPDT but the existing studies are listed at the end of this article.
Our AcuMedic doctors can prescribe a modified version of Qing Fei Pai Du Tang called LUNG NOURISHING FORMULA but ONLY after a one-to-one consultation. This can be done over the phone and you can arrange a consultation by emailing [email protected]. IMPORTANT: this is a lung tonic formulation and is traditionally used to dispel toxins and nourish the lungs – we are not claiming that this is a cure for COVID19.
Conavelsecent Serum Antibody treatments have been approved by the FDA for use in severe COVID cases under compassionate use. This therapy separates the blood plasma from somebody who has recovered from COVID which contains immune antibodies against this virus. The plasma is injected into patients suffering severe illness in the hope that the antibodies will help the patient fight off the disease more easily. Studies are ongoing.
TAKE AWAY: Lung tonifying herbal formulations have been used in China for many COVID patients and have had reported success. Anti-malarial drugs and Antibody treatments are being looked at as possible treatments.
IMPORTANT NOTES
I know that there will be a lot of people unhappy with the thought of anyone monetising a pandemic and there will be alarms that I am trying to say that herbal medicine can 'cure' or 'treat' this virus. I am 100% with you.
The herbal formulations mentioned in this article will NOT cure, treat, or prevent infection with COVID19 - YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM is the king here, it is what will fight off the virus and likely give you immunity.
The Pro-IM Restore formulation is a way to fortify your immune system in readiness.
The Lung Nourishing prescription is a tonic prescribed by our doctors on a case by case basis.
Below are all of the ingredients for you so that you can do your own research (I have included some links below) and you can buy these herbs from any other quality supplier. In fact, we would prefer to reserve our herb supply for our clinical patients as it is VERY difficult to get herbs from China recently due to the virus affecting logistics. So, if you have a local herbalist then you can buy up the herbs and boil them yourselves.
INGREDIENTS OF PRO-iM RESTORE
Radix Astragali – Astragalus – Huang Qi (20)
Herba Epimedii – Epimedium – Yin Yang Huo (15)
Rhizoma Liqustici Wallichii – Ligusticum Rhizome – Chuan Xiong (15)
Ganoderma Lucidum – Reishi – Ling Zhi (9)
Flos Lonicerae – Honeysuckle – Jin Yin Hua (9)
Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae – Atractylodes Rhizome – Cang Zhu (9)
Fructus Schisandrae - Chinese magnolia vine fruit – Wu Wei Zi (6)
Radix Glycyrrhizae – Liquorice – Gan Cao (6)
Radix Ledebouriellae – Ledebouriella Root – Fang Feng (6)
Radix Ophiopogonis - Ophiopogon Root – Mai Men Dong (6)
Radix Ginseng Americana – American Ginseng – Xi Yang Shen (3)
INGREDIENTS OF LUNG NOURISHING FORMULA (VARIATION OF QING FEI PAI DU TANG)
Radix Glycyrrhizae – Liquorice – Zhi Gan Cao
Sermon Armeniacae Amarum – Apricot Kernel - Xing Ren
Ramulus Cinnamomi – Cinnamon – Gui Zhi
Rhizoma Alismatis - Oriental Waterplantain Rhizome - Ze Xie
Polyporus Umbellatus – Polyporus - Zhu Ling
Atractylodis macrocephalae rhizome - Largehead Atractylodes Rhizome - Bai Zhu
Sclerotium Poriae Cocos - Poria - Fu Ling
Radix Bupleuri – Bupleurum Root - Chai Hu
Scutellaria Baicalensis – Scutellaria Root - Huang Qin
Rhizoma Pinelliae Preparata – Ginger processed Pinellia Tuber - Jiang Ban Xia
Rhizoma Zingiberis Recens - Ginger - Sheng Jiang
Radix Asteris – Purple Aster Root - Zi Wan
Tussilago farfara - Coltsfoot Flower - Kuan Dong Hua
Rhizoma Belamcandae - Belamcanda Rhizome - She Gan
Rhizoma Dioscoreae - Chinese Yam - Shan Yao
Fructus Aurantii Immaturus - Immature Bitter orange - Zhi Shi
Pericardium Citri Reticulatae - Dried Tangerine Peel - Chen Pi
Agastache rugosus – Patchouli - Huo Xiang
SOME USEFUL LINKS – THERE ARE MANY OTHERS IF YOU WANT TO DO MORE RESEARCH
TEA:
https://www.mdpi.com/2306-5710/2/2/13/htm
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18254876
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4772912/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6377763/
https://www.jimmunol.org/content/190/1_Supplement/61.10
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1567576917304423
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0012878
HERBS:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1319562X18301645
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19651243
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16230843
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20574926
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12916709
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16428086
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK92757/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19540939
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21213395
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10996289
http://en.cnki.com.cn/Article_en/CJFDTotal-YLBS403.010.htm
http://en.cnki.com.cn/Article_en/CJFDTotal-ZLYY200803010.htm
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1567576901000303
https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/8/9/563/htm
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ptr.3514
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6023478/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5758356/
https://www.hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2013/972814/
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0924224418302735
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0044848605004229
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3126757/
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228473512_Research_and_application_of_Radix_Glycyrrhizae
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnagi.2018.00348/full
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3746656/
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/1749-8546-2-3
http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0100-736X2016001201155
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264410X09002151
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3823765/
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12011-015-0351-2
https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/12/3/1991
http://altmedrev.com/archive/publications/3/5/338.pdf
https://www.nature.com/articles/cr2014130
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-10/nuso-pm092914.php
QING FEI PAI DU TANG
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7098036/
https://www.ijbs.com/v16p1708.htm
http://www.cjnmcpu.com/article/id/940f8146-828c-41ee-bcb4-e6488a8b8556
https://www.worldscientific.com/doi/abs/10.1142/S0192415X90000034
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31179723
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2854372
IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER:
We cannot make health claims about any food/drink products. We advise that you do your own research. You are responsible for your own health decisions and this should be done with proper research and in consultation with medical supervision. Any statements or products discussed in writing or in our videos are not intended to diagnose, treat, prevent or cure any disease. You should always seek and follow medical advice from your doctor.
