General Wellness

The vaccine roll out has been problematic, disorganized, slow and asymmetric. Because public health and vaccines are controlled at the State level, there are as many vaccine distribution plans as there are States. This is frustrating for many people since, although our Constitution  states that “all men are created equal”, it certainly doesn’t seem that way. In some states, relatively young and healthy people are getting vaccinated while in others, elderly with many medical problems are still waiting. In some states, the spouses of healthcare and other essential workers are eligible for the vaccine, while in most others, they are not. There are many examples, but this is how our government was set up. State and Federal.

All that having been said, we are heading in the right direction. More people are getting vaccinated daily than are getting infected by SARS-Cov-2. The scales are slowly tipping in the right direction.

The very fact that we even have a vaccine, introduced less than a year after the virus was discovered, is pretty amazing. We have 2, very safe and very effective ones out now (Pfizer and Moderna). 95% effectiveness at preventing symptomatic cases of Covid-19 is unheard of in the history of vaccines. They do have some issues, both requiring 2 doses to reach those levels of protection and their transport and storage requirements are challenging, but it’s still amazing. 

A third vaccine, from Johnson & Johnson, is also on the horizon. Although on the surface appearing less effective, only 66% effective at preventing symptomatic disease, it is still 85% effective at preventing hospitalizations and death. This far surpasses the typical flu vaccine (averaging 40-60% effectiveness). 

There are also a number of other issues to look at when comparing these vaccines. The J&J vaccine was tested later in the pandemic, at a time when there was much more disease and the more transmissible variants were already on the scene. Secondly, the J&J vaccine was tested in areas like Brazil and S. Africa, where these variants were actually the predominant one already. We don’t have all the data but one might argue that it is better to get the J&J vaccine over the others because of the ability to cover all the variants which are on a rapid rise all over the world, including here in the US. Although the Pfizer vaccine does appear to have some, but less, protection against the more aggressive variants, the Moderna vaccine, in early small studies, seems to be much less effective. 

In addition, there are some real advantages to the J&J vaccine. It is only one dose and it’s storage and transport needs are much simpler. All you need is basically a regular fridge.

In these three vaccine studies combined, there were 58,000 people who actually received the vaccine, half of all the participants. Not one of those 58,000 people died and the vast majority of those who ended up getting sick, requiring hospitalizations, were those who received the placebo.

Essentially, the vaccine saved over 100 deaths in the trials. And that is with only 58,000 people. So far, 52 million doses have been given in the US and 172 million worldwide. That’s potentially 100,000 Americans saved and 300,000 worldwide at this point in time. In addition, think of all the fewer hospitalizations, time away from work and family, illness acutely and chronically. To say that vaccination is risky and questionable is lunacy.

All of this is wonderful and we should be excited about the vaccine. Just think about how much of the misery we have experienced as a species we could have avoided if we were better at behaving responsibly, wearing masks and doing all the other things which we know are helpful.

But lamenting the past will get us nowhere. We must move forward, and vaccination, along with CONTINUED protection, vaccinated or not, is the key if we are to rid ourselves of this virus or return to some degree of pre-Covid normalcy. There will, or at least should, be a new normal. The way we were living is how we got here in the first place and we MUST change, but let’s get over this pandemic first as best as we can.

Stay Safe and BE Well

AC

New Covid Complication – Diabetes

We know that the SARS-Cov-2 virus binds to receptors known as ACE-2 receptors, which, when turned or, activate enzymatic pathways which help control, among other things, blood pressure. The virus variants which are concerning everyone bind to these receptors more tightly which is partly why they are up to 2-3x more infectious than the original, called the “wild-type”.

These receptors are all over our bodies and on the surface of many organs, including the eyes, lungs, kidneys, hearts and brain. As a result, long term, even delayed, organ damage is being seen, even in some who had no or mild symptoms. Some of the known long term side effects include:

• Obviously lung damage, in some cases necessitating lung transplant.
• Heart problems including arrhythmias and heart attacks.
• Kidney damage, even leading to kidney failure.
• Neurological problems like memory, sleep and concentration issues
• Psychiatric issues like depression, anxiety and mood change.
• Gastrointestinal problems.

We’ve known that Diabetes is a significant risk factor for contracting the virus and having a more severe bout of Covid-19, whether your blood sugars are well controlled or not. The worse your control, the greater the chances so better control is still preferable. And as many as 30% of Americans already have, or are unaware they have diabetes, or pre-diabetes. Most of these cases are Type 2, previously called Adult Onset Diabetes and is almost 100% related to poor diet and lifestyle choices. This form is also almost always reversible. It is no longer called Adult Onset because we are seeing in in kids, even pre-teens since 20% of the are already obese, not just overweight. Type 1, previously called Juvenile Diabetes since it mosty started in childhood, often linked to cow’s milk consumption (hapless plug), is for the most part an autoimmune form in which the body misrecognizes the beta cells in the pancreas, the ones which make insulin, as foreign, attacks and kills them so those patients must inject insulin for the rest of their lives since you can’t live without insulin.

Now, studies are showing that diabetes is a significant short and long term complication of Covid-19. Studies from China, Europe and the US show that almost 15% of hospitalized, 47-65 year old Covid patients develop new diabetes during their infections or soon afterwards.

Any infection can reveal an underlying, yet undiagnosed case of diabetes and Covid has certainly done so as well. More concerning is that the SARS-Cov-2 virus seems to attack the pancreatic beta cells directly, causing them to die, resulting in an inability to make insulin, leading to type 1 diabetes. These cells do NOT regrow so this is a permanent situation whereas Type 2 can be almost always reversed if one improves their lifestyle and diet.

In addition, the virus impacts the liver’s ability to process sugar leading to Insulin Resistance (IR), the fundamental problem with diabetes. IR results in insulin’s inability to process sugar or work on the liver. As a result, the pancreas tries to pump out more insulin. High levels of insulin are not good for a variety of reasons.

I could go on and on about the pathophysiology of diabetes but let’s just say that there are many mechanisms by which Covid causes diabetes.

I have a personal interest in diabetes as I was diagnosed with an autoimmune form of it almost 6 years ago, which launched me into the nutrition and wellness world. I have a form called Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adulthood (LADA for short) and is categorized as Type 1.5 since it is a mixture of type 1 and 2. Although in many cases, it is first misdiagnosed as Type 2, it really is more like Type 1 in that the pancreatic islet cells are attacked and destroyed and everything I’ve read indicates that 100% of people with this diagnosis end up on insulin once their beta cells are all destroyed. As for me, I am not on insulin yet, nor do I take any prescription medication. When first diagnosed, I was on an oral drug and Insulin was offered as a way of protecting my pancreas but I took a more natural route. I take a slot of natural supplements mind you, but so far so good, so I’m not changing anything. If anyone is interested in my approach, email me at andrewchuma@gmail.com.

Yes most people who contract Covid-19 have a minimal or mild course, but many do not. There are many people who are starting to suffer long term complications and, as we know, there have been many deaths, nearing 500,000.

There is hope on the horizon. More people are getting vaccinated every day than are contracting covid so we are making headway.

In the meantime, please do all the things we know protect you and all those around you.

Stay Safe and Be Well.

AC