At One Life Health and Performance in Palm Beach Gardens, FL, we offer IV therapies to meet every need and make your one life a healthy one. Unfortunately, the world is full of viral diseases, bacterial infections, and other potentially life-threatening illnesses. Can vitamin C therapy help in preventing or treating the novel coronavirus?
Can Vitamin C Therapy Prevent the Novel Coronavirus?
The novel coronavirus was only transmitted to humans towards the end of 2019. In fact, while the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission reported a cluster of pneumonia cases to the World Health Organization on December 31, 2019, the novel coronavirus wasn’t even identified until 2020. For this reason, there is not enough research to suggest that vitamin C therapy can prevent the novel coronavirus.
Other Benefits of Vitamin C Intravenous Therapy
While we don’t know a lot about COVID-19, we have decades of research on the powerful benefits of vitamin C for the treatment of other respiratory illnesses. Vitamin C has been proven to prevent other respiratory illnesses by helping your immune system operate at maximum efficiency.
As importantly, vitamin C supplementation, in conjunction with zinc supplementation, has been proven to speed recovery from other respiratory illnesses and ease symptoms as your body heals itself. There is no evidence to suggest that this coronavirus is different than any other respiratory illness in this regard, therefore, it is reasonable to conclude that vitamin C IV therapy will treat COVID-19.
Treating the Novel Coronavirus
While there is no conclusive research yet regarding the prevention of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, there is promising research that vitamin C therapy can effectively treat COVID-19. Vitamin C is a micronutrient known to minimize inflammation by suppressing cytokines in the tiny air sacs in the lungs, inflaming them and making the oxygenation of blood difficult.
The abundant presence of cytokines is why so many people need to be put on ventilators with pressurized oxygen helping them breathe. They are essentially suffocating because oxygen can’t pass through the porous membranes within the lungs. Vitamin C intravenous therapy may reduce inflammation in the lungs enough that people with COVID-19 may not need to be put on a respirator.
What to Expect During IV Therapy
Immediate Benefits
Whether you are seeking IV therapy to boost your immune system, rev your metabolism or cure dehydration, you can expect the benefits of treatment immediately. When you take oral supplements, up to 90% of the nutrients cannot be absorbed by your body. With IV therapy, your body can use 100% of the micronutrients because it is injected directly into your bloodstream, bypassing your GI tract completely.
It can take time for the final effects of micronutrient supplementation to take effect. For example, your immune system will not be operating at 100% efficiency as soon as the therapy starts. However, you will feel happier and healthier immediately as a result of your body being properly hydrated.
A Calmer Mind
Receiving IV therapy at One Life Health and Performance in Palm Beach Gardens, FL is nothing like receiving an IV drip at a hospital. We use the same medical-grade equipment found at hospitals. However, we are set apart by the calm, relaxing environment we provide.
If you’re worried about needles, ask your PCP if you can take a mild sedative if someone drives you to your appointment. You may also have calming music playing during your treatment, and a loved one may be in the room with you to help ease your anxiety. If you’re worried about feeling the insertion of the needle, ask us during your initial consultation about numbing the injection site so you don’t feel it.
Convenience
IV therapy is incredibly convenient. Depending on your unique needs, your treatment session may take between 20 minutes and an hour, which is a small price to pay to mitigate your risk of catching a potentially fatal viral disease. Furthermore, COVID-19 has not existed long enough for anyone to know the long-term effects of the disease in survivors.
If you are in a high-risk category of developing a severe case of the illness, you may have severe respiratory and cognitive problems for the rest of your life unless you bolster your immune system and lose weight if you are obese.
Lasting Benefits
If you are at a high risk of developing a severe case of COVID-19, you should come in for vitamin C therapy weekly. This ensures that your immune system continues to operate as efficiently as possible without lapsing. You do not need to receive an IV drip every day to mitigate your risk of falling ill. Similarly, our weight loss IV therapy keeps your metabolism revved for up to a month.
Do I Have COVID-19?
COVID-19 shares numerous symptoms with other viral infections and respiratory illnesses. Therefore, the only way to know if you have COVID-19 is to be tested. If you have a fever of 100.4 or greater and experience other symptoms associated with COVID-19, stay home. If you need groceries, toiletries, or pharmacy products, have them delivered to your home and left on your doorstep.
Testing and diagnosis are absolutely crucial because the viral disease is so communicable. With an incubation period of up to 14 days, you may be asymptomatic and pass it on to a high-risk individual before you even feel ill. If you’re not self-quarantining, do your best to at least avoid high-risk individuals. At the very least, this will mitigate the risk of your loved ones falling seriously ill.
Symptoms of COVID-19
Symptoms of COVID-19 may appear within 48 hours of contracting the viral disease. However, they can take up to two weeks to appear after exposure. Mild-to-moderate symptoms of COVID-19 include fever or chills, cough, muscle or body aches, headache, and sore throat. Gastrointestinal symptoms of the viral disease include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and fatigue.
Other mild-to-moderate symptoms include a new loss of smell or taste and tension headaches. Severe symptoms of COVID-19 include severe, rapid cognitive decline, chest pain or pressure, difficulty breathing or shortness of breath, hypersomnia and blue lips, or a blue face. If you have any of the aforementioned severe signs, even if you don’t have a fever yet, ask your doctor where you can be tested for COVID-19.
At-Risk Individuals
Individuals who are at risk of developing serious side effects of COVID-19 are individuals with pre-existing medical conditions that make them susceptible to illness. The most prevalent comorbidities in Florida are age, obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. While we haven’t had a long time to research COVID-19, with nations around the world reporting their statistics, we have a reasonable sample size to extrapolate data and determine high-risk categories.
Age
The highest risk factor of having a severe case of COVID-19 is age. If you are 65 or older, you are in the highest risk category and should quarantine yourself. Have all of the food, beverage, and household items you need delivered to your home.
If you want to eat out, have food delivered to you, and have the delivery driver leave the food on your doorstep. If you can’t afford to have your needs delivered to your home, ask a friend or relative to shop for you, and leave your required items outside. If you need to get out of the house, do your best to stay outside and far from other people.
Obesity
Obesity may be the most prevalent comorbidity the nation faces. If you are obese, you should take the same precautions that senior citizens must take to prevent catching COVID-19. If you are not yet 65, you can also mitigate your risk of catching a severe case of COVID-19 by losing weight. If you need help to lose weight, ask your PCP for a referral to a licensed nutritionist and physical trainer.
To speed up your weight loss safely and effectively, we offer Lean Life, an IV therapy designed to increase your basal metabolic rate, boost your fat metabolism and give you energy, motivation, and mental clarity you haven’t had in years. If the thought of weight loss overwhelms you, know that you don’t have to get to a “normal” BMI to protect your health. You just need to get to an “overweight” BMI.
Diabetes
If you have type 2 diabetes, follow all protocols recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). These include such precautionary measures as social distancing and wearing a mask in public. In case of the insulin supply chain being disrupted, you may want to consider adjusting your body to ketosis and going on a no-carb or very low-carb diet to eliminate or minimize your body’s dependence on insulin.
Ketosis is a state that exists when your body runs out of glucose to burn for fuel and switches to burning fat. This state can take anywhere from 12 to 72 hours to achieve depending on your previous level of carb intake. If you choose to fast to achieve ketosis faster, hydration is more important than normal because you usually get a lot of water from food. To stay hydrated, you could benefit greatly from our Recovered Life IV therapy.
Poor Immune System
If you are immunocompromised, you are at a higher risk of catching any illness. If you can afford it, quarantine yourself rather than going to work. If you can’t afford to take time off from work, receive our Immune Life IV therapy weekly to keep your immune system running as efficiently as possible.
What to Do if a Member of Your Household Is Ill
If a member of your household is ill, quarantine the individual as well as you can. If possible, allocate one restroom and bedroom to the sick individual. If this is not possible, have the ill individual wipe down all regularly touched surfaces frequently with Lysol or Clorox wipes. Once the surfaces have been cleaned, the antibacterial wipes should be thrown away in the outdoor garbage can.
Care
If you have an ill household member who cannot care for him or herself, wear an N95 mask and medical gloves when you care for him or her. Dispose of the mask and gloves in an outdoor garbage can when you are done caring for the ill member of your household. Make sure he or she stays hydrated, eats nutritious food, and gets as much rest as possible.
Shared Items
If you or another member of your household is ill, do not share dishes, such as glasses, plates, forks, and spoons. When the sick individual is done eating or drinking, he or she should run his or her dishes through the dishwasher. Dishwashers are more effective at preventing the spread of illness because the water gets hot enough to kill viruses and bacteria.
How to Mitigate Your Risk of Catching COVID-19
To mitigate your risk of catching COVID-19, follow the personal hygiene protocol you probably already follow during cold and flu season. Stay a minimum of six feet away from other individuals when you go out. This is particularly important when you are indoors. You should also wear an N95 mask whenever you leave the house.
If you are a high-risk individual, you should wear a mask indoors and outdoors even if doing so is not required by local law. Wearing an N95 mask is important because most other types of masks only prevent other people from spreading illnesses to you. The FDA has approved very few types of masks for preventing the wearer from catching COVID-19.
Follow Proper Hand-Washing Protocol
Washing your hands regularly and effectively is crucial to mitigate your risk of catching COVID-19. Wash your hands for a minimum of 30 seconds using hot water and soap. When you wash your hands, make sure you scrub the backs of your hands and beneath your fingernails rather than just your palms. Be sure to get between your fingers, too.
Don’t Touch Your Face
Make a concerted effort to not touch your face before you wash your hands. While respiratory diseases usually are transmitted via aerosol droplets in the air, they can be transmitted to surfaces when the droplets fall or someone coughs into his or her hand or handkerchief and then touches something that you then touch.
If you touch your face frequently to brush your hair out of your eyes, wear your hair up when you go outside. If you catch yourself touching your face before you wash your hands, make a mental note and do your best to remember better in the future. There is no way to be completely safe from any illness. However, making a concerted effort to mitigate your risk of infection will go a long way.
Protect Yourself From Viral Infections Today
With no way of knowing the long-term effects of the novel coronavirus, taking every step you can to mitigate the risk of catching the viral disease is crucial. For more information on vitamin C therapy and how it may help to prevent or treat Coronavirus, please contact us today at One Life Health and Performance in Palm Beach Gardens, FL to schedule your initial consultation.
