Coronavirus COVID-19 - Global Health Pandemic #110

[anneg]

This recent article is about Vitamin D and Covid. BBM

Association between vitamin D supplementation and COVID-19 infection and mortality - Scientific Reports

Vitamin D deficiency has long been associated with reduced immune function that can lead to viral infection. Several studies have shown that Vitamin D deficiency is associated with increases the risk of infection with COVID-19. However, it is unknown if treatment with Vitamin D can reduce the...

www.nature.com

Published: 12 November 2022

Association between vitamin D supplementation and COVID-19 infection and mortality

Jason B. Gibbons, Edward C. Norton, Jeffrey S. McCullough, David O. Meltzer, Jill Lavigne, Virginia C. Fiedler & Robert D. Gibbons
Scientific Reports volume 12, Article number: 19397 (2022)

Abstract
Vitamin D deficiency has long been associated with reduced immune function that can lead to viral infection. Several studies have shown that Vitamin D deficiency is associated with [word missing, I think "and" should be here] increases the risk of infection with COVID-19. However, it is unknown if treatment with Vitamin D can reduce the associated risk of COVID-19 infection, which is the focus of this study. In the population of US veterans, we show that Vitamin D2 and D3 fills were associated with reductions in COVID-19 infection of 28% and 20%, respectively [(D3 Hazard Ratio (HR) = 0.80, [95% CI 0.77, 0.83]), D2 HR = 0.72, [95% CI 0.65, 0.79]]. Mortality within 30-days of COVID-19 infection was similarly 33% lower with Vitamin D3 and 25% lower with D2 (D3 HR = 0.67, [95% CI 0.59, 0.75]; D2 HR = 0.75, [95% CI 0.55, 1.04]). We also find that after controlling for vitamin D blood levels, veterans receiving higher dosages of Vitamin D obtained greater benefits from supplementation than veterans receiving lower dosages. Veterans with Vitamin D blood levels between 0 and 19 ng/ml exhibited the largest decrease in COVID-19 infection following supplementation. Black veterans received greater associated COVID-19 risk reductions with supplementation than White veterans. As a safe, widely available, and affordable treatment, Vitamin D may help to reduce the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

[anneg]

Does anyone on this thread take a vitamin K2 supplement? I get vitamin K in my multivitamin, but not K2, which acts differently in the body. From my reading about it online, it sounds like an important vitamin, especially for older people like me, to take along with vitamin D (D3) to support heart and bone health and help fight infections.

Everything You Need to Know About the Vitamin K2

Vitamin K was initially discovered as a nutrient involved in blood clotting. There are two forms: K1 (in plant foods) and K2 (in animal and fermented foods).

www.healthline.com

Vitamin K2​

This is a detailed article about vitamin K2, an incredibly important nutrient that may have important health benefits.

How do vitamins K1 and K2 work?​

Vitamin K activates proteins that play a role in blood clotting, calcium metabolism, and heart health.

One of its most important functions is to regulate calcium deposition. In other words, it promotes the calcification of bones and prevents the calcification of blood vessels and kidneys (3Trusted Source).

Some scientists have suggested that the roles of vitamins K1 and K2 are quite different, and many feel that they should be classified as separate nutrients altogether.

In controlled studies in people, researchers have also observed that vitamin K2 supplements generally improve bone and heart health, while vitamin K1 has no significant benefits (4Trusted Source).

However, more human studies are needed before the functional differences between vitamins K1 and K2 can be fully understood.

(You can get vitamin K2 from high fat dairy products, egg yolk, liver, and fermented foods, such as sauerkraut.)

[...]

The bottom line​

Vitamin K is a group of nutrients divided into vitamins K1 and K2.

Vitamin K1 is involved in blood coagulation, and vitamin K2 benefits bone and heart health. However, more studies on the roles of vitamin K subtypes are needed.

Some scientists are convinced that people at risk of heart disease should regularly use vitamin K2 supplements. Others point out that more studies are needed before any solid recommendations can be made.

However, it’s clear that vitamin K plays an essential role in body function.

To maintain good health, make sure to get adequate amounts of vitamins K1 and K2 through your diet.

 

[Sundog]

Does anyone on this thread take a vitamin K2 supplement? I get vitamin K in my multivitamin, but not K2, which acts differently in the body. From my reading about it online, it sounds like an important vitamin, especially for older people like me, to take along with vitamin D (D3) to support heart and bone health and help fight infections.

Everything You Need to Know About the Vitamin K2

Vitamin K was initially discovered as a nutrient involved in blood clotting. There are two forms: K1 (in plant foods) and K2 (in animal and fermented foods).

www.healthline.com

Vitamin K2​

This is a detailed article about vitamin K2, an incredibly important nutrient that may have important health benefits.

How do vitamins K1 and K2 work?​

Vitamin K activates proteins that play a role in blood clotting, calcium metabolism, and heart health.

One of its most important functions is to regulate calcium deposition. In other words, it promotes the calcification of bones and prevents the calcification of blood vessels and kidneys (3Trusted Source).

Some scientists have suggested that the roles of vitamins K1 and K2 are quite different, and many feel that they should be classified as separate nutrients altogether.

In controlled studies in people, researchers have also observed that vitamin K2 supplements generally improve bone and heart health, while vitamin K1 has no significant benefits (4Trusted Source).

However, more human studies are needed before the functional differences between vitamins K1 and K2 can be fully understood.

(You can get vitamin K2 from high fat dairy products, egg yolk, liver, and fermented foods, such as sauerkraut.)

[...]

The bottom line​

Vitamin K is a group of nutrients divided into vitamins K1 and K2.

Vitamin K1 is involved in blood coagulation, and vitamin K2 benefits bone and heart health. However, more studies on the roles of vitamin K subtypes are needed.

Some scientists are convinced that people at risk of heart disease should regularly use vitamin K2 supplements. Others point out that more studies are needed before any solid recommendations can be made.

However, it’s clear that vitamin K plays an essential role in body function.

To maintain good health, make sure to get adequate amounts of vitamins K1 and K2 through your diet.

I will have to check to see what is included in my daily vitamin supplement, also what foods are rich in K1 and K2, and also check to see if they are safe to take with the medications I take. Thanks for the information.

 

[Lilibet]

Does anyone on this thread take a vitamin K2 supplement? I get vitamin K in my multivitamin, but not K2, which acts differently in the body. From my reading about it online, it sounds like an important vitamin, especially for older people like me, to take along with vitamin D (D3) to support heart and bone health and help fight infections.

Everything You Need to Know About the Vitamin K2

Vitamin K was initially discovered as a nutrient involved in blood clotting. There are two forms: K1 (in plant foods) and K2 (in animal and fermented foods).

www.healthline.com

Vitamin K2​

This is a detailed article about vitamin K2, an incredibly important nutrient that may have important health benefits.

How do vitamins K1 and K2 work?​

Vitamin K activates proteins that play a role in blood clotting, calcium metabolism, and heart health.

One of its most important functions is to regulate calcium deposition. In other words, it promotes the calcification of bones and prevents the calcification of blood vessels and kidneys (3Trusted Source).

Some scientists have suggested that the roles of vitamins K1 and K2 are quite different, and many feel that they should be classified as separate nutrients altogether.

In controlled studies in people, researchers have also observed that vitamin K2 supplements generally improve bone and heart health, while vitamin K1 has no significant benefits (4Trusted Source).

However, more human studies are needed before the functional differences between vitamins K1 and K2 can be fully understood.

(You can get vitamin K2 from high fat dairy products, egg yolk, liver, and fermented foods, such as sauerkraut.)

[...]

The bottom line​

Vitamin K is a group of nutrients divided into vitamins K1 and K2.

Vitamin K1 is involved in blood coagulation, and vitamin K2 benefits bone and heart health. However, more studies on the roles of vitamin K subtypes are needed.

Some scientists are convinced that people at risk of heart disease should regularly use vitamin K2 supplements. Others point out that more studies are needed before any solid recommendations can be made.

However, it’s clear that vitamin K plays an essential role in body function.

To maintain good health, make sure to get adequate amounts of vitamins K1 and K2 through your diet.

Thanks! Very interesting.

 

[ilovewings]

I'm pretty much a homebody and won't mind staying in our stateroom (or sitting on the balcony), watching TV/movies, or reading and doing word puzzles. I don't require constant activity or entertainment and don't mind being a happy hermit. DH is more extroverted and will probably want to participate in shipboard activities. I won't mind as long as he makes an effort to social distance and avoid folks who might be sick. Neither of us wants to get sick and will do whatever is necessary to stay well.

Did you and DH get your bivalent shots on Wednesday? I think we got our third booster around the same time but I am going to wait a month or so before I get the bivalent. I hope you and DH had no severe side effects from the shot.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Did you and DH get your bivalent shots on Wednesday? I think we got our third booster around the same time but I am going to wait a month or so before I get the bivalent. I hope you and DH had no severe side effects from the shot.

Yes, we got our Pfizer bivalent shots at Rite Aid on Wednesday. My arm was a little sore for a couple of days, but I was fine otherwise. DH woke up in the wee hours Thursday with chills and a low-grade fever. He took Tylenol a few times for the next day or two and slept quite a bit. He missed a couple of swims but went today. Cases of flu and RSV in older adults appear to be increasing. We all need to do our best to stay well.

 

[Sundog]

A friend and former colleague of mine sent me an email a few days ago telling me that she went to San Antonio recently to join her husband who had to go there for a conference. The weather was great, she said, and she spent a few days on the River Walk and exploring the area. On the last evening she started feeling unwell. On the flight home she started shaking, she felt really cold. She thought she had the flu, but it turned out to be Covid. Her husband nursed her, but after a few days, as she was starting to feel better, he started having the same symptoms she had. He tested negative twice at home but since he was so sick he went to a pharmacy and got tested. They tested him for both flu and Covid. He tested negative for both. But since he was so sick, they sent another sample in for further testing. This time it came back positive for Covid. Then their physician gave them both Paxlovid (they are both over 65) and within 2-3 days they were fine.

Both of them had the initial two-series vaccine, then the first booster, but probably not the most recent bivalent booster.

 

[anneg]

A friend and former colleague of mine sent me an email a few days ago telling me that she went to San Antonio recently to join her husband who had to go there for a conference. The weather was great, she said, and she spent a few days on the River Walk and exploring the area. On the last evening she started feeling unwell. On the flight home she started shaking, she felt really cold. She thought she had the flu, but it turned out to be Covid. Her husband nursed her, but after a few days, as she was starting to feel better, he started having the same symptoms she had. He tested negative twice at home but since he was so sick he went to a pharmacy and got tested. They tested him for both flu and Covid. He tested negative for both. But since he was so sick, they sent another sample in for further testing. This time it came back positive for Covid. Then their physician gave them both Paxlovid (they are both over 65) and within 2-3 days they were fine.

Both of them had the initial two-series vaccine, then the first booster, but probably not the most recent bivalent booster.

Those boosters are important! (IMO) Glad to hear that Paxlovid helped them recover.

 

[anneg]

Re Vitamin K2, here is an in-depth article that's mostly over my head, but shows that the K vitamins are rather complex (isn't everything?) and important. Excerpt below, MUCH more at link! BBM.

Vitamin K

Contents Summary Function Vitamin K redox cycle Coagulation Skeletal formation and prevention of soft tissue calcification Regulation of cellular functions Deficiency Adults Infan

lpi.oregonstate.edu

Summary​

• Naturally occurring forms of vitamin K include phylloquinone (vitamin K1) and a family of molecules called menaquinones (MKs or vitamin K2). (More information)
• With limited vitamin K storage capacity, the body recycles vitamin K in the vitamin K oxidation-reduction cycle in order to reuse it multiple times. (More information)
• Vitamin K is the essential cofactor for the carboxylation of glutamic acid residues in many vitamin K-dependent proteins (VKDPs) that are involved in blood coagulation, bone metabolism, prevention of vessel mineralization, and regulation of various cellular functions. (More information)
• Vitamin K deficiency increases the risk of excessive bleeding (hemorrhage). An injection of vitamin K is recommended to protect all newborns from life-threatening bleeding within the skull. (More information)
• The adequate intake (AI) level for vitamin K is set at 90 μg/day for women and 120 μg/day for men. (More information)
• Vitamin K deficiency may impair the activity of VKDPs and increase the risk of osteoporosis and fractures. Some, but not all, observational studies have found lower vitamin K status to be associated with lower bone mineral density and higher fracture incidence. Overall, intervention trials have been inconclusive regarding the role of supplemental vitamin K (vitamin K1 or vitamin K2) in further reducing bone loss in otherwise calcium- and vitamin D-replete adults. (More information)
• Abnormal mineralization of blood vessels increases with age and is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Vitamin K inadequacy may inactivate several VKDPs that inhibit the formation of calcium precipitates in vessels. There is only limited evidence of a benefit of supplemental vitamin K in the prevention of vessel calcification and cardiovascular events. (More information)
• While the results of a few observational studies suggest that low vitamin K status might have a role in development of osteoarthritis, randomized controlled trials are needed. (More information)
• Phylloquinone is found at high concentrations in green leafy vegetables and certain plant oils, while most menaquinones are usually found in cheese, animal products, and certain fermented foods. (More information)
• Several drugs, including vitamin K antagonists (e.g., warfarin), are known to interfere with vitamin K absorption and metabolism. (More information)

NOTE:

Supplements​

In the US, both phylloquinone and menaquinones are available without a prescription in multivitamin, single-nutrient, or multiple-nutrient supplements in varying doses; vitamin K content of multivitamins typically range from 20 to 120 μg per tablet (128). The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not authorized any health claims for any forms of vitamin K.

 

[ilovewings]

How monoclonal antibodies lost the fight with new COVID variants

The treatments were highly popular earlier in the pandemic. One by one, they got knocked out by more convenient, less expensive treatment options, and new COVID variants.

www.npr.org

 

[mewmew]

I am back to work today after having COVID for the first time. It hit me out of nowhere - last Sunday I was fine and doing my normal activities, Monday I felt exhausted and tested positive, and by Monday night I was writhing on the floor in pain and contemplating going to the hospital! I was able to avoid hospital by covering myself in ice packs to get some relief. A week later I am feeling strong enough to attempt a work day! I unfortunately didn’t have success with Paxlovid - I had a rather violent reaction to it, with some pretty severe vomiting. I stopped after two doses. I will say my last covid booster was nearly a year ago. Anyway that’s my experience. Heading to work!

 

[Sundog]

I am back to work today after having COVID for the first time. It hit me out of nowhere - last Sunday I was fine and doing my normal activities, Monday I felt exhausted and tested positive, and by Monday night I was writhing on the floor in pain and contemplating going to the hospital! I was able to avoid hospital by covering myself in ice packs to get some relief. A week later I am feeling strong enough to attempt a work day! I unfortunately didn’t have success with Paxlovid - I had a rather violent reaction to it, with some pretty severe vomiting. I stopped after two doses. I will say my last covid booster was nearly a year ago. Anyway that’s my experience. Heading to work!

I'm so sorry to hear how sick you have been, and do hope that you take care of yourself as you return to work and continue to recover and gain back your strength.

 

[Lilibet]

Because, it's a Novel Corona Virus, which means we are facing this for first time. Moreover no known medication for this is available and vaccines are also currently not available. So to keep this disease from spreading to everyone, emergency is declared. Thus more number of healthcare professionals can be concetrated and isolation facilities can be used on a priority basis for this disease. Coronavirus

@maria17anns Are you referring to 2020??

 

[ilovewings]

@maria17anns Are you referring to 2020??

I was thinking this post was sort of out of left field- good question

 

[acutename]

you all were a big boost to my mental health when I had COVID around 11/5...
I had a low grade fever for 3-4 days- tested positive on home and drive through PCR tests. I had a sinus head ache and a runny nose, but I was not terribly sick- home test was negative by 11/11 and I do not think I have any long term effects. I did have (count them) 5 vaccines. Good luck to anyone else who gets this.

 

[Lilibet]

you all were a big boost to my mental health when I had COVID around 11/5...
I had a low grade fever for 3-4 days- tested positive on home and drive through PCR tests. I had a sinus head ache and a runny nose, but I was not terribly sick- home test was negative by 11/11 and I do not think I have any long term effects. I did have (count them) 5 vaccines. Good luck to anyone else who gets this.

So glad you’re feeling better @acutename. A teacher friend of ours in her 20’s has been very sick with covid. I’m sure she’s vaxxed, but a few of our friends have had their first bout of covid shortly before getting the bivalent booster. My dh and I continue to be very careful since it seems to be making the rounds. There’s also a very bad cold circulating as well as RSV, not just for kiddos. It’s a jungle out there!

 

[Lilibet]

I am back to work today after having COVID for the first time. It hit me out of nowhere - last Sunday I was fine and doing my normal activities, Monday I felt exhausted and tested positive, and by Monday night I was writhing on the floor in pain and contemplating going to the hospital! I was able to avoid hospital by covering myself in ice packs to get some relief. A week later I am feeling strong enough to attempt a work day! I unfortunately didn’t have success with Paxlovid - I had a rather violent reaction to it, with some pretty severe vomiting. I stopped after two doses. I will say my last covid booster was nearly a year ago. Anyway that’s my experience. Heading to work!

I’m glad to hear you’re feeling better @mewmew. It sounds like you had a hum-dinger of a case! Wow! Take it slow and easy as you recover.

 

[mewmew]

I'm so sorry to hear how sick you have been, and do hope that you take care of yourself as you return to work and continue to recover and gain back your strength.

I’m glad to hear you’re feeling better @mewmew. It sounds like you had a hum-dinger of a case! Wow! Take it slow and easy as you recover.

Thank you both so very much! My first day back was great. I am tired but it was so nice to be back out in society, and I started my day off with my favorite patient - so it was a wonderful way to ease back into work! I will continue to take it easy these next couple of days….then I am off to Mexico take care all, and stay healthy and safe!!

 

[sds71]

"I managed to not get Covid for so long, do you know how I got Covid - because they stopped wearing masks. And do you know where I got Covid, from a nurse!"

Sharon Stone reveals unlucky outcome following doctor's visit

Sharon Stone took to Instagram to reveal an unfortunate outcome from her doctor's visit involving her health

www.hellomagazine.com

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

New Covid boosters work better against infection than previous shots, CDC finds

The omicron booster shots performed better in preventing infections in all adult age groups, with more protection for people who waited longer to get them.

www.nbcnews.com

The first real-world data on the new omicron vaccines find that they are better at preventing symptomatic Covid infections than the earlier doses, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday.

The findings fortify messaging from public health officials that the new shots, from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, should provide people with the best protection against Covid this winter, according to the CDC report.

Both Pfizer’s and Moderna’s new boosters target BA.4 and BA.5, along with the original coronavirus strain, in a single dose.

The vaccine efficacy from the new boosters isn't "stellar," said Dr. Ofer Levy, the director of the Precision Vaccines Program at Boston Children’s Hospital, noting that scientists would love to see a vaccine that blocks infections entirely.

But, he said, it is "something" and outperforms earlier doses of the original formulation...