respiratory infection Archives - Amazing Health Advances

Echinacea, a Potent Antiviral Against SARS-CoV-2

AHA Publisher — Fri, 07 Jan 2022 08:00:43 +0000

Neha Mathur via News-Medical – In a recent study published on the medRxiv* preprint server, researchers present all available evidence on the in vivo activity of Echinacea purpure against coronavirus infections from randomized, blinded, and controlled human clinical studies. Since vaccination does not offer 100% protection against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the demand for antiviral preparations enhancing the immune defense for preventing SARS-CoV-2 infections remains high. Two previous studies have provided crucial evidence on the effectiveness of Echinacea preparations against viral infections, including SARS-CoV-2. Although its inhibiting effects do not always reach statistical significance for a particular virus, Echinacea purpurea (L.) shows antiviral activity against several enveloped viruses, including SARS-CoV-2 in both in vitro and in vivo physiological concentrations. About the Study In the current study, the researchers reviewed a total of 1,687 articles from PubMed and EMBASE databases. From these, two studies met the eligibility criteria and were, therefore, selected for the systematic review. During the initial screening, 988 articles were excluded and 58 more were further excluded, as they did not report respiratory tract or coronavirus infections. The researchers only qualitatively described outcomes from the two referenced studies. The first study was a double-blinded, placebo-controlled, monocentric randomized controlled trial (RCT) published in 2012, whereas the second study was a double-blinded multi-center RCT was published in 2021 and discussed the use of an Echinacea extract formulated in tablets that were given to children between the ages of 4-12 years living in central Switzerland. In the selected studies, nasopharyngeal samples for virus testing were collected, blinded, randomized, and adequately controlled. A total of almost 1,000 patient data set was referenced, which included patients who were prescribed 65% (v/v) ethanolic extract (tincture or tablet form) of Echinacea purpurea for four months. Study Findings Both studies demonstrated the preventive antiviral effects of Echinacea by varying parameters. Taken together, these studies screened numerous respiratory pathogens, some of which included influenza A H1/H3, influenza B, respiratory syncytial virus, and coronavirus 229E/OC43/NL63/HKU1. Overall, 755 subjects were randomized to receive E. purpurea and 717 participants were eligible for analysis as per safety collective (SAF) in the control (placebo) group of the first referenced study. From 355 eligible subjects of the Echinacea group, there were 21 coronavirus infections and the incidence rate was 5.9%. From the 362 eligible subjects of the control group, coronavirus infections totaled 33 with an incidence rate of 9.1%. Preventive effects on coronaviruses were statistically significant in participants in both the Echinacea and placebo groups who actively utilized their diary to report adverse events and cold-related symptoms. The findings indicated an overall incidence rate of 5.5% for Echinacea and 14.6 % for placebo. The second referenced study determined Ct values for respective incidence tests, wherein the authors estimated the number of ribonucleic acid (RNA) copies as a measure for virus concentration in the nasopharyngeal sample. Overall, 57 and 72 samples were positively tested for messenger RNA (mRNA) from any respiratory virus during prevention with Echinacea and control, respectively. A higher Ct value indicates a lower viral load represented by the sample’s RNA level. Echinacea significantly increased the average Ct value by 6.1 Ct units, from 25.0 to 31.1, thus resulting in a 98.5% reduction in coronavirus concentration relative to Vitamin C. Overall, four months of supplementation with Echinacea reduced the virus concentration in nasopharynx swab samples and the overall incidence of SARS-CoV-2 in adults and children. In the 2012 study, under the influence of Echinacea, the viral numbers were reduced to below detection limits, whereas the 2021 study results showed lower Ct values. Therefore, the incidences with Echinacea and Ct values are complementary parameters indicative of the antiviral effects of Echinacea. A clinical study carried out from November 2020 until May 2021 was also included in this review to confirm the applicability of the antiviral benefits of Echinacea. This clinical study investigated the effect of an Echinacea purpurea preparation in dosages within the range of 2,400 mg to 4,000 mg extract per day in 120 adults over five months. In the Echinacea and control groups, five and 14 samples tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. During acute SARS-CoV-2 episodes, Echinacea treatment significantly reduced the overall virus load by about 99%, the time to virus clearance by 4.8 days, and fever days to 1 day versus 11 days as compared to the control group. Conclusions As hypothesized, the review findings confirm the general preventive effects of Echinacea purpurea extracts against coronavirus infections in both adults and children. While Echinacea reduced symptom development, significantly reduced their viral loads, and shortened the duration of illness in children, there is unpublished clinical evidence that further demonstrates its efficacy in adults as well. The clinical findings of the in vitro experiments further complement these findings. *Important notice medRxiv publishes preliminary scientific reports that are not peer-reviewed and, therefore, should not be regarded as conclusive, guide clinical practice/health-related behavior, or treated as established information. To read the original article click here.

The post Echinacea, a Potent Antiviral Against SARS-CoV-2 appeared first on Amazing Health Advances.

Study Shows Link Between Smoking and Covid-19 Severity, Death

AHA Publisher — Wed, 29 Sep 2021 07:00:43 +0000

BMJ via News-Medical – Smoking is highly likely to worsen the severity of COVID-19 and the risk of dying from the infection, finds a large UK Biobank study published online in the respiratory journal Thorax. It is the first study of its kind to pool observational and genetic data on smoking and COVID-19 to strengthen the evidence base. The evidence on whether smoking is associated with a greater likelihood of more severe COVID-19 infection has been inconsistent, note the researchers. Several studies carried out early on in the pandemic reported a lower prevalence of active smokers among people admitted to hospital with COVID-19 than in the general population. But other population based studies have suggested that smoking is a risk factor for the infection. Most of the research to date, however, has been observational in nature and so unable to establish a causal effect. The researchers therefore combined observational and Mendelian randomization analyses to better understand the relationship. Mendelian randomization is a technique that uses genetic variants as proxies for a particular risk factor –in this case genetic variants that make someone more likely to smoke or to smoke more heavily–to obtain genetic evidence in support of a causal relationship. They drew on linked primary care records, COVID-19 test results, hospital admissions data and death certificates to look for associations between smoking and COVID-19 infection severity from January to August 2020 in 421,469 participants of the UK Biobank, all of whom had had their genetic make-up analyzed when they agreed to take part in 2006-10. During the study period, 13446 (3.2%) people took a COVID-19 swab (PCR) test, 1649 (0.4%) of whom tested positive; 968 (0.2%) required admission to hospital; and 444 (0.1%) died as a result of their infection. Most (59%) participants had never smoked; over a third (37%) were former smokers; and only 4% were current smokers. Among current smokers, most (71%) were light or moderate smokers (1-19 cigarettes/day); only 29% were heavy smokers (20+/day). Compared with those who had never smoked, current smokers were 80% more likely to be admitted to hospital and significantly more likely to die from COVID-19. The researchers used Mendelian randomization to assess whether a genetic predisposition to smoking and heavy smoking might have a role in COVID-19 severity among 281,105 of the original participants living in England. This revealed that a genetic predisposition to smoking was associated with a 45% higher risk of infection and a 60% higher risk of hospital admission for COVID-19. And it showed that a genetic predisposition to smoke more heavily was associated with a more than doubling in the risk of infection; a 5-fold increase in the risk of hospital admission; and a 10-fold increase in the risk of death from the virus. While the researchers acknowledge that they relied only on hospital COVID-19 test data rather than on more representative community data, they nevertheless point to the similarity of the findings in both sets of analyses. “Overall, the congruence of observational analyses indicating associations with recent smoking behaviors and [Mendelian randomization] analyses indicating associations with lifelong predisposition to smoking and smoking heaviness support a causal effect of smoking on COVID-19 severity,” they conclude. “The idea that tobacco smoking may protect against COVID-19 was always an improbable one,” assert Drs Anthony Laverty and Christopher Millet of Imperial College London, in a linked editorial. “A respiratory pandemic should be the ideal moment to focus collective minds on tobacco control,” they add, highlighting a recent report from the Royal College of Physicians. This notes that the UK isn’t on track to meet the government’s stated goal of a smoking prevalence of less than 5% by 2030, and that smoking remains a major cause of health inequality. In a linked podcast, lead researcher Dr Ashley Clift has a clear message for smokers. “Our results strongly suggest that smoking is related to your risk of getting severe COVID, and just as smoking affects your risk of heart disease, different cancers, and all those other conditions we know smoking is linked to, it appears that it’s the same for COVID. So now might be as good a time as any to quit cigarettes and quit smoking.” To read the original article click here.

The post Study Shows Link Between Smoking and Covid-19 Severity, Death appeared first on Amazing Health Advances.

Texas Doctor Claims He Discovered Effective and Inexpensive Solution for COVID-19

AHA Publisher — Fri, 17 Jul 2020 07:00:10 +0000

Sara Middleton via NaturalHealth365 – Could a common drug called Budesonide really offer an effective, safe, and affordable COVID solution for ill patients? The answer may shock you, especially if you’ve been listening to the dire reports put out by the mainstream media. The truth is: a Texan emergency room doctor – with nearly 30 years of experience – has some very good news for those people concerned about COVID-19. And, thankfully, he’s currently working hard to get his message out about this potentially lifesaving steroid, no matter how reluctant some government officials may be to admit its promising impact. Medical Doctor Is Putting the Proverbial Fire of COVID-19 Out with Budesonide Budesonide is typically inhaled via a nebulizer, a non-invasive medical device that transforms medication into vapor so it can be breathed in by the patient through a handheld nozzle or simple face mask. The drug is commonly used to treat asthma. Because it helps alleviate inflammation in the body, doctors also use budesonide for other reasons, including managing symptoms of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. But, according to Texas ER physician Dr. Richard Bartlett, budesonide is helping his COVID patients recover extremely quickly and without the side effects commonly seen with other heavier-duty steroid medications. In a July 2 interview on the news show American Can We Talk, Dr. Bartlett explains: “My silver bullet is inhaled [generic] budesonide. It’s super cheap … with insurance, many of my patients are not even having to pay for it.” He continues: “[Budeosnide] is a respiratory anti-inflammatory for COVID – which is a respiratory inflammatory disease – and it works.” Dr. Bartlett has had a 100% success rate with this promising COVID treatment, and notes that many of his patients have reported feeling significantly better after just one five minute nebulizer treatment. In his clinical practice setting, he’s been treating very ill patients since March. See for yourself by watching this wonderful interview with Dr. Bartlett – below: In another interview shared by MSN, Dr. Bartlett says his COVID treatment plan for ill patients – many of whom are high risk due to underlying medical conditions and advanced age – is based on the complementary action of three main drugs: generic budesonide to fight inflammation and the so-called “cytokine storm” (a severe inflammatory process in the body often seen in COVID-19 that can lead to multi-organ failure and death), generic antibiotics to fight subsequent bacterial infections, and zinc, to interfere with replication of the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2. “It’s common sense,” he adds bluntly. Dr. Bartlett has said that doctors in other countries including France and Spain are starting to explore the use of inhaled steroid medications for their COVID-19 patients. He also adds that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) will reportedly be looking into budesonide for use in the global pandemic, as well. We look forward to hearing more about budesonide and are curious to see whether it’ll start picking up more support in the media and scientific community. Sources for this article include: NewsWest9.com, Drugs.com, TexasHillCountry.com, MSN.com This article has been modified. To read the original article click here. For more articles from NaturalHealth365 click here.

The post Texas Doctor Claims He Discovered Effective and Inexpensive Solution for COVID-19 appeared first on Amazing Health Advances.

Study Says Vitamin-Magnesium Combo May Reduce Severity of COVID-19 in Seniors

AHA Publisher — Tue, 09 Jun 2020 07:00:01 +0000

Dr. Liji Thomas, MD via News-Medical Net – The COVID-19 pandemic that began in late December 2019 has spread to over 188 countries and territories, causing over 6.5 million cases and 385,000 deaths. With no effective therapeutic COVID-19 drug or severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccine in sight, researchers are exploring different strategies to limit its spread and mortality. A recent study published on the preprint server medRxiv* in May 2020 shows that a combination of the readily available and inexpensive vitamins D3, B12, and the mineral magnesium can reduce the progression of the disease to severe or fatal stages. Hyperinflammation in COVID-19 Disease The current thinking on the pathogenesis of the condition is that hyperinflammation plays a crucial role in patient outcomes. In other words, direct viral injury is not the only or even primary player in organ dysfunction related to COVID-19. Rather, it is the result of the organ toxicity caused by the unregulated release of pro-inflammatory cytokines like IL-6 and IL-8, in response to the immune induction by the virus. Immunomodulation is thus an attractive option in the treatment of COVID-19 and may prevent the progression of the patient to severe or critical illness. Various biologic molecules have been tried, such as the IL-6 blocker tocilizumab. The DMB Protocol The present study was an observational cohort study of a consecutive series of hospitalized COVID-19 patients aged 50 years and above, who were given a combination of the above micronutrients (DMB), comparing the rate of progression of disease in this group to another cohort of patients who were not given DMB. Vitamin D protects the respiratory epithelium structure and function. Magnesium promotes vitamin D functions, acting as a cofactor in multiple enzymes involved in vitamin D metabolism, while also having independent bronchodilator and vasodilator activity. Vitamin B12 improves the health of the gut bacteria, which in turn is vital for an active and effective immune system. All are safe and well-tolerated by patients. How Was the Study Done? The current study aimed at testing the effect of a short course of supplementation of DMB in COVID-19 patients who are not yet in the severe or critical phase of the illness. The aim was to find out if this could prevent poor patient outcomes. The study included all patients with COVID-19 who were at least 50 years old, admitted to Singapore General Hospital, between 15 January and 15 April 2020. All of them had a positive RT-PCR test. The study outcome was to assess how many progressed to need oxygen in any mode, or intensive care unit (ICU) admission. From 6 April 2020, all patients fitting these criteria were administered DMB and formed the study cohort. DMB consisted of one daily dose of vitamin D3 1000 IU, magnesium 150mg, and vitamin B12 500mcg for up to 14 days. It was stopped if the patient either recovered symptomatically and two successive PCR tests were negative, or if the patient deteriorated clinically. Most patients in the study arm received DMB on the first day of admission and had continued therapy for 5 days (median). The patients admitted in the same period but who did not receive DMB were the controls. The study arm comprised 17 patients while the control arm had 26 patients, both arms being similar concerning demographics, and clinical features. Did the DMB Improve the Clinical Course? The researchers found that only 3/17 patients in the study arm required supplemental oxygen, compared to 16/26 in the control group. In both groups, the requirement for oxygen also signaled a high risk for ICU, with 2/3 in the DMB group and 16/16 in the non-DMB group requiring ICU admission. Of the 3 patients in the DMB group who deteriorated, one needed oxygen supplementation after 3 days on DMB but remained stable on the ward. Of the 9 patients who received early DMB (in the first week of hospitalization), only one deteriorated, being among the 2, which required oxygen early (within 24 hours of starting DMB). These 2 are likely to have already gone downhill, judging from their rapid deterioration, and the DMB was probably too late to affect events either way. The analysis showed that the odds of requiring oxygen went up with age and the presence of other illnesses, but went down significantly with DMB treatment, even after adjusting for age, gender, and other illnesses. The odds would have been even more impressive if the two patients who received DMB late in their clinical course were excluded. Importantly, there were no adverse effects that could be traced to DMB. The Implications of the DMB Study Available data from around the world shows that up to a fifth of COVID-19 patients experience life-endangering complications. IL-6 blockers and anti-thrombotic agents may be little better than a Band-aid in this situation, addressing the late events and mostly ineffective. However, the current study sought to make use of pre-emptive immunoregulatory, safe, and well-tolerated agents to reduce the cytokine storm associated with terminal organ damage and death. The apparent success of this strategy could allow it to be adopted as a safe, easily administered, and early intervention in the primary care setting. It could also be equally effectively used to prevent symptomatic or severe disease among high-risk contact clusters traced during an outbreak. It is extremely cost-effective, making it suitable for low- and middle-income countries, even when vaccines or therapeutic drugs may be too costly to afford. Lastly, the use of DMB may be equally effective in other viral infections that also produce high levels of cytokines and thus cause injury independent of the direct tissue injury. The small sample size and absence of biologic assays to support the clinical improvement in the study cohort are limitations. However, the authors conclude, “It is a proof-of-principle effort with very promising results. Our findings would need to be further validated in a well-designed randomized study.” *Important Notice medRxiv publishes preliminary scientific reports that are not peer-reviewed and, therefore, should not be regarded as conclusive, guide clinical practice/health-related behavior, or treated as established information. To read the original article click here.

The post Study Says Vitamin-Magnesium Combo May Reduce Severity of COVID-19 in Seniors appeared first on Amazing Health Advances.