Covid 19 Long Haulers

 Studies show that forty percent of the people who have had COVID 19 have a poorer quality of life than before Covid. These are patients with long haul symptoms of Covid 19 which have been shown to be related to chronic fatigue symptoms. Long haul symptoms of Covid are fatigue, brain fog, tinnitus, shortness of breath, trouble breathing, memory issues, and muscle weakness. These patients also have underlying health issues that have not been dealt with. The best thing these patients can do is to come in for a visit to deal with these health issues.  All these patients are different and unless they make the appropriate changes, these health issues will not resolve. Overall, studies show that Covid 19 has decreased our life expectancy by 3 years.  Data confirms this, especially in the older populations due to the increase of deaths in this population. The average age for a male today is 79 years of age and a female is 82 years of age.

What you can do today to decrease your risk for Covid 19?

• Studies show that a vegetarian diet will lower your risk of getting severe Covid by 73%.
• Being Pescatarian (fish & veggies) will lower your risk by 59%.
• Maintaining a normal blood sugar level will lower your risk for severe infection by 35%.
• Taking adequate vitamin D lowers your risk by 75%.
• Taking quercetin lowers your risk by 68%.

Doing all the above things will lower your risk of severe COVID by 99.5%.  So, there is a lot we can do to prevent severe Covid 19 in our life. It all comes down to taking charge of our health.

Just the stress of the unknown with Covid 19 is killing us. Stress is a big player causing anxiety, depression, and suicide which have all increased since the start of Covid. I find that Cortisol, our stress hormone, is either very high or very low in most of my patients.  Stress lowers our overall immune system and increases our risk for heart disease. There are many ways to deal with our overall stress and balancing one’s cortisol levels is very important. Therefore, an appointment is recommended if you experience higher levels of stress. Exercise, yoga, and meditation can also help. 

A good book about our immune system is Immune: A Journey into the Mysterious System That keeps You Alive.  This New York Times bestseller looks at the body's vast immune system for fighting infections and other diseases. 

Deborah Wiancek, N.D.
wiancek@healthref.com
970-926-7606