Merck’s New Anti-Viral Drug by Dr. Michael Murray

 The mainstream media is on full hype mode with Merck’s recently developed pill to treat COVID-19. It is great news for sure, but the truth is that several natural compounds produce better results.

Yes, Merck’s antiviral drug molnupiravir can prevent death and reduce hospitalization from COVID-19, but it provides zero benefit in hospitalized or more severe cases.

And it really does not seem to stack up to things that I have recommended like vitamin D3 and quercetin.

What I want to do here is make a very quick comparison to illustrate despite the media hype, the natural approach produces better outcomes.

First, let’s take a look at the results with molnupiravir.

The primary Merck study included 775 people who had had mild to moderate COVID for less than five days.
 
•    Molnupiravir reduced death by 100% as 8 people in the placebo group died while no one on molnupiravir died.
•    Hospitalization was reduced by 48% as 7.3% of people on molnupiravir had to be hospitalized versus 14.1% of people on the placebo
•    Molnupiravir produces ZERO benefits in patients already hospitalized with COVID. So, it does not produce any benefit in patients with more severe disease.

What these results show me is that molnupiravir is like a fire extinguisher under your sink. It is great at putting out the small fire because of a quick response, but it is no match for a larger fire. Speed of delivering it early on in the infection probably is critical to any benefit.

For comparison, let’s take a look first at vitamin D3. First, as you probably remember, I wrote an article on my website on How 90% of COVID Deaths Could Have Been Prevented by making sure vitamin D3 status was sufficient for optimal protection.

One study found when people are hospitalized with COVID have blood levels of 25-OH-D3 were below 25 ng/ml, which indicates a vitamin D3 deficiency, 85% of these patients died. When blood levels were above 34ng/ml, no patient died. And this blood level is not even ideal, the target is 50-80 ng/ml.

There was also a study in hospitalized COVID patients where standard therapy alone was compared to those also treated with 25-OH-D3. While 8% of the group receiving standard medical care died, no one in the D3 group did. And while 50% of the control group had to be admitted to ICU, only 2% of the vitamin D group did. Like molnupiravir, 25-OH-D3 treatment completely prevented death. It reduced admission to ICU by 25 times. And it was effective in patients already admitted to hospital with severe disease. Remember that molnupiravir has no benefit in severe disease.

Another thing to consider is that molnupiravir was compared to a control group that only received a placebo while 25-OH-D3 was being compared to the best therapy the hospital had to offer.

Quercetin is something else that I have highlighted as a treatment for COVID based on not only detailed studies showing an antiviral effect, but also clinical results from two trials.

These two published human clinical studies with an enhanced form of quercetin for improved absorption both produced better results than molnupiravir.

Quercetin cut hospitalization by 68%. And when patients did have to be hospitalized, the average stay was 6.77 days in the standard care group but only 1.57 days in the quercetin group. Quercetin not only reduced mortality by 100%, but also had a 100% success rate in preventing patients from entering the ICU.

Although it may be argued that it is difficult to compare studies of different populations and methods, it is clear that these natural supplements have demonstrated an ability equal to molnupiravir for reducing death and superior to molnupiravir for reducing hospitalization and for treating people who are already hospitalized with severe disease.

Yet, none of these safe and effective measures or positive studies received any attention in the media. It is a sad commentary to make as it is possible that nearly countless lives may have been saved if these measures would have been promoted as enthusiastically as some of the pharmaceutical treatments such as molnupiravir.

Furthermore, instead of the U.S. Government signing a $1.2 billion contract with Merck to supply 1.7 million courses of molnupiravir at $712 per course, a better outcome and least costly approach may have been produced by making sure every American had a blood level of 25-OH-vitamin D3 above 34ng/ml.

Here is the bottom line. The U.S. government and the medical establishment missed a great opportunity with COVID. When the pandemic first hit, the focus and messaging should have been:

“Americans and people of the world, this virus is a killer if you have a weak immune response. If you are over 85 or have an unmodifiable risk factor associated with low immune function, you need to practice social distancing and wear a medical-grade mask.

Regardless, everyone needs to improve their health, lose weight if needed, and do everything they can to improve their immune system including taking key supplements like vitamin C, D3, zinc, and selenium.”

Instead, we were told at the very beginning at the first press conference by Fauci, et al. that there was nothing that can be done to improve immune function and we just would have to wait for a vaccine….

Thanks for listening, please take action.

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



 

Longevity

 Kara Fitzgarald, N.D. a colleague of mine wrote a book titled Younger You, Reduce your  Bio age and Live Longer, Better,  that I highly recommend. You can shave three years off your age in eight weeks by changing your diet and lifestyle. So why aren’t more people doing this? It is hard to change, period. Fast food is all around every corner, easy to get to but not necessarily as cheap as we think when it comes to the extra expense on our health. Mainstream medicine offers that magic pill that will treat your chronic disease and make your pain go away. But this also comes at an expense to our health since prescription drugs have been the fourth leading cause of death for the last twenty years. Studies are showing that in the hospital population there are between 300,000 to 400,000 deaths directly due to medication – and that medication had been properly prescribed.  If we did not have prescription drugs would people live longer? Granted, prescription drugs can be effective for treating some diseases but should not be used for long-term treatment. This is a question which we should all be thinking about? Prescription medication should only be used when diet and lifestyle is not working.  Unfortunately, most people have no idea what to do to change their diet and lifestyle and medical doctors have no education regarding diet and lifestyle.  There is where naturopathic doctors are very effective in treating chronic disease. 

Living Healthier and Longer

 Ninety percent of all chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, dementia, and high blood pressure, are directly related to our environment including what we eat, chemicals we are exposed to, pollution, stress, and exercise. Most Covid 19 patient deaths are among individuals with chronic disease.

New research from the CDC states that forty percent of children today have a chronic disease such as heart disease, diabetes, obesity, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure. Our children's overall health is at risk of a shorter life span. What we keep learning from this virus is that we need to start taking care of our overall health.  

Our immune system is directly affected by our environment. Therefore, we need to decrease our exposure to environmental toxins, eat healthy organic foods, exercise, and reduce our stress. Our immune system protects us from disease and infections. So what can we do to protect our immune system on a daily basis?  What is the best diet for overall health?

Diet 
Better health starts with a good diet; eating at least 5 to 12 organic veggies a day. The best diet for optimal health is a low-fat and low-carbohydrate diet such as the Mediterranean diet. Researchers from Norway found that a 20-year-old man in the U.S. could extend his life up to 13 years, and a 20-year old woman by 11 years by eating a diet of plant-based foods (legumes), whole grains, and nuts, and less red and processed meat. Fish is also included on the healthful list, whereas sugar-sweetened beverages (sodas) and foods based on refined [white] grains, such as white bread, are among those to be avoided. A 60-year-old could still increase life expectancy by 8 years for women and 9 years for men, and even an 80-year-old female could gain more than three years with healthier food choices. This diet uses organic extra virgin olive oil, cold water seafood, and many veggies. Please note that a lot of the olive oils in the grocery stores may say extra virgin olive oil but they are not.  Like veggies, I recommend organic olive oils.  Olive oil should be used within 6 months of manufacturing since it can go rancid easily.  Also, never use olive oil on high heat. It should only be used at room temperature or for sautéing. Good oils to use for high heat cooking include avocado or coconut oil. There are a lot of good recipes online.

Foods that have been shown to increase longevity are high in fisetin and flavonoids. These foods include apples, grapes, strawberries, kale, cucumber, onion, persimmon, mangos, tomatoes, nuts, and wine. Fisetin has been shown to lower inflammation, lower blood sugar, have antitumor effects, and prevent neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, ALS, Huntington's disease, strokes, and traumatic brain injury. Fisetin works by inhibiting cellular pathways that affect aging so it has an antiaging effect.  



Antioxidants
A good multiple vitamin that is high in antioxidants that protects our immune system, such as Vit A, E, C, D, and Selenium, is recommended.  Studies have shown that people who take good multiple vitamins were less likely to get severe effects of Covid 19. Antioxidants protect our immune system from free radicals which are precursors to cancer. My Optimal Health multiple that I formulated 22 years ago contains all the recommended antioxidants.

Exercise
Exercise is very important for our immune system and increases longevity. Studies show that the leaner your muscle mass the longer your life expectancy. This is why exercise is very important. We start losing our muscle mass at thirty years old. Therefore, starting some type of weightlifting program three times a week for 15 to 20 mins will help you maintain and gain muscle mass. The more visceral adipose fat one has the lower your life span. Obesity has been associated with a shorter life span and an increased risk for chronic disease and Covid. Studies show that one hour of exercise five times a week is recommended to prevent chronic disease. Here is a link to five exercises that will increase lean muscle mass and make you look younger.  A new study on dementia and Alzheimer’s shows that older adults who are physically active have a lower risk for memory loss. 

Inflammation
Inflammation is the other marker that predicts longevity. Inflammation causes physical swelling, redness, increase mucous, and pain. Recommended lab tests to check for inflammation include CRP, homocysteine, and SED rate. Inflammation can be caused by poor diet and lifestyle, environmental toxins, mental and emotional health, and genetics. Ongoing inflammation can cause cancer, heart disease, arthritis, etc. Inflammation is a sign that you need to deal with your health issues. Most diseases cause inflammation. Reducing inflammation will increase longevity.

Genetics
Our genes make us susceptible to diseases. However, just because your parents had colon cancer or high cholesterol does not mean you're going to get these diseases. There is a lot you can do to lower your susceptibility to diseases that run in your family. For instance, colon cancer runs in my family and increases my risk. My family ate a lot of meat and potatoes growing up in Chicago. At my last colonoscopy, I had no polyps because I changed my diet to pescatarian (fish & plant-based) 40 years ago. Studies show that we can change our genetic predisposition through diet and lifestyle. Many patients tell me that they have high cholesterol because it is genetic and their parents have high cholesterol. I tell these patients they have high cholesterol because they eat like the rest of their family. When these patients change their diet and exercise their cholesterol goes down. So, we have more control over our genetic predisposition than we think.

Lifestyle
Simple lifestyle changes can make such a powerful difference. It's because they affect so many different parts of our underlying biological mechanisms that affect our underlying health -- chronic inflammation, oxidative stress, changes in immune function, with the microbiome and telomeres and gene expression, angiogenesis, etc. There are literally hundreds of thousands of protective substances in fruits and vegetables such as phytochemicals, bioflavonoids, carotenoids, retinols, isoflavones, genistein, and lycopene that have anti-cancer, anti-heart disease, and anti-aging properties. You can eat a very healthy plant-based diet for less than it costs to eat meat, especially now with inflation and the price of meat is soaring. Natural plant-based foods can also be delicious and nutritious. I am not recommending a lot of these meatless burgers which are not made from natural sources. Many of these meatless products are processed foods, contain chemicals that are not natural.  

Do You Have Long-Haul Covid Symptoms?

Many individuals continue to experience symptoms associated with Long Haul Covid, including: 

• Fatigue 
• Brain fog or difficulty with concentration 
• Shortness of breath 
• Chest pain or pressure 
• Joint and muscle pain 
• Headaches 
• Rapid heartbeat or palpitations
• Insomnia or sleep disturbances
• Loss of sense of smell or taste
• Depression or anxiety

Research indicates that Long-Haul Covid patients also have a higher incidence of neurological conditions such as Alzheimer's, ALS, Parkinson's, and dementia. If you are experiencing symptoms of Long Haul Covid, it is advisable to schedule an appointment with Dr. Wiancek for evaluation by calling 970 926 7606. email wiancek@healthref.com, or online.  

 

Forever Chemicals: A Growing Concern for Our Health and Environment

 PFAS (polyfluoroalkyl substances), also known as "forever chemicals," have contaminated the drinking water of up to 110 million Americans and the blood of nearly every American. PFAS are a family of compounds that are hard to break down, last long in the environment, and can affect the organs of exposed humans and animals. PFAS, including Teflon, can be found in products such as pots and pans and in the blood of people around the world, including 99% of Americans. PFAS (polyfluoroalkyl substances), are a widespread concern affecting the health of millions. With up to 110 million Americans having contaminated drinking water and nearly every American having PFAS in their blood, it is clear that these chemicals are hard to avoid. PFAS are a family of compounds that are resistant to breakdown, persist in the environment, and can impact the health of exposed individuals.

Studies (Suffolk University, 2021) have linked PFAS exposure to:

• Testicular, kidney, liver, and pancreatic cancer
• Weakened childhood immunity
• Low birth weight
• Endocrine disruption
• Elevated cholesterol
• Weight gain in children and dieting adults.

PFOA (Perfluorooctanoic acid) and PFOS (Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid) are two of the most commonly found PFAS (Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) in various consumer products. They can be found in:

• Non-stick Cookware: PFOA is widely used in the production of Teflon and other non-stick coatings found on pots and pans. This chemical is highly resistant to heat, making it a popular choice for cookware manufacturers.
• Food Packaging: PFAS can be found in grease-proof paper and cardboard food packaging, including pizza boxes and microwave popcorn bags. This type of packaging is designed to prevent oil and grease from leaking through, but it also contributes to the widespread presence of PFAS in our food supply.
• Textiles: PFAS can also be found in waterproof and stain-resistant clothing, as well as carpet and upholstery treatments. These products are treated with PFAS to repel water and stains, but this also makes it harder to break down the chemicals and reduce their impact on the environment.
• Personal Care Products: PFAS can be found in a range of cosmetics, including eyeliner and mascara, as well as in dental floss and toothpaste. These products are treated with PFAS to improve their effectiveness and stability, but this also increases the risk of exposure to these harmful chemicals.
•  Firefighting Foam: PFOS was widely used in firefighting foam, which can be released into the environment during training exercises or firefighting operations. This type of foam was designed to quickly smother flames and reduce the spread of fire, but its widespread use has also contributed to the widespread presence of PFOS in our environment.

It's important to note that some PFAS are now restricted or phased out in some countries due to concerns about their persistence in the environment and potential health effects.

There is currently no universally effective method for removing PFAS from the environment. Carbon water filters have been shown to effectively remove them from drinking water. It's crucial that we understand the dangers of PFAS and take steps to reduce our exposure.

Beat Heart Disease and Alzheimer's: The Power of Diet and Lifestyle

 Dr. Dean Ornish, a specialist in internal medicine, conducted a randomized clinical trial in 1990, which showed that coronary artery disease can be reversed by nothing more than diet, exercise, stress reduction, and social support (The Lancet, 1990). Dr. Ornish is currently conducting a similar study at his nonprofit Preventive Medicine Research Institute in California, where he is exploring the possibility of slowing, stopping, or reversing early-stage Alzheimer's without the use of drugs, devices, or surgeries.

The study requires participants to follow a low-fat, vegan-style diet that contains no more than 10% of daily calories from fat. This means avoiding all animal products such as red meat, chicken, pork, and ham, with the exception of egg whites and one cup of nonfat milk or yogurt each day. Whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and legumes form the basis of the diet, along with a few nuts and seeds. Refined carbohydrates, oils, and excessive caffeine are avoided, but up to two cups of green tea are allowed each day.

The program also requires an hour of yoga-based stress management each day, which involves stretching, breathing, meditation, and relaxation techniques. Participants must also engage in strength training and aerobic exercise, such as walking, for 30 minutes a day or an hour three times a week. Smoking is not permitted. Support groups are also crucial, as they help people stay on track with the diet and provide a safe environment for emotional openness and support.

Studies have shown that loneliness, depression, and isolation can increase the risk of chronic diseases, and Dr. Ornish believes that support groups play a crucial role in reducing this risk. The program has been shown to lower blood sugar levels and heart disease risk for patients with diabetes, reduce prostate cancer cell growth, improve depression within 12 weeks, reduce "bad cholesterol" by an average of 40%, and more.
The program has also been shown to increase telomerase, the enzyme responsible for repairing and lengthening telomeres, by 30% after just three months. Those who have been on the program for five years have telomeres that are about 10% longer, indicating that aging is being reversed on a cellular level. Dr. Ornish believes that this program, which addresses underlying mechanisms such as chronic inflammation, oxidative stress, changes in the microbiome, changes in gene expression, overstimulation of the sympathetic nervous system, and changes in immune function, can benefit a wide range of conditions, including heart disease, diabetes, and Alzheimer's.

It is important to follow the program nearly 100% to reverse the disease, but even making partial changes can improve overall health and prevent chronic diseases. If you are concerned about preventing and treating these conditions, you can schedule an appointment with Dr. Wiancek at wiancek@healthref.com, 970 926 7606, or online.