In this edition I talk about the new way of doing things in the clinic to keep everyone safe, plus an outline on how to strengthen your immune system with supplements and lifestyle to reduce your chances of getting a virus. This is based on a swebinar I did with a Dr Elizabeth Steels  an adjunct Senior Research Fellow in the area of supplements and the immune system.

COVID-19 and my massage and herbal medicine business

As mentioned in my last email I am back in  business.  If you have not returned for a massage there are however a few things you need to know regarding the processes I have put in place to keep yourself and myself safe. They are as follows:

1. All surfaces in the treatment room are disinfected before and after each client, as well as door handles, CD player buttons and anything else that is used. 
2. Mobile phone and land line hand set and computer mouse disinfected too.
3. As a result there will be longer gaps in between clients to cater for this.
4. On entry and exit I will ask yoyu to use the sanitiser provided or soap and paper towels in the bathroom..
5. I will also ask you to fill in a form and sign it regarding any symptoms you may have etc

Things are easing off at the moment, thank goodness, and we can socialise more but we must not be complacent . Even now as I write WHO have announced that there is a rebound of cases in Europe most likely from easing restrictions on numbers that can gather. Let us see what the outcome is from 'The Black Lives Matter' demo. 

Which brings me to segway on to my next topic ' Nourishing your Immune System in challenging times'.

Nourishing your Immune System in difficult times

The heading does say ' In difficult times' but in fact we need to be nurturing the immune system all the time to keep it strong for these difficult times!  Whether it be diet/lifestyle,massage, supplements or herbs. 

I attended a webinar on 'Respiratory Viral infections' a few weeks ago. The webinar was divided into three parts but I am going to give you a shortened version of one of the talks by Dr Elizabeth Steels titled " Nourishing Support for Healthy Respiratory and Immune Function'. 

So how do we nourish our immune system as a defence to viruses? It is based on the fact that viruses replicate in your cells every 1-3 hours, so supplementation is 'pulse dosed' every 3 hours to get the best outcome. Nutrients can slow down this replication process. Vitamin C is a case in point as much research has been done on it.  In the following table doseages for Vit A, C, D and Zinc supplements are shown for prevention, early infection, acute infection and recovery.

 

Nutrients - Immune/anti-viral activity

Nutrients	Daily dose	Prevention	early infection	Acute	Recovery	Pulse dosing
Vit A	10,000-25,000 I.U.	*	*	**	*	1/day
Vit C	1-5g	*	**	***	**	every 3 hours
Zinc	20mg	*	**	**	*	2-3/day
VIt D	2000-5000i.u	*	**	**	*	1/day

 

Mushroom mixes are also very useful for prevention and all through an infection to recovery.

Re Vit D3 production from the sun instead of a capsule the following guidelines are helpful:

• Vit D3 is essential for calcium absorbtion in the gut to improve bone strength as well as the immune system. 
• In NSW we are 80%deficient in Vit D despite all the sunshine we get. We can congratulate the 'Slip, Slop Slap' campaign for that to fight skin cancer. 
• It is quite safe and more effective to have levels of 135-225 nmol/L of Vit D in your blood tests even though 80 nmol/L is considered acceptable. 
• So if you want to get your Vit D from the sun the following exposure times are recommended, exposing your arms and shoulders:
• ?Winter - Aim for 30 mins of sun at noon
• ?Spring and Autumn - 20 mins at noon
• ?Summer - 6-7 mins 10am or 3pm

Diet and Lifestyle

♦ We need to eat adequate protein to carry Vit A to the cells, otherwise you will be Vit A deficient. Vit A deficiency leads to susceptibility to infections. Prolonged infection or after surgery leads to a need for protein. 

Protein amounts

♦Pulse dose over 3-4 meals a day. 1.2g/kg/day-1.5g/kg/day. It will depend on your weight.

So if you are a 60kg female you would ned 72-90g of protein a day. An 80kg male would need 96-120g of protein a day. This is not a 90g or 120g steak, it is the actual amount of protein in your food. The following table explains this.

 

 

Protein content of food135g

Protein amounts	10g	20g	25g	30g
Eggs	1 egg	2eggs		3 eggs
Chicken	45g	90g	115g
minced beef	65g	130	165	195
fish	65g	130g	165g	195
lamb	45g	90g	115	135
steak	45g	90g	115g	135g
hard cheese	45g	90g	115g	135g
tuna	"	"	"	"
Ham/pork	"	"	"	"
Tofu	"	"	"	"

 

 

 

Sugar

 

 

Viruses demand sugar in the diet to replkicate themselves, the reason why we feel so tired in recovery because the virus is producing lactic acid from the glucose. So avoid sugars and have a low glycaemic diet.

Hydration

Stay well hydrated and drink hot drinks.

 

Massage in the face of our new routines

Many of us are working from home and perhaps the computer system is not set up as well as say at work where an OH&S person will come in and set things up for you. So we can get neck, shoulder and back pain from this. We can also get stressed from being out of routine, where our social life has been restricted. 

And massage can help enormously to release the stress and aches and pains from these situations. Moving the nervous system from uptight/stress to calm.

Hope you are keeping well and looking asfter your immune systems. And to some regional travel in NSW over the next quarter.

 

KInd Regards

Penny Wade