The corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has come to be a global pandemic and seriously influenced our daily life. At this time, there is yet any type of clinically proven drugs or therapies to avoid or treat COVID-19.

With the novel corona virus, about 80% of the contaminated had light to moderate symptoms (light symptoms as much as moderate pneumonia), concerning 15% created extreme disease (shortness of breath, reduced blood oxygen, or > 50% lung participation), and also 5% became critically unwell (respiratory failure, shock, or multi organ dysfunction).

Patients with severe COVID-19 illness and adverse result are primarily older, have diabetes, heart disease, prior stroke, hypertension, persistent respiratory disease, and/or chronic lung condition. Oftentimes, these individuals' immune system, in an effort to combat the virus, comes to be dysfunctional and also enter into overdrive, resulting in a fatal effect called a "cytokine storm".

Cytokines are an integral part of your immune reaction. Your body launch them as a response to an infection to trigger inflammation for your protection. A cytokine storm takes place when the body launches extreme or uncontrolled levels of cytokines, triggering active inflammation, which may bring about severe complications and also death.

Why does the body immune system go crazy? Just how come it takes place more in patients that are immuno compromised or with preexisting conditions? Exactly how can we have a stronger, better functioning body immune system?

Now, a lot of us are well aware of the crucial function nutrients like vitamin D, vitamin C, zinc, and probiotics play in managing the body immune system and also maintaining us healthy. Not nearly enough has actually been said regarding vitamin A though.

For the past several decades, scientists have been researching the effect of dietary vitamin A on human wellness. It is well established that vitamin A is a necessary nutrient and is accountable for numerous vital functions in the body:

• It protects the eyes from night blindness and also age-related decline.
• It reduces the risk of certain cancers.
• It sustains a healthy immune system.
• It reduces the risk of skin problems like eczema and also acne.
• It sustains bone health.
• It promotes healthy development as well as reproduction.

In the adhering to, we will certainly look at how vitamin A can help in reducing the occurrence and extent of infectious diseases, just how the immune system works against infectious agents like viruses, as well as the duty vitamin A plays in managing a healthy immune feedback. Finally, we will review how you can obtain sufficient vitamin A to complement your immune method.

Understanding Vitamin A.

Vitamin A is a group of compounds discovered in both animal and plant foods. It can be found in 2 types: preformed vitamin An and pro vitamin A carotenoids.

Preformed vitamin A is referred to as the energetic form of the vitamin, which the body can conveniently make use of. It is fat-soluble as well as discovered in animal foods, like liver and also eggs, and consists of retinoid compounds like retinol, retinal, and also retinoid acid.

Pro vitamin A carotenoids include carotenes (like alpha-carotene as well as beta-carotene) and xanthophyll (like astaxanthin, lutein, and zeaxanthin). These are the non-active form or precursors of the vitamin found in plants such as pleasant potatoes as well as carrots. These compounds are water-soluble and also need to be converted to the active form before the body can use it. As an example, beta-carotene is transformed to retinol in the small intestine. However, the ability to convert provitamin A right into the energetic kind is impaired in many individuals.

Exactly How The Immune System Works

Our body immune system can be broken down into the natural body immune system as well as the flexible immune system

Innate immune system

This is the dominant protection system in the body as well as it relies on the use of physical obstacles like the skin as well as mucous membranes, combined with initial -responder protectors called leukocytes (white blood cells). Leukocytes include phagocytes (which engulf foreign invaders) and natural killer cells.

The innate body immune system response is why you get a stale nose and also sneeze when you have a cool, or why a junked knee obtains red, warm, and also irritated, or filled with pus. For individuals who acquire COVID-19 and also have no symptoms or moderate symptoms, their innate immune system is effective and functioning well against the corona virus.

Adaptive body immune system.

When the innate immune system is not solid sufficient to fight the foreign intruders, it sends out signals called antigens to get in touch with the 2nd line of defense - the adaptive body immune system. This system makes use of special types of leukocytes called lymphocytes, particularly the B-cells and also T-cells.

This is normally when the inflammatory response gets kicked into a higher gear and also you establish a fever and also body aches. The adaptive immune response not only determines and also battles viruses, it also remembers them so it can promptly and also effectively combat and neutralize them in the future, thus producing immunity. This is additionally just how vaccines work.

Signs of mild deficiency

• dry eyes
• poor night vision
• hormone imbalances
• uneven periods
• vaginal dry skin
• infertility
• reduced energy and also fatigue
• mood disorders
• frequent throat as well as chest infections
• bumpy skin
• eczema and acne
• thyroid disorder

Sources Of Dietary Vitamin A.

• From animals (preformed vitamin A):.
• Pastured animal liver (liver is an organ that refines toxins, toxic substances are not stored in the liver yet in fats in the body).
• Pastured poultry giblets.
• Cod liver oil.
• Grass fed ghee as well as butter.
• Grass fed cream as well as cheese.
• Pastured egg yolks.
• Sockeye salmon.

From plants (provitamin A carotenoids):.

• Sweet potato.
• Carrots.
• Pumpkin.
• Winter squash.
• Dark green, leafy vegetables.
• Broccoli.
• Cantaloupe.
• Red bell peppers.
• Mangos.
• Apricots.

Although nutrients like vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin C, zinc, and probiotics have been shown to strengthen the immune system, at present, there is no research or study on their efficacy towards preventing and curing COVID-19.

Author Name:  Carol Chuang