Introduction

Some thoughts on the current situation

– Roman Gawel

April 2020

Given the current elephant in the room, the bluster and inefficacy with which some noteworthy western governments are handling the situation and the amount of time people have on their hands now: I thought I’d write a little advice to help people through infection or help prevent it.

Firstly, and most importantly: this is an AID to the medical advice given by professionals. Do not substitute social distancing or seeking medical help if your symptoms become severe.

Secondly, LISTEN TO MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS AND SCIENCE. This is a blog by an amateur scientist with the aid of a nutritionist and nutritional therapist. We don’t have a lab. We don’t have a budget and we don’t have huge, duplicated trials with controls to make absolute sure to the smallest probability possible that we are right. Scientists do. That’s what they are for. Listen to them. In order to do this, you have to search the journals out yourself (some are included in this article). The press often like soundbites and drama and often seem to think you’re too stupid to understand actual science. But have a look for yourself. You can look up technical terms if they are getting in the way of your understanding. The horses mouth is better than a journalists mouth 10 times out of 10. Scientists are shy creatures that hide from cameras and tend to be happiest staring at tiny things conceptually or literally in a manner that may mystify some of us. But they are often nice and fun and they are the reason for…. well, most of the modern world. Given my foundation and years working in science, I thought I’d write an article in a manner severely lacking of late. Hopefully personable and enjoyable but with real data and the option to lose yourself in the depths should you decide to take the time.

Back to the situation at hand: People now have far more time to cook and it’s a pleasant way to pass those now plentiful empty hours. A home-cooked meal that brings cheer and high spirits is not to be sniffed at in the current clime.

Social media shows a lot of people have stocked up on booze and alcohol. Understandable, although the direct opposite of what is most beneficial. Processed foods concentrate mainly on carbs, fat, protein and salt. The myriad of vitamins, aromatic compounds, minerals and other micro-nutrients are largely absent and as such, processed foods tend to leave one feeling less satisfied – tending to cause one to overeat and gain weight – and certainly less healthy. Alcohol too has a depressive effect on the reactivity of the immune system (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5186784/) and can cause such a cascade of immune responses that your body effectively is ‘occupied’ with other problems than a pathogen.

I will list a few effective anti virals, the basic science behind them (very lightly cited)  and some simple recipes in which to include them. The specifics of weights and measures I leave up to your taste, the focus of this article will be on the immune boosting and anti-viral foods which are often the flavourings and spices as these contain up to thousands of compounds working in synergy.