Children sit apart from each other at a public after-school care center in Seongdong, Seoul, on March 6, 2020, as the country carries out a “social distancing” drive to curb the spread of the new coronavirus. (image: Seongdong District Office)
SEOUL, March 14 (Korea Bizwire) — Across the globe, concern over public health is growing as the World Health Organization (WHO) recently pronounced the coronavirus as a global pandemic.
As such, interest has been piqued in novel ways to prevent and treat COVID-19.
In the meantime, a clinical trial in China using vitamin C to treat the coronavirus is gaining the world’s attention.
A Chinese medical team treated coronavirus patients with vitamin C in a series of tests over several weeks while beginning clinical trials for an intravenous injection of vitamin C.
As vitamin C is known to be an effective remedy in children and adults suffering from pneumonia, the United States also began clinical trials to test the effectiveness against COVID-19.
In South Korea, ‘social distancing’ and wearing protective masks are becoming a common practice in everyday life as the number of confirmed cases continues to grow.
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in particular, is asking Koreans to wash their hands frequently and use a sleeve to cover the mouth and nose when sneezing or coughing.
Experts argue that bolstering immunity is also important as it can protect the human body from virus infections.
Screens are set up on tables of a cafeteria at LG Group building in Seoul to help prevent coronavirus infections between them. (image: LG Group)
The best way to strengthen immunity is getting enough sleep and consuming ample amounts of nutrients.
Numerous studies prove that malnutrition leads to weaker immunity, leaving the body more vulnerable to infectious diseases.
Food consumption is critical since immune substances are created inside the human body using the nutrients from food.
Vitamin A, Vitamin B6, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Zinc, Selenium, Iron, Copper, and Folic Acid are nutrients used to generate immune substances. They are easily found in fruits and vegetables.
In particular, fruits that contain ample amounts of vitamin C, a strong antioxidant, bolster immunity against various diseases. Some of them include strawberries, apples, pomegranates, pineapples, grapefruits, and Jeju oranges.
The body’s demand for vitamin C varies depending on how much a person smokes, drinks, exercises, and consumes unsaturated fatty acids.
Smoking discourages the absorption of vitamin C. Smokers and drinkers have low levels of vitamin C in their serums.
Vitamin C is water soluble, so consuming it in large quantities poses no problem since the human body uses what’s needed and excretes the rest through urine.
Excess vitamin C exits the human body six hours after consumption. As such, consuming tablets of vitamin C two or three times a day, rather than consuming in large quantities, can maximize the effect.
Jeju tangerines. (image: Jeju Provincial Office)
Tangerines and tangors, common winter fruits, contain large amounts of vitamin C, which bolsters immunity and stimulates metabolism.
Their antioxidant qualities prevent aging and resolve fatigue. Citric acid, responsible for the sour flavor, filters the blood and cures heartburn.
Dried tangerine peel, named ‘Jinpi’ by oriental herbalists, is used in recipes for oriental medicine. The peel contains four times more vitamin C than the pulp, so it is often boiled in water and consumed as tea.
Tangerines and tangors also contain Vitamin A to E, which is why many people call them the ‘golden vitamin supplement’.
Apples, popular in all four seasons, are also an excellent source of vitamin C.
In addition, apples contain pectin, dietary fiber, and minerals, which helps block off the entry of harmful viruses.
Pectin, in particular, contains large amounts of dietary fiber, which cleans up all toxic substances in the intestines that account for 70 percent of immunity.
South Korea is considered one of the most sleep-deprived countries in the world. (image: Korea Bizwire)
Getting enough sleep is also important for strong immunity.
The Korean Academy of Sleep Medicine (KASM), celebrating World Sleep Day on Friday, announced sleeping guidelines for stronger immunity on Thursday as one of the ways to tackle the coronavirus.
The academy explained that not getting enough sleep weakens the T cells, the overseer of immunity, and exposes the human body to the risk of infection.
“A good sleep affects the human body more than one can expect,” said Prof. Jung Ki-young, president of KASM. “In addition to wearing a protective mask and washing hands, sleeping well on a regular basis is important.”
The academy’s five sleep recommendations include getting at least seven hours of sleep, waking up at the same time every morning, turning off music or videos when going to sleep, avoid worrying in bed, and maintaining appropriate temperature and humidity levels.
H. M. Kang (hmkang@koreabizwire.com)
