Written by Dr Sandra Miranda, ND

First of all, on behalf of our clinic, our hearts and thoughts go out to the people who have been affected so far by this virus and we appreciate the healthcare workers and all others around the world who are on the front line working to contain this coronavirus. Please know that at the Miranda Naturopathic Clinic, we are vigilantly monitoring the COVID-19 situation around the clock.

I am not scared of COVID-19.  I am concerned of the consequences of this novel infection and the loss of reason and wave of fear that people are feeling.  I am rightly concerned for the safety of those who are elderly, in frail health, taking immunosuppressive therapy, diabetic, and with pre-existing respiratory conditions.

But, I am not scared of COVID-19.  The truth is that this virus itself will not likely do much harm if you are exposed to it, unless you are immune compromised.

Let’s be careful with what message we are telling our children when faced with a threat.  Instead of reason, rationality, we are telling them to panic, to be fearful, and to only “fight for yourself above all else”

This Coronavirus is nowhere near over.  It will most likely be coming to our city, it may affect a friend, or even a family member near you at some point.  Let’s stop panicking and let’s try to be proactive about it. 

Here are some tips to boost your immune system so that if you do come in contact with this virus, you can be sure to have only mild symptoms and not a long lasting illness.

• Don’t forget your vitamin D! Vitamin D in my opinion is one of the strongest vitamins to boost up our immune system.  Most people are so deficient on vitamin D that they can benefit from at least 3,000 IU or 4,000 IU per day.  The best way of knowing how much vitamin D you need is to get a blood test done.  The level that we are trying to achieve for best immune system protection is over 145 nmol/L.

• At the clinic, we love to keep oregano oil handy at all times.  Oregano oil has anti-viral properties.  We have all started to take 3 drops of oregano oil 2 x day preventatively.  Of course, you can increase the frequency if you feel like you are starting to get sick.  Be careful if you have a sensitive stomach or acid reflux – it can be pretty spicy.

• Take your probiotics!  But make sure you are taking a good therapeutic dose- a minimum of about 40 billion bacteria daily.  Remember that a healthy gut means a healthy immune system.

• If you take homeopathic remedies, then you should know that the government of India has officially announced Metallicum album as the likely best homeopathic remedy to take to prevent getting severely sick from Coronavirus.  If you do get sick then take this remedy more frequently but if it does not seem to be boosting your immune system enough then consider other remedies such as Gelsemium, Influenzinum, or Mercurius depending on your symptoms. Of course, if you are not sure, then contact us or your local Naturopathic Doctor for a more personalized advice.

• There is probably no better time to consider getting Vitamin C IV treatments.  This therapy is a method of infusing vitamins (especially vitamin C), minerals, and antioxidants directly into the vein so that it can be delivered to your cells in a safe and effective manner. We use the nutrients that are injected to us 10x more than just taking them orally.  Vitamin C IV therapy is even being used in many hospitals to treat patients who are infected.  This therapy is an immune system modulator that has been proven to be effective for many infections including viral infections.  It can be used to boost up your immune system and/or it can be used to treat an infected patient as well. This treatment is not expensive and very effective.  Call us for more information or you can contact your local Naturopathic Doctor.

Let’s allow this opportunity to be a learning experience.  Let’s learn better health hygiene measures, how to naturally boost our immune system and how to not forget to think of others and not just ourselves.  Let’s stop thinking “worst case scenarios” and let’s meet this challenge together, with the best spirit of compassion for others and patience.