It’s impossible to talk about travel right now without addressing coronavirus. As the COVID-19 virus continues to spread, sharing accurate information is crucial to both help stem fear and arm ourselves and our loved ones with knowledge. For this reason, we have created a guide on coronavirus, informed by reliable sources like the CDC and World Health Organization. Stay safe and healthy.  WHAT IS CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19)? According to the World Health Organization (WHO), coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV). COVID-19 is a new strain of coronavirus that first emerged in Wuhan, China in 2019 and has since spread from country to country. When people are speaking about coronavirus, it actually refers to a classification of multiple viruses. But, the specific strand that is making headlines today is COVID-19.    WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF COVID-19? The symptoms of COVID-19 include a cough, fever, and shortness of breath. In severe cases, it can lead to larger respiratory problems and kidney problems. Symptoms typically appear 2-14 days after exposure to someone carrying the virus. The speed of transmission is cause for concern and still being studied, but it appears the virus can be contracted via cough and contaminated surfaces.   WHERE HAS THE VIRUS SPREAD SO FAR? As of 19 hours ago, the virus has spread to the following countries illustrated below. As of today (3/11), it has been called a global pandemic. WHY IS THIS ANY WORSE THAN THE FLU? The two key differences between this virus and the flu come down to knowledge and death rate. According to Live Science, scientists have studied the seasonal flu for decades. So, despite its danger, we know a lot about flu viruses and what to expect from them each season. In contrast, we know little about this new coronavirus strain. While we have since developed a flu vaccine and have treatment available, COVID-19 does not yet have available treatment. Likewise, the death rate of the common flu is 0.1% while COVID-19 is proving to have a higher death rate.    HOW CAN I PROTECT MYSELF? You can practice personal hygiene such as washing your hands frequently (for a minimum of 20 seconds each time), not touching your face, disinfecting surfaces, and opt-ing to stay home if feeling unwell. According to WHO, illness due to the virus is generally mild—especially in children and young adults. However, this coronavirus strain can cause serious illness and shouldn’t be taken lightly. About one in five people who catch it need hospital care.    IS THERE A TREATMENT AVAILABLE YET? There is no vaccine and no specific antiviral medicine to prevent or treat this virus. However, those affected should receive care to relieve symptoms. People with serious illness should be hospitalized. Most patients recover thanks to supportive care. HOW DO I KNOW IF I HAVE IT? The availability of coronavirus testing varies from country to country and, in the United States, has political implications. If you are based in the United States, refer to this CDC page for where you can get tested.    DOES CORONAVIRUS IMPACT PREGNANT WOMEN? It appears pregnant women are no more likely than anyone else to have severe symptoms. In an analysis of 147 women, only eight percent experienced a severe disease and one percent were in critical condition, according to a report published by the World Health Organization. In short, you are not at a higher risk if you are pregnant.   WHAT IS THE IMPACT CORONAVIRUS IS HAVING ON TRAVEL? The arrival of COVID-19 has had widespread impacts on the travel industry. “Global travel is effectively shutting down,” explains Mark Zandi, chief economist for Moody’s Analytics. “It’s going to take a while to get it back up and running again. This is going to be a very tough year for the travel and tourism industry.”  According to USA Today, the global travel research firm, Tourism Economics, says the travel industry is feeling the most acute coronavirus pain for three reasons: official travel restrictions, event cancellations (like SXSW), and risk aversion. The ripple effects these three things are hurting airlines, hotels, car rental companies, cruise lines, tourist attractions and other travel businesses worldwide.   FLIGHTS ARE SO CHEAP! SHOULD I BOOK A TRIP? Due to the financial fall out of the travel industry, airfare has never been cheaper. As tempting as it may be to hop on a plane right now, you need to exercise caution both from the standpoint of preventing further community spread and the risk of being stuck elsewhere should quarantine be implemented. Rather than plan an immediate trip, you can take advantage of low cost airfare by booking a vacation for later in the year.

March 3, 2020/ U.S. Pain Foundation

Headache and migraine diseases captured attention nationally throughout February thanks to features on ABC’s Good Morning America, CBS’s Sunday Morning Show, and PBS’s NewsHour. Members of the INvisible Project were highlighted on all three stations.

On Feb. 25, Dr. William B. Young, a headache specialist at Jefferson Headache Center and contributing writer for the INvisible Project, discussed the reality and severity of millions of Americans who have migraine disease on the Sunday Morning Show.

Watch Dr. Young on Sunday Morning Show segment here

That same week, Good Morning America (GMA) ran three segments on migraine. Jaime Sanders (also known as the Migraine Diva) and Robert Pushis and his family were filmed at their homes to show life with chronic migraine. Producers on the medical team for the show found the INvisible Project: 3rd Edition Migraine Diseases online and reached out to the participants to be featured on the show.

Watch Robert Pushis’s GMA story here

Watch Jaime Sander’s GMA story here

On Feb. 26, PBS’s NewsHour aired an eight-minute segment on migraine disease, exploring the state of treatment and advocacy efforts. PBS sent their camera crew to Washington, D.C., the week prior to film parts of Headache on the Hill. The segment featured cameos from two past INvisible Project participants—Dr. Amaal Starling, a headache specialist at Mayo Clinic; Shirley Kessel, founder of Miles for Migraine, whose three generations of family were featured in the first edition—along with INvisible Project writer, Dr. JoAnna Kempner, a sociologist at Rutgers University was also featured as she discussed the stigma of migraine throughout history.

In fact, a total of 19 INvisible Project participants and contributors were spotted.

Watch the NewsHour segment here 

“This has been an amazing month for the migraine and headache disease community,” says Nicole Hemmenway, interim CEO and Director of the INvisible Project. “We are so proud of our past participants for using their voices to speak up, and thrilled we were able to play a small role in helping them get the platform they deserve.”

READ THE LATEST INVISIBLE PROJECT: MIGRAINE DISEASE 

published 3/4/20

About Coronavirus (Covid-19) and Lyme

Many people with and without Lyme are fearful of Coronavirus also called Covid-19. In my Seattle Lyme practice, I am answering questions about what one should do to protect themselves and to boost their immune systems. Many wonder if immune dysregulation, caused by Lyme, increases their chances of acquiring the virus, having a severe case, or even death. 

Here is what I am discussing and recommending.

Coronavirus Severity

First, most people who get Covid-19 have mild to moderate illness. Also, even in Seattle, the chances of getting the infection are quite low. Let’s look more at the numbers.

There are numerous estimates of the death rate for Covid-19. These estimates I have read in the last few days range from 1.4 percent to 3.4 percent. This compares to .1 to .2 percent for the seasonal flu. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, reports from China suggest 16% of people infected with Covid-19 will have a severe illness. This means 84% of people have mild to moderate infections.

While these statistics look bad, they probably dramatically over-estimate the severity of the illness. First, many with the illness appear to go undetected. If all people infected are accurately counted, this would drive down the suggested death rate and rate of severe illness. A great part of the death rate and illness severity is estimated based on cases in China. Compared to the US, the Chinese have a much greater rate of smoking. Smoking injures the lungs making it much more difficult for someone to tolerate the lung infection caused by Coronavirus.

Some experts suggest Covid-19 is much less infectious than the seasonal Flu while others think it is more infectious.  Yet, at this point, even here in Seattle, the chance of getting Covid-19 is very small because this infection is still quite rare.

What About The Person with Lyme

At this time, we have no idea if someone with Lyme will have a greater problem handling this infection than any other person. Just because Lyme may suppress the immune system to fight Lyme, it does not mean the immune system is suppressed to fight other germs like new or even common viruses such as the Flu. In general, people who are over 60 or who have underlying heart or lung issues are the ones who are dying or have complicated illness.

Prevent Covid-19 Infection

There are some simple steps that people can take to prevent getting this infection. These are common recommendations put forward by public health departments like the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Public Health – Seattle & King County. You can download the Seattle & King County flier here.

Avoid Close Contact with People Who Are Sick

Try to stand at least three feet away from someone who is ill or coughing. This decreases your chances of contacting respiratory and mucous droplets that carry the virus. If someone is coughing or sneezing, move away from them.

Wash Your Hands Frequently

Washing your hands for 20 seconds with soap and water or a hand sanitizer removes germs you may pick up. Simple soap works great.

Avoid Touching Your Face, Mouth, Nose, and Eyes

Covid-19 is spread through respiratory droplets. If these get on your hands and then you touch your face or parts of your face, you could spread the virus to yourself.

Support Your Innate Immune System

There are two parts of the immune system that fight infections. One part is called the “innate immune system” and the other is called the “acquired immune system”. The innate immune system fights new germs, like Covid-19, the body has never seen before.

The acquired immune system includes cells and antibodies primed to fight infections which the immune system has learned to fight. For instance, in chronic Lyme it is white blood cells and antibodies in the acquired immune system that help fight the infection. The acquired immune system also is activated by vaccines. See How to Boost The Immune System in Lyme for information about how to support the acquired immune system. 

To fight Covid-19, it is the innate immune system that will act first. The innate immune system is composed of barriers like our skin and mucous membranes like those in the nose. It includes various types of immune cells like Natural Killer Cells (NK), Dendritic Cells, Macrophages, Phagocytes, and Mast Cells. Some of the innate immune cells produce protein virus and bacteria germ killers.

A healthy lifestyle helps. Both parts of the immune system work best when one gets seven to nine hours of sleep a night. Emotional toxins like stress and worry suppress immune function – so find ways to destress like counseling, meditation, keep hobbies, visit friends, and exercise. 

There are a number of supplements one can take to support and boost the innate immune system.

• Vitamin A supports mucous membranes that act like a barrier to keep germs out. Vitamin A also regulates the immune system.
• Vitamin D modulates the immune system, prevents excess inflammation, helps macrophages kill germs, and increases antimicrobial proteins that kill germs. In the case of the Flu, people who take Vitamin D regularly have marked decrease in Flu symptoms and the severity of the Flu compared to those who do not take Vitamin D and have the Flu.
• Beta-Glucans found in mushrooms like Reishi turn on Macrophages, NK cells, and Phagocytes.
• Transfer Factors are proteins made by immune cells that turn on various cells like NK cells. One product made by Researched Nutritionals called Transfer Factor Multi-Immune is shown in a very small study to improve NK function by 600%.
• Probiotics appear to prime most innate immune system cells.
• Glutathione appears to help Dendritic Cells. This can be increased either by taking liposomal glutathione or N-Acetyl-Cysteine (NAC) which is a building block for glutathione.

My Recommendation

1. Prevent contact with the Covid-19 infection.
   See “Prevent Covid-19 Infection” section above or the Public Health – Seattle & King County flier for more information.
2. Practice a healty immune system supporting lifestyle. 
   Get seven to nine hours of sleep a night. Find ways to lower stress like those mentioned above.
3. Use supplements to support innate immune system function*

• Transfer Factor Multi-Immune by Researched Nutritionals 1 pill 2 times a day
• Reishi Mushrooms 400 mg 1 pill 3 times a day
• Vitamin A 5000 IU 1 time a day
• Vitamin D 5000 IU 1 time a day. Be careful by working with your physician to keep your level between 50-80. Levels above 150 can be toxic.
• Probiotics like Corebiotic by Researched Nutritionals or HMF Forte by Seroyal/Genestra 2 pills 1 time a day
• NAC 500mg 1 pill 3 times a day or liposomal glutathione 500 mg 1 time a day.

You can find the supplements I recommend at my Austin, Texas based online store, Marty Ross MD Supplements.

* Be aware there is no research showing these will actually help someone with Lyme who acquires Covid-19. But based on their function, these may help.

Disclaimer

The ideas and recommendations on this website and in this article are for informational purposes only. For more information about this, see the sitewide Terms & Conditions.