More Information About The Coronavirus

The New York Post posted an article today about some new research regarding the coronavirus.

The article reports:

The bacteria lurking in COVID-19 patients’ intestines may play a role in how sick they get from the illness, according to new research.

Although the coronavirus is primarily a respiratory disease, there is increasing evidence that suggests the GI tract is involved, scientists at the Chinese University of Hong Kong said.

The team studied samples from 100 patients treated at two Hong Kong hospitals to see how the so-called microbiome in the digestive system might affect recovery from the deadly bug.

“Gut microbiome composition was significantly altered in patients with COVID-19 compared with non-COVID-19 individuals irrespective of whether patients had received medication,” they wrote in the British Medical Journal’s publication Gut.

“Based on several patients surveyed in this study for up to 30 days after clearing SARS-CoV-2, the gut microbiota is likely to remain significantly altered after recovery from COVID-19,” they said. 

The researchers said patients with severe illness exhibit high blood plasma levels of inflammatory cytokines and inflammatory markers — and that there is “substantial involvement” of the GI tract during infection, given “altered gut microbiota composition in SARS-CoV-2 infected subjects.”

As I have previously posted, my husband and I had the coronavirus. We had very mild cases. His impacted his lungs and mine impacted my stomach. Oddly enough, we had been on an anti-inflammatory diet before contracting the disease. Based on this article, that may be responsible for our mild cases.

Coronavirus is serious. It can have a lasting impact. However, there are some interesting statistics on how likely you are to die from it. Craven County North Carolina has a population of approximately 101,940 people. In that county, 87 people have died from the coronavirus. That is a percentage of .000853 (rounded up to .001). The mortality rate from the regular flu in people over the age of 65 is .001. (information from statista) In younger age groups the mortality rate for the regular flu is much lower.

Stay safe. Wash your hands frequently. Stay away from sick people, and don’t go anywhere when you don’t feel well. But relax. This too will pass.