Covid 19 is still here; booster vaccines are available
>> Monday, May 2, 2022
WELLNEWS
Victor
Romulo Gallardo Dumaguing MD
AN APPEAL, a plea and a stern order rolled into one is the fervent and impassioned message by no less than President Rodrigo Roa Duterte for Filipinos to wear facial mask up to the end of his term, and that’s perfectly understandable, not only because of the inputs and feedbacks regularly provided by the Interagency Task Force (IATF) but by the alarming surge of Covid 19 in countries much financially higher than us-thus can afford all the vaccines they need- but the proximity of countries besieged by the virus-China and Hong Kong- to our islands , a fact more disconcerting by the loosening of international travel to the Philippines.
On the positive side, even our Department of Health has publicly acknowledged the encouraging pattern of decrease in active cases, low positivity rate, low utilization of hospital facilities and for the most part, asymptomatic or mildly-affected Covid-infected persons; a feat and a hard-earned achievement of our dedicated doctors, nurses, contact tracers, medtechs as well as scientist and experts who shared their skills and knowledge in the prevention of transmissibility as well as in the management of Covid cases, which hopefully open the eyes of Bloomberg to be more objective and fair in their assessment of the Philippines’ handing of the pandemic.
Be that as it may, the writings are still clearly written on the wall, so to speak, that as the DOH itself also emphasized, we are not out of the woods yet. A collective sigh of relief reverberated across the globe when Omicron took over the devastating presence of the Delta variant, although more transmissible, Omicron was not as infectious or more virulent than Delta so much so that eager and excited experts trumpeted the demise of a pandemic into a more manageable endemic illness.
Viruses, unfortunately, even they contain only either DNA or RNA, are wily in that, among the microbes, they have the greatest capacity for mutation- a process in which there is a significant change in their genome or genetic characteristics. Wily as they are, or entitled as some may call them, they are not so smart, in the sense that in the process of replication-multiplication or making copies of themselves- there may be some slight errors or mistakes especially in the quality (kind) or quantity (amount) of amino acids in their structure. The surface receptors of the Covid 19 virus in Wuhan has undergone varied changes that brought the alpha, beta, kappa, and delta and later the Omicron, which in its wake, a sublineage of B.1 and B.2 emerged. And with almost similar but not exactly the same genome, B.1 and B.2 underwent recombination process, voila, Omicron Ex- a not so well understood yet variant but with a potential of wreaking havoc to our still slowly-recovering world.
And maybe for the nth time, we are made aware that our immunity wanes within 3-6 months, with our natural immunoglobulin- IgM and IgG- eventually decreasing making us susceptible to infections, especially Covid and other life-threatening illnesses.
Thus, the urgent need for booster doses, on top of the primary vaccines-first and second dose spaced apart-. Why? Because while it’s true active case are down, most new cases are among the unvaccinated and more alarming are statistics of more unvaccinated persons, especially among the elderlies and those with co-morbidities having serious and even fatal Covid 19.
Considering the global situation, especially during the early part of the pandemic, I would like to rise, above political stripes and religious persuasions that the Philippine government has fought, tooth and nail the scourge of Covid 19 and indeed, they did a good job- a concerted effort of those who procured, secured the storage and potency of vaccines as well as their efficient orderly roll-out to the citizens. Again the Corona SARS Cov2 and its variants are still around and booster doses are aplenty.
Incidentally, I just got my Moderna booster jab, how about you?
AN APPEAL, a plea and a stern order rolled into one is the fervent and impassioned message by no less than President Rodrigo Roa Duterte for Filipinos to wear facial mask up to the end of his term, and that’s perfectly understandable, not only because of the inputs and feedbacks regularly provided by the Interagency Task Force (IATF) but by the alarming surge of Covid 19 in countries much financially higher than us-thus can afford all the vaccines they need- but the proximity of countries besieged by the virus-China and Hong Kong- to our islands , a fact more disconcerting by the loosening of international travel to the Philippines.
On the positive side, even our Department of Health has publicly acknowledged the encouraging pattern of decrease in active cases, low positivity rate, low utilization of hospital facilities and for the most part, asymptomatic or mildly-affected Covid-infected persons; a feat and a hard-earned achievement of our dedicated doctors, nurses, contact tracers, medtechs as well as scientist and experts who shared their skills and knowledge in the prevention of transmissibility as well as in the management of Covid cases, which hopefully open the eyes of Bloomberg to be more objective and fair in their assessment of the Philippines’ handing of the pandemic.
Be that as it may, the writings are still clearly written on the wall, so to speak, that as the DOH itself also emphasized, we are not out of the woods yet. A collective sigh of relief reverberated across the globe when Omicron took over the devastating presence of the Delta variant, although more transmissible, Omicron was not as infectious or more virulent than Delta so much so that eager and excited experts trumpeted the demise of a pandemic into a more manageable endemic illness.
Viruses, unfortunately, even they contain only either DNA or RNA, are wily in that, among the microbes, they have the greatest capacity for mutation- a process in which there is a significant change in their genome or genetic characteristics. Wily as they are, or entitled as some may call them, they are not so smart, in the sense that in the process of replication-multiplication or making copies of themselves- there may be some slight errors or mistakes especially in the quality (kind) or quantity (amount) of amino acids in their structure. The surface receptors of the Covid 19 virus in Wuhan has undergone varied changes that brought the alpha, beta, kappa, and delta and later the Omicron, which in its wake, a sublineage of B.1 and B.2 emerged. And with almost similar but not exactly the same genome, B.1 and B.2 underwent recombination process, voila, Omicron Ex- a not so well understood yet variant but with a potential of wreaking havoc to our still slowly-recovering world.
And maybe for the nth time, we are made aware that our immunity wanes within 3-6 months, with our natural immunoglobulin- IgM and IgG- eventually decreasing making us susceptible to infections, especially Covid and other life-threatening illnesses.
Thus, the urgent need for booster doses, on top of the primary vaccines-first and second dose spaced apart-. Why? Because while it’s true active case are down, most new cases are among the unvaccinated and more alarming are statistics of more unvaccinated persons, especially among the elderlies and those with co-morbidities having serious and even fatal Covid 19.
Considering the global situation, especially during the early part of the pandemic, I would like to rise, above political stripes and religious persuasions that the Philippine government has fought, tooth and nail the scourge of Covid 19 and indeed, they did a good job- a concerted effort of those who procured, secured the storage and potency of vaccines as well as their efficient orderly roll-out to the citizens. Again the Corona SARS Cov2 and its variants are still around and booster doses are aplenty.
Incidentally, I just got my Moderna booster jab, how about you?
Nutritional needs of the elderlies
Victor
Romulo Gallardo Dumaguing MD
First and foremost, the author wish to correct last statement in the past Sunday issue which said “so for the ‘mercury’ tablets sent by well-meaning friends; the word ‘ mercury’ should have been Omega-3-fish oil tablets. There are no mercury tablets. The message is, since the source of some omega-3 fish oils are from deep sea fishes, where mercury may have settled, a few fish oils might be tainted with HgCl2, and thus it’s safe to bring them to your family doctor for his evaluation.
As of latest statistics, senior citizens comprise 9% of the 110 million + Filipinos and probably more. Epidemiological studies show that with better medical services and a high awareness of senior citizens of the health benefits of combined sensible dietary choices plus some reasonable mobility exercises, more and more elderlies are enjoying the so-called sunset years of their lives.
However, certain realities exists. Once a person is officially declared a “senior”- 60 or 65 years old- even those with ideal lifestyles- no vices, good hygiene, restful sleep- there would be significant changes in the different organs of the body.
For the nutritional needs of the seniors, let’s zero into the digestive process. We are born with about 40,000 taste buds receptors in our tongue, which at 40 years after, there would have been a big decrease in their number, with only sweetness and salty receptors being active, thus old folks prefer those food with the exclusion of other nutrients. Most likely, their dentition Is,- now mostly dentures-false teeth- which if ill-fitting- would affect the mastication(chewing) and thus lessen the appreciation of the texture and taste of the food.
Absorption of nutrients is also a factor- from the mucosa of the stomach to the small intestines- duodenum, jejunum-where most absorption takes place; ileum, up to colon or large intestines where water is reabsorbed back into the blood, thus explains why most stools are solid or at least, semi-solid.
Thus, there is the glaring fact that, there are now certain gaps in the nutritional needs of the elderlies and that’s where food supplements can be helpful.
With the kind permission of our editor, allow me to share with our readers the adult nutritional supplement ENTRASOL Platinum which offers” balanced nutrition” ; to wit, high protein for cell repair and regeneration, 75% whey protein for easy absorption as well as prevention of muscle loss, its 80% inulin-not insulin- is high-fiber which is useful in healthy bowel function, easy regular defecation, and with its 20% beta glucan, would help strengthen the immune system, together with Vitamin C, D, E and the essential Zinc. For strong bones, aside from Vitamin D, there is also calcium and the presence of magnesium contributes to good functioning of heart muscles. A big bonus is its zero content of trans fat, thus it does not cause lipid problems, like cholesterol or triglycerides.
The life of every living organism on Earth- humans, animals, plants- is dictated and programmed by our DNA, which includes physiologic-normal- ageing process of the different cells and organs of the human body, which obviously beyond our absolute control. We take consolation with the fact that somehow, we can modify it, even delay its onslaught by lifestyle changes and sensible nutritional choices.
Hashtags of Entrasol Platinum, “Get More, Be More”. We add, Know More, ask your Doctor!
First and foremost, the author wish to correct last statement in the past Sunday issue which said “so for the ‘mercury’ tablets sent by well-meaning friends; the word ‘ mercury’ should have been Omega-3-fish oil tablets. There are no mercury tablets. The message is, since the source of some omega-3 fish oils are from deep sea fishes, where mercury may have settled, a few fish oils might be tainted with HgCl2, and thus it’s safe to bring them to your family doctor for his evaluation.
As of latest statistics, senior citizens comprise 9% of the 110 million + Filipinos and probably more. Epidemiological studies show that with better medical services and a high awareness of senior citizens of the health benefits of combined sensible dietary choices plus some reasonable mobility exercises, more and more elderlies are enjoying the so-called sunset years of their lives.
However, certain realities exists. Once a person is officially declared a “senior”- 60 or 65 years old- even those with ideal lifestyles- no vices, good hygiene, restful sleep- there would be significant changes in the different organs of the body.
For the nutritional needs of the seniors, let’s zero into the digestive process. We are born with about 40,000 taste buds receptors in our tongue, which at 40 years after, there would have been a big decrease in their number, with only sweetness and salty receptors being active, thus old folks prefer those food with the exclusion of other nutrients. Most likely, their dentition Is,- now mostly dentures-false teeth- which if ill-fitting- would affect the mastication(chewing) and thus lessen the appreciation of the texture and taste of the food.
Absorption of nutrients is also a factor- from the mucosa of the stomach to the small intestines- duodenum, jejunum-where most absorption takes place; ileum, up to colon or large intestines where water is reabsorbed back into the blood, thus explains why most stools are solid or at least, semi-solid.
Thus, there is the glaring fact that, there are now certain gaps in the nutritional needs of the elderlies and that’s where food supplements can be helpful.
With the kind permission of our editor, allow me to share with our readers the adult nutritional supplement ENTRASOL Platinum which offers” balanced nutrition” ; to wit, high protein for cell repair and regeneration, 75% whey protein for easy absorption as well as prevention of muscle loss, its 80% inulin-not insulin- is high-fiber which is useful in healthy bowel function, easy regular defecation, and with its 20% beta glucan, would help strengthen the immune system, together with Vitamin C, D, E and the essential Zinc. For strong bones, aside from Vitamin D, there is also calcium and the presence of magnesium contributes to good functioning of heart muscles. A big bonus is its zero content of trans fat, thus it does not cause lipid problems, like cholesterol or triglycerides.
The life of every living organism on Earth- humans, animals, plants- is dictated and programmed by our DNA, which includes physiologic-normal- ageing process of the different cells and organs of the human body, which obviously beyond our absolute control. We take consolation with the fact that somehow, we can modify it, even delay its onslaught by lifestyle changes and sensible nutritional choices.
Hashtags of Entrasol Platinum, “Get More, Be More”. We add, Know More, ask your Doctor!
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