Welcome to Dr. Paz’s Newsletter #1

This newsletter will focus on timely topics that can have a direct impact on your health. I plan on publishing a newsletter about once a month on a current medical/nutritional topic in the news.  I am also happy to answer general questions through the newsletter.  I will pick questions of general interest that are sent to me and answer them at the bottom of the newsletter.  If you are interested in sending a question, you can send it to drpaz@drpaz.com.  Please remember,  your questions should be of general medical interest and should not include any patient specific information since this is not a HIPAA compliant email.

A few opening comments:

EVERYONE HAS A BIAS.  Including me.  As you review today’s medical headlines, you  will see “explosive” stories regarding the benefits or failures of drugs and supplements.  Please remember that all of the writers  will tend to have a bias in one direction or another.  For instance, you will frequently find writers from some of the major news agencies who are clearly anti-vitamin/anti-nutritional supplements. I will try to sort through the hyperbole and give you the straight scoop regarding studies and medical information.  Since I am an integrative physician, comfortable in using both standard medicine as well as nutritional therapies, I will make every effort to look at the information from both sides.

IT’S JUST MY OPINION. The opinions in my newsletter are based on my interpretation of the literature and my personal experience from tens of thousands of medical visits over the last 37 years.

TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR. The information I share in this newsletter is meant for general medical information purposes and is not specific to your medical care. Before you initiate any therapy you should discuss it with your doctor.  If your doctor is not open to discussing nutritional therapies, maybe it is time to find a new doctor…..

With that said let's move on to Newsletter #1.

THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM

I felt I had to dedicate our 1st newsletter to the obvious: Covid-19. Needless to say, there is a huge amount of misinformation regarding this disease and how it can impact your life.  Without question, your best source of up to date information can be found at cdc.gov.  Yes, it is trustworthy.  The information found there is not political, but based on scientific evidence.

Does the press  have you scared?  If you follow the mainstream media, it certainly seems that “the sky is falling” every day.  Certainly, Covid-19 is a serious illness.  Yes, it can absolutely be life-threatening in the wrong patient population.  However, I think you need to put things into perspective.  According to the American Council on Science and Health, the most recent Covid-19 death rate statistics are as follows:

Age           Group Death Rate %

0-4             0.003

5-9             0.001

10-14         0.001

15-19         0.003

20-24         0.006

25-29         0.013

30-34         0.024

35-39         0.040

40-44         0.075

45-49         0.121

50-54         0.207

55-59         0.323

60-64         0.456

65-69         1.075

70-74         1.674

75-79         3.203

80+            8.292

In other words, if you are 40 years old, your chances of dying if you catch Covid-19 are 7.5/10,000(0.075%). If you are 80 years old, your chances are 8/100(8%). As you can see, catching Covid-19 is not a guaranteed death sentence, but the older you are, the greater your risk.

For those of you who are skeptical regarding Covid statistics, thinking that they may be skewed for political or other reasons, you may want to pay attention to the EXCESS DEATH RATE.  This is the number of people who died through the year that is over and above our usual death rate.  According to the CDC, from January 26, 2020, through October 3, 2020, an estimated 299,028 more persons than expected have died in the United States.. Two thirds of excess deaths during the analysis period (66.2%; 198,081) were attributed to COVID-19 and the remaining third to other causes.

So, it becomes clear that your chances of becoming severely ill and dying depend on who you are and your underlying medical conditions. The groups that need to be the most cautious are those over the age of 65 and those with significant medical conditions such as heart disease, uncontrolled diabetes, kidney disease and COPD.  Certainly, anyone with a compromised immune system would also be at risk.

Do masks and social distancing work? The preponderance of evidence suggests that masks and social distancing can be helpful, but are not perfect.  I would compare a mask to wearing a seatbelt in your car.  Your chances of dying in an accident if you wear your seatbelt are less, but they are not zero. The mask may decrease the total volume of virus exposure that you get at one time, giving your immune system a chance to fight off the invader better, rather than getting a very high dose of virus which can overwhelm your immune system.

Can supplements help? While no supplements are approved to prevent or treat Covid-19 disease, there are many studies that support supplements to stimulate and improve your immune system.  The following are my top supplements to improve immune system function.  I routinely recommend the first  3 for patients who have been exposed to Covid-19. As always, check with your doctor before starting any supplement regimen and to verify appropriate dosing. Some supplements can interact with prescription drugs, so be careful.

VITAMIN D. Thousands of studies have been published on the potential benefits of vitamin D to enhance your immune system.  A recent study out of France showed that a very high percentage of patients admitted to the intensive care unit for Covid 19 were VITAMIN D deficient.  This would suggest a strong correlation.  The dose of VITAMIN D should be determined by blood levels.  In my opinion, optimal levels are between 50 and 80.  When choosing the brand, a liquid capsule is preferred.  Since VITAMIN D is fat-soluble, it is best taken with food.

VITAMIN C.  VITAMIN C is known to support a variety of immune cell functions.  It is also a natural antioxidant and can protect cells against oxidative stress, which can negatively affect  the immune system. Studies have supported the use of VITAMIN C in the range of 1-2 grams per day in reducing the duration of viral illnesses. Because high single doses of VITAMIN C are poorly absorbed, if you are going to take VITAMIN C it should be taken in divided doses, no more than 500 mg at a time .Gastrointestinal side-effects can be common.

ZINC. Zinc deficiency is well known to adversely affect your immune system, increasing the risk of infection.  Zinc deficiency is quite common, affecting his many as 2 billion people worldwide.  There is evidence that zinc supplementation may protect against respiratory tract infections such as the common cold and may also be beneficial in those who are already sick. Short-term use of high-dose think may be useful for acute illness, but you should use some caution with long-term use since it is known to deplete other minerals such as copper. I generally prefer the zinc gluconate form.

Elderberry. Black Elderberry has shown potential as an antiviral and antibacterial for upper respiratory infections such as the influenza virus.  It seems to have general immune enhancing properties. It is most typically available in liquid form.

Medicinal mushrooms. Mushrooms have been used for thousands of years for their immune boosting properties.  There is a very long list of mushrooms that are known to have immune enhancing effects.  The most commonly used mushrooms are Cordyceps, Turkey Tail, Maitake, Shiitake and Reishi.  All of which have shown some benefit in immune health.  These can typically be found as a combination product. A good example would be Immucore by Metagenics.

Astragalus. Astragalus is an herb commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine.  Studies support its immune enhancing benefits.

Andrographis.  Andrographis this is another herb containing compounds called to terpenoids, which seem to have ANTIVIRAL effects related to respiratory illnesses.

Melatonin. There is some preliminary evidence that MELATONIN, the hormone of sleep, can help reduce the risk of cytokine storm, Which is the potentially deadly consequence of developing a Covid-19 infection. A sustained released product is generally best.

Pepcid. While not a supplement, but an over-the-counter drug,( generic name: FAMOTIDINE) seems to have the potential to reduce severe Covid-19.

You are receiving this newsletter because you have signed up through 1 of my NUTRACEUTICAL partners, either METAGENICS or FULLSCRIPT.  If you think the newsletter has some value to you and you would like to share it with your friends, they can signed up by sending me a message at drpaz@drpaz.com.

Extremely high-quality versions of the supplements mentioned above can be obtained through the following pharmacy links:  Metagenics and Fullscript .