Updates 4/29/2020, 11/5/2020. What kills the virus? First, a review of what we know so far.

A Review

Name Origin COVID-19, short for “Coronavirus Disease, 2019,” {Forbes} is the name of the disease. It is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, previously called nCoV2019 short for 2019 novel coronavirus. {Wiki} SARS stands for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome. China objected to it being called the “Wuhan Coronavirus” or the “China virus” as there was concern that this would lead to others discriminating against Chinese people. {Forbes} The COVID-19 pandemic is the second SARS outbreak. A smaller outbreak of a virus with some similar properties took place from 2002 to 2004. That severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic was caused by SARS-CoV, which is not SARS-CoV-2, they are different viruses with some importantly different characteristics. The first SARS outbreak was first identified in Foshan, Guangdong, China (about 600 miles south of Wuhan) in November 2002. Over 8,000 people from 29 different countries and territories were infected by SARS, with at least 774 died worldwide and cases were reported up until May 2004. 

Origins.  Just as the original SARS was traced to a “wet market” in Foshan, Guangdong where that virus started, the SARS-CoV-2 virus is thought to have originated in a “wet market” in the city of Wuhan in China, {AgeWar} although this is not universally accepted. {NYPost} The SARS-CoV-2 virus is 80% similar to the first SARS virus. {SciAlert}. A codon is a sequence of three consecutive nucleotides that results in an amino acid. {MW} Early genetic analysis showed strong codon similarities to those in two snakes: Bungarus multicinctus (the many-banded krait) and Naja atra (the Chinese cobra). These snakes were sold at the Wuhan seafood and animal market, but there is no evidence snakes can contract the virus. {Nature} Some say it originated in bats. {PocetICU} An unpublished work found the circulating virus to be 99% similar to viruses in pangolins, scaly long-snouted, ant-eating mammals which though protected, are illegally used in Traditional Chinese Medicine. {Nature} Pangolins could have been sold illegally at the market in Wuhan, China, where the first cases of COVID-19 became public.

Death Rate, Flu Comparison. The ordinary flu has a death rate of around 0.1% {NYT} and for this pandemic the eventual death rate is predicted to be 1% but it could be higher or lower. {Slate} A 1% mortality rate makes COVID-19 ten times more deadly than the flu. At this time, given the number of officially confirmed cases and reported deaths, the worldwide mortality rate is 5.36% ( deaths/cases * 100 = %) It has taken over 50,000 lives in a few months. {Timeline} On April 2, 2020, the number of cases worldwide reached 1 million. {BNONews} Ten days later, by April 12 there were 2 million cases. {TheDenv}

When did it start? By knowing the rate viruses mutate and by looking at the rate of mutation of 24 different genetic sequences of the virus, Andrew Rambaut of the University of Edinburgh, an expert on viral evolution, estimates that the virus appeared no earlier than October 30, 2019 and no later than November 29, 2019.  {SlateNews}

What is a Virus?

A virus is a fairly simple thing, a protein coating [called a capsid] around the genome, which is DNA or RNA, depending on the virus type. {Wiki} A virus is not a living organism, but when deactivated, it is said to have been “killed.” A general lack of science literacy is causing a lot of misinformation to be spread. {Wiki} One claim stated, “a virus is a protein molecule (DNA),” which is false. DNA is not a protein. A virus is not a protein. There is no DNA in the COVID-19 virus. It has RNA. RNA is not DNA.

Size of a Virus. Here is an electron microscope image of Covid19 virus. A nice demo shows the size of a virus, from the exploratorium: YouTube Video, but note that contrary to what the presenter says, we can see some very large viruses under a light microscope, and we can see all viruses under electron microscopes. Forbes (4/15/2020) says COVID-19 is “only about 50 nanometers (about 1/1000th the width of a typical human hair) across” while the New York Times said on 7/9/2020 that it is approximately 0.125 micron (125 nanometers) in diameter. {NYTimes}

Structure of Virus. The SARS-CoV-2 virus is a structure consisting of RNA, proteins and lipids. It’s instructions or genetic program are carried by a single strand of RNA which means the viral genome of 29,903 bases can be immediately turned into viral proteins by a human cell’s protein-making machine, the ribosomes according to virologist Kurt Williamson. {Statesman}  Unlike rhinoviruses which cause the common cold, coronaviruses like the COVID-19 virus are enveloped, meaning they have a casing made of fat building blocks called lipids. The lipid envelope is easily damaged by most disinfectants, thereby neutralizing its capacity to infect. {Psqh} The virus also has “feet” or projections made of proteins. These connect to molecules in the lungs called ACE2 then the virus injects the RNA payload, causing the cell to reproduce more virus with its molecular “machinery.” {Nature} The virus is a structure, one that can be broken and deactivated. The protein feet, the lipid envelope, the inner protein container and the RNA that all make up this virus can be destroyed in several ways.

How it Infects. The virus hijacks your cells to reproduce. See how here. To enter cells, coronaviruses spike proteins must bind to certain outer parts of cells (cellular receptors) and the human host cell’s proteases (protein breaking enzymes) must prime the virus spike proteins. SARS-S engages angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) as the entry receptor {Li et al., 2003} and employs the cellular serine protease TMPRSS2 for S protein priming. {Glowacka et al., 2011, Matsuyama et al., 2010, Shulla et al., 2011} It was found that a serine protease inhibitor blocks SARS-CoV-2 infection of lung cells. {Cell}

How it is Different: SARS-CoV-2 is not like other viruses, such as the flu, which usually interfere with two sets of genes: those that prevent viruses from replicating and others that send immune cells to the infection site to kill viruses.  SARS-CoV-2 does inhibit genes that stop the virus from copying itself but it allows the genes that call for immune cell reinforcements.  This causes the virus to multiply and an overproduction of immune cells to flood in, causing unmitigated inflammation. Once infected, drugs such as interleukin-6 and interleukin-1 inhibitors could help mitigate cytokine storms. {YourDest}

Attacking More than Lungs: The few autopsies done have revealed Covid-19 is no ordinary respiratory disease. The virus is killing by ravaging the circulatory system. {MSN} The virus may directly attack the lining of the heart and lining of blood vessels which, like the nose and alveoli, are rich in ACE2 receptors. {SciMag} This explains its wide array of symptoms — from the toes to the brain — that have previously baffled experts. {Yahoo} By interfering with microcirculation, it can lead to multiple organ failures. {Scmp} John J. Marini, MD explained that the lung gets the most blood flow of any organ of the body. Normally, when part of the lung is damaged, tiny blood vessels constrict to redirect blood to still working areas. This protects the body from a drop in oxygen. Damage to vessels that prevents this protective constriction leads to low oxygen and sometimes death with Covid-19.  {WebMD}

Chemical and physical agents including natural radiation, extremes of pH and temperature and proteolytic and nucleolytic enzymes will destroy or disable the virus.

Overall Personal Strategy

Increase Your Odds. No single solution works, but most people who get it recover. Too many do not,  however, this is a deadly virus, so take it seriously. Your best strategy is a layered approach, starting with the things that make the biggest difference: Avoid contact. Keep away from other people during the pandemic. Sanitize surfaces with a disinfectant that works (see below). Wash your hands correctly and frequently with soap. Don’t touch your face. Wear gloves and a mask when appropriate. Build up your immune system.

Twenty little 5% improvements can add up to the 100% odds you need to survive. We can kill this virus outside of the body in a number of ways. If you do get the virus, there are many things that may help your body to fight it. As you recover, it will seem to get better, then much worse, so don’t let down your guard.

Mass Testing to Contain It

In the big picture, mass testing and isolation of the sick is the best way we humans have right now to stop this pandemic, if tests work and are accurate. Experience in Vo, a small city in Northern Italy, has shown that the way to stop this virus is to test everyone, with symptoms or not, and to isolate those who test positive. {Guardian} The death rate in Germany is much lower than in other countries, {WashPost} though it is climbing. Reasons suggested include the German penchant for strict rule following and also their government’s programs of all inclusive mass testing. Mass testing of people of all ages, sick or not, allows the country to keep the infectious people away from everyone else. This mass testing strategy was also effective in South Korea. {DailyBeast} There currently are not enough tests, however. If available, the WHO recommends two negative tests at least 24 hours apart to be recognized as recovered from the virus. {WHO} We suggest organizing into isolation zones, creating “virus free,” “unknown,” and “quarantine” zones with available tests. If we can not make enough tests (Vo tested everyone twice) we will need to fight in other ways.

Avoid Getting Covid-19 Virus

Avoid Contact

The best way to avoid getting the Covid-19 virus is to avoid all contact with it … but how, if those spreading it sometimes have no symptoms? {NEJM, SciAlert} Virus is different. People who seem fine, people without symptoms are spreading SARS-CoV-2. This virus is spread about 10% of the time, or more, by those with no symptoms. {KXAN}. Not accepting this observation has probably been our biggest mistake so far.

Thus, until mass testing is available, assume everyone has it. {NatReview} Avoid being close to other people as much as possible. Lay in supplies while wearing a mask and sterilizing surfaces of supplies as you obtain them. Ideally, be prepared for a variety of disasters. Have food and water and a way to cook and keep food cool without electricity for months. Just having a week of stored food and water you can prepare at home is a good first step for many.

Close Contact Transmits Virus. An ICU doctor on the front lines in New York City {Vimeo} has said that experience is showing them that without close sustained contact with a sick person or with someone who is about to be sick in the next few days, the virus is not transmitted by air. We hope this is true, however, the virus remains active for up to 3 days suspended in the air {CNBC}, and, as we noted, people can spread it when they are not showing symptoms. Also the incubation period (the period from getting it to having symptoms) seems to be 2 to 14 days–5.1 days is the average {NewAtlas}, and it may be even longer, so play it safe with social distancing.

Contagious with no Symptoms. How long can people be silently infected? Some have suggested the incubation period, the time between exposure and having obvious symptoms, could be up to a month or more. The CDC says symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus. {CDC} One report said that in 1% of cases, the incubation period in China was “more than 20 days.”  Within the incubation period, the period of communicability starts. In one case, the incubation period seemed to be 27 days. {NewsMed} An Italian town found that 40% of cases had no symptoms. {Reuters} Once the virus makes itself known, an obviously sick person will make another person obviously sick most commonly in about 4.6 days. {MedRxIV} The “serial interval” of a virus is the time it takes for symptoms to appear in two people with the virus, the one who infects and the infected second person. The serial interval does not tell us the total period of communicability, also called the period of infectiousness, the earliest to latest time an infected person can infect others. {Canada} This is difficult to calculate and the level of infectiousness can vary considerably during the course of the infectious period. {OUP}

Where is the Virus found? The virus is found both on surfaces and in the air. SARS-CoV-2 material is more widely disseminated in the environment than first imagined. High levels of the virus contamination was found, with PCR, on commonly used surfaces and in the air of rooms and nearby hallways of COVID-19 patients. {News18} The coronavirus may “linger on” fruits and vegetables handled by a person with the virus, so wash all fruits and vegetables thoroughly before eating them, by running them under water. Soap isn’t needed, according to the Mayo Clinic. The virus hasn’t been detected in drinking water, but has been detected in the stool of some people who are sick with COVID-19. {MayoClinic} Wastewater testing can predict an outbreak in a particular region and doesn’t rely on individuals’ willingness to get tested. {Forbes}

Do HEPA Filters Stop It?

According to the New York times, at 125 nanometers in size, the virus falls squarely within the particle-size range that HEPA filters capture with extraordinary efficiency: 0.01 micron (10 nanometers) and above.

Do Masks Stop It?

Some mostly do. While small particles can “simply pass through” even N95 masks {NewSci}, the right masks help block it or stop it completely if used correctly. A commercially produced “respirator” mask can be rated as N95, N99 or N100 {Elles}.  The N95 type masks are rated to block 95% of particles above  0.3 microns (300 nanometres). Viruses are the smallest airborne microbes, ranging in size from .01 to 0.3 microns (10 to 300 nanometers). Influenza virus is normally 80 to 120 nanometres or 0.08 micron. The COVID-19  (around 125 nano meters) is a bit larger than the flu virus, but still less than 1/2 the size of the openings in an N95 mask. Does that mean the virus will go through? Interestingly, probably not. An N95 mask will likely block the virus due to electrostatic forces. At that small scale, particles are also constantly jostling around due to Brownian Motion {Wiki}, so the viruses will hit the fibers of the mask. 

“Filtration efficiency due to Brownian diffusion increases as particle size decreases. Once the particle is collected onto a fiber, it will adhere to the filter fiber due to Van der Waals forces.”
{3M – PDF}

A statement required by regulation says that an N95 mask is not rated to not block particles 300 nm or smaller, but in tests it probably will. On the CDC’s site we found the following to support that:

It is true that the NIOSH respirator approval criteria involves testing filter performance with 0.3 micrometer particles, however respirator filters do not work like sieves. Particles smaller than 0.3 micrometers are efficiently captured by diffusion and the electrostatic properties of respirator filters. To test performance with nanosize particles, NIOSH did experiments demonstrating that particles down to 4 nanometers are captured with an efficiency greater than the rated efficiency of N95 and P100 filters. Figure 1 in this blog shows the efficiency between 4 and 400 nanometers (from: Shaffer and Rengasamy, 2009). {CDC 20011}

In other words, N95 masks can most likely block the virus.  All of these are, in tests, more effective at stopping viruses than a simple surgical mask.

“The only mask that the CDC considers safe from you getting the coronavirus, the only way to actually prevent you from inhaling it, is the N95 mask,” Captain Michael Doyle, a U.S. Army New York National Guard physician assistant, told USA TODAY. {USAToday}

Perhaps due to low supplies and/or concern that they would not be used correctly by the general public, the CDC stated that they should not be used.

N95 Respirators Not for Use by the Public

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) does not recommend that the general public wear N95 respirators to protect themselves from respiratory diseases, including coronavirus (COVID-19). {FDA}

The CDC’s view was that people wearing masks would feel “overconfident” and this would make them careless and more would die, but now the CDC may be coming around. They may recommend that all Americans wear face masks. {Blaze} The CDC also stated that medical professionals should wear regular surgical masks, which caused confusion and consternation. {AJNOff} To be fair to the CDC, this could be because two different randomized studies showed that surgical masks did just as well as N95 masks in terms of actually stopping transmission of influenza. {JAMANet2009}{JAMANet2019} The CDC now has a guide for medical professionals on extended use of N95 masks, including when to throw them away. {CDC}

Masks reduce the amount of virus that gets in. Wear one if you are around other people even in places where other people have been in the last 3 hours. A mask will slow the spread of the virus by blocking droplets from sneezes. A mask will also stop you from touching your nose and mouth, which is important as this is a main way the virus spreads. This virus only binds to cells in your lungs. To do this, it must get there through the nose, mouth, or sometimes eyes.

Activated Masks with Salt

One interesting cheap DYI idea is to use salt water to create an activated mask. You basically fill a small bowl with water and keep adding salt and stirring until no more will dissolve, then soak your mask in the salt solution for 5 minutes, then let it dry. ?☠️

Before you dismiss this idea, see the article in Nature for why this may work.

http://www.nature.com/articles/srep39956

While there are already some electrostatic forces from the fibers of the masks, the forces exerted by the dried salt appear to increase damage to the virus, breaking it up and deactivating it at a molecular level.

Time

For surfaces and in the air, research shows there are limits to how long the virus remains able to infect someone. The type of surface it is on helps determine how quickly the virus is deactivated. SARS-CoV-2 is active for days on plastic and stainless steel and up to a full day on a cardboard surface. At one point the longest we saw claimed was that the virus can persist for up to 9 days.

“the virus is viable for up to 72 hours on plastics, 48 hours on stainless steel, 24 hours on cardboard, and 4 hours on copper. It is also detectable in the air for three hours.” (JHU)

“Overall, stability is very similar between HCoV-19 and SARS-CoV-1. We found that viable virus could be detected in aerosols up to 3 hours post aerosolization, up to 4 hours on copper, up to 24 hours on cardboard and up to 2-3 days on plastic and stainless steel. HCoV-19 and SARS-CoV-1 exhibited similar half-lives in aerosols, with median estimates around 2.7 hours. Both viruses show relatively long viability on stainless steel and polypropylene compared to copper or cardboard: the median half-life estimate for HCoV-19 is around 13 hours on steel and around 16 hours on polypropylene. Our results indicate that aerosol and fomite transmission of HCoV-19 is plausible, as the virus can remain viable in aerosols for multiple hours and on surfaces up to days. {MedRXIV}

“HCoV can persist on inanimate surfaces like metal, glass or plastic for up to 9 days”
{FPMag}

The paper finding persistence of live virus for 9 days was a review of 22 studies of similar viruses. More recently, however, it has been published that the virus may survive on porous surfaces for up to 28 days.{MSN}

Soap and Water

Regular soap and water may clean germs away rather than killing them {CDC}, but that’s still important in reducing infections. Definitely wash your hands, the right way, {MNN} with soap and water to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus,” since it seems to spread primarily from person to person via respiratory droplets, which are often found on our hands and easily transferred to our faces. {MNN}

Karen Fleming, PhD, a professor in biophysics at Johns Hopkins University, {HJU} explained on Twitter why: “Coronavirus is an ‘enveloped’ virus, which means that it has an outer lipid membrane layer,” an outer layer of fat. “Washing your hands with soap and water has the ability to ‘dissolve’ this greasy fatty layer and kill the virus,” she said. {Twitter}

This claim puzzled us at first. How can lipids dissolve lipids? Soap itself is a form of lipid, a mixture of salts of fatty acids. In water, these surfactants tend to aggregate form little hollow spheres called micelles that trap particles and can transport them. {USNA} Another expert said it another way, and it seemed to be a different reason. Palli Thordarson, a chemistry professor at the University of New South Wales put it this way:

“Soap contains fat-like substances knowns as amphiphiles, some structurally very similar to the lipids in the virus membrane. The soap molecules “compete” with the lipids in the virus membrane.”  {Newsweek}

This makes more sense to us, but perhaps they are really saying the same thing if the virus membrane is broken up (dissolved) by the forces (competition) from the lipids in soap. Lipids group together when water is around, so we believe that to remove the virus, soap lipids probably both physically incorporate the virus into the spheres, and also break them with forces at an atomic level. The forces in soap do break open bacteria, according to one molecular biologist True Strange News spoke to years ago. Try breaking a small soap bubble with a bigger one. On contact, the small bubble sometimes joins the bigger one, breaking in the process. The protein feet on the virus may just get pushed or pulled by the soap, however, without breaking the virus.

Immune System Health

It is very important to keep your immune system as healthy as possible over the next several months to years as COVID-19 spreads. A study has revealed how the healthy immune system fights off the virus. Two key cell types are antibody-secreting cells (ASCs) and follicular helper T cells (TFHs).

Study reveals how immune system fights COVID-19

“We showed that even though COVID-19 is caused by a new virus, in an otherwise healthy person, a robust immune response across different cell types was associated with clinical recovery, similar to what we see in influenza,” Dr. Katherine Kedzierska, an immunologist who specializes in influenza at the University of Melbourne … the isolated cells included antibody-secreting cells, or ASCs, which are key for the production of antibodies in the immune system following infection. {UPI}

 

Increased antibody-secreting cells (ASCs), follicular helper T cells (T_FH cells), activated CD4⁺ T cells and CD8⁺ T cells and immunoglobulin M (IgM) and IgG antibodies that bound the COVID-19-causing coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 were detected in blood before symptomatic recovery. {Nature}

Immune Health: Enough Quality Sleep

Get enough sleep. The sweet spot seems to be 7.5 hours per night. Practice good sleep hygine {CDC}. Sleep at a consistent time. Dim the lights and lower the sounds a full hour before bed. Read a book and turn off WiFi, or use the F.lux or similar screen saver on your phone or device so you stop getting that blue light from your devices which messes with your body’s natural rhythm. {Harvard} Researchers say adequate sleep helps T cells in your body fight off infection. {HealthLine} A single night of poor sleep leads to a decrease of up to 70 per cent of our natural killer cells – our first-line defense against viruses and potentially cancerous cells. {DailyMail}

Immune Health: Keep Moving During the Day

Gardening and cleaning around the house are both great forms light exercise that help your body move lymph fluid around to clean junk out your system. This is a huge secret about your body that no one talks about: the lymphatic system is your body’s cellular garbage collector. If you don’t move around enough throughout the day, the garbage builds up, eventually causing local or even systemic inflammation. Long term inflammation can lead to cancer via DNA damage {Cancer}. Look honestly at your day. How much are you sitting? Get continual moderate movement all day, plus a good long walk. Don’t sit more than 30 minutes at a time without 5 minutes of movement. This is just a rough guideline, but it will help many to be healthy enough to fight the virus.

Immune Health: Laugh!

Laughter boosts NK cell production important in the body’s fight against influenza and other viruses. {NIH} Cytotoxic lymphocytes such as cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) and natural killer (NK) cells are necessary for the control of viral infection. Functional exhaustion of cytotoxic lymphocytes is correlated with disease progression. {Nature} Our NK cells decline with age. {LiveExt} The oldest person who ever lived said she often laughed until she cried. {WellGosp} One study found that the total number of NK and CD8+ T cells was decreased markedly in patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Will regular laughter help lower the odds that you will have functional exhaustion of cytotoxic lymphocytes? It sounds like it could.

 

Immune Health: 20 to 45 Minute Walk

Your immune system contains five major types of white blood cells [WBCs] to fight infections. WBCs are also called leukocytes, and the subtypes include monocytes, neutrophils, basophils, eosinophils and  lymphocytes. You may see these on test results if you have blood tests. Low WBCs count is a condition caled leukopenia. (LiveStrong) Moderate exercise boosts your white blood cells. Take an active 20 to 45 minute walk daily, or walk in place if you can’t get outside. Not too much! Don’t over exerciese. Regular heavy weightlifting or marathon running lead to significant decreases in white blood cells. (Healthful) You also don’t want your WBC count too high for too long. White blood cells increase with inflammation. Inflammation opens up your blood vessels and lets the WBCs into the tissues to fight invaders. This is a normal and usually helpful immune function for healing. Long-term inflammation, however, can signal or even promote the development diseases such as diabetes, cancer and heart disease. (LiveStrong)

Immune Health: Reduce Salt Intake

Although macrophages, the immune cells that attack, eat and digest parasites, are particularly active in the presence of salt, overall, a high-salt diet has been reported as being bad for the immune system. (SciDaily) Human volunteers were given the amount of salt contained in two fast food meals, an additional 6 grams per day and in these individuals, there were pronounced immune deficiencies. The WHO recommends no more than 5 grams per day, about one level teaspoon. Excessive salt intake increases glucocorticoid levels. Cortisone is a  glucocorticoid used to suppress inflammation by reducing immune system response.  Cortisone and epinephrine [adrenaline] (WIki) are the main substances released by the body as a reaction to stress. They elevate blood pressure and prepare the body for a fight or flight response. (Wiki) The Health Minister of France, Olivier Véran, a qualified doctor and neurologist, tweeted: “The taking of anti-inflammatories [ibuprofen, cortisone … ] could be a factor in aggravating the infection.” (Guardian)

 

Temperature

What temperature deactivates SARS-CoV-19 virus? There are different numbers from different sources. The world uses two major temperature systems, Celsius and Fahrenheit, so we list both as C and F below.

• – Viruses can withstand freezing without damage, however, heating to between 165 – 212 F or 74 – 100 C, will deactivate viruses. (Reference.com)
• – Sustained heat at 132.8 F (56 C) for 30 minutes (Salon)
• – Incubation at 140 F (60°C) for 30 min resulted in no infectious virus remaining, regardless of the presence of the protein additive.
• – In a study, “viral inactivation by heat treatment” found at 140 F (60 C) it took 15 to 30 minutes “to inactivate the SARS-CoV” (NIH)

In Food. Water boils at 212 F (100 C), so heating food to boiling will deactivate all viruses. Heating food to at least 165 F (74 C) before serving will kill bacteria, as well. Note: This does not remove toxins, so do NOT boil spoiled food and eat it.

Climate Temperature. The WHO says that evidence so far shows the COVID-19 virus can be transmitted in ALL AREAS, including areas with hot and humid weather. (MSN) There is no weather, hot, cold, dry or humid that has stopped this virus.

Hot Tap Water. Home hot water systems are generally designed and water heaters are generally sized to store hot water at 140 F, so the hottest water from your tap is probably not hot enough to deactivate the virus. Check your dishwasher’s manual if you have one. For some dishwasher models the rinse water temperature is at least 180 F, which will work to deactivate all viruses.

Air Dryers. Hot-air hand dryers (they may blow germs into the air ) and hair dryers (See Hair Dryer Cure for Covid-19?) do not get hot enough to kill the virus, but heat might help your body’s immune system or disinfecting substances to work. Heat may help weaken the virus so other things can work. The virus is disabled easier at higher temperatures and in dry conditions.

Detection with Temperature.  A thermometer or thermal scanner can not detect infections in people who are infected but who are not yet sick with fever, according to the WHO. It takes 2 to 10 days (some say even longer) before infected people become sick and develop a fever. Tests with a nose swab using a lab test or kit are needed to detect the virus reliably.

 

Ultraviolet Light (Surfaces)

WARNING. UV light can cuase skin and eye damage. Never look at a UV light source or shine it on your skin or any other part of your body.

That said, the AP fact check it is misleading about UV light killing viruses. The WHO said don’t use UV because it can damage skin, but UV light does disable viruses. Science from Columbia University Medical Center in New York City, published in Nature, a peer reviewed science journal, says UV-C light killed 95% of exposed influenza A (H1N1) virus at only 2 mJ/cm² and did not appear to damage human skin or the eye. (IMPORTANT: That’s a particular range of UV-C, not UVA or UVB.)

We show for the first time that far-UVC efficiently inactivates airborne aerosolized viruses, with a very low dose of 2 mJ/cm² of 222-nm light inactivating >95% of aerosolized H1N1 influenza virus … far-UVC light can traverse and therefore inactivate bacteria and viruses which are typically micrometer dimensions or smaller, whereas due to its strong absorbance in biological materials, far-UVC light cannot penetrate even the outer dead-cell layers of human skin, nor the outer tear layer on the surface of the eye. (Nature)

As quoted by Dr. Pokrath Hansasuta in the AP fact check, “Ultraviolet is able to kill COVID-19 if it is exposed to the concentrated UV ray in a certain amount of time and distance.”  Thus, UV light does kill the Covid-19 virus and the headline is misleading which says: “Misleading report claims UV light, chlorine and high temperatures can kill COVID-19”.  The “claim” that UV light works is true. It’s just a matter of the wavelengths, intensity and duration of the UV light used.

If we don’t have a safe pure 222-nm UVC light source, we could set up a system so we are not in the room when we switch it on to sterilize the room. It is also important to ventilate the room after UV treatment. They sell these UV room sterilizers on Amazon.

However... UV can cause cancer, skin damage and permanent eye damage! WARNING. UV light is potentially very dangerous, so we do understand the guideline. Don’t let kids use it or play with it and to be safe, don’t  have it on when you are in the room without appropriate eye and skin protection. You can get sunburned eyes from artificial UV lights.

Eye- UV radiation exposure can damage the cornea, the outer protection coating of the eye. Photokeratitis is a painful inflammation of the eye caused by UV radiation-induced lesions on the cornea. Symptoms include a “sand like” feeling in the eye last can last several days. Chronic exposures to short term UV radiation can lead to the formation of cataracts. (Tufts)

The virus expert you quote also says  “… the natural UV from the sun is not strong enough to kill it.”

The WHO discourages UV use “because of the potential for skin irritation” but you should not use some UV lights on skin because they cause cancer. For safety and effectiveness to kill viruses on surfaces, the right wavelengths of UV light matter.

All light with wavelengths shorter than 400 nm is called ultraviolet (UV), and this is broken down into different ranges for various reasons.

UVC is germicidal and Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) as a means of disinfection “has been an accepted practice since the mid-20th century.“

300 to 400 nm is near-UV light
315–400 nm is UVA
200 to 300 nm is called deep-UV
280–315 nm is UVB
<200 nm are called “vacuum-UV” (completely absorbed by air)
100–280 nm is UVC (aka Hard UV) kills germs including disabling viruses

Don’t breathe the ozone that gets created by some of these germicidal UV lights. Ultraviolet Germicidal Irradiation (UV-C) light itself does not produce ozone according to this.

 

Ethanol (Surfaces)

62 to 71% ethanol – According to a paper in the Journal of Hospital Infection available on ScienceDirect, human coronaviruses can be efficiently inactivated in under one minute with surface disinfection with 62 to 71% ethanol . The CDC says that a 70% solution of alcohol is expected to “work against COVID-19 based on data for harder to kill viruses.” What if your stores have only 91% isopropyl rubbing alcohol? Ethanol and isopropyl alcohol are similar. One site reports that 91% evaporates too quickly to be effective. Dilute to 70% with for best results. For example: starting with 769 ml 91% & add water till 1 liter gives also a 70% solution.

Hydrogen Peroxide (Surfaces)

0.5% hydrogen peroxide – The paper in the Journal of Hospital Infection available on ScienceDirect, also says that human coronaviruses can be efficiently inactivated in under one minute with surface disinfection with 0.5% hydrogen peroxide. Hydrogen peroxide is active against a wide range of microbes including bacteria, yeasts, fungi, and viruses. As an oxidizing agent, it pulls electrons from other molecules, breaking them down. If buy 3% hydrogen peroxide in a drugstore, you can dilute it up to 1 part hydrogen peroxide to 5 parts water and it will still work. A one to one mix of water to hydrogen peroxide will be 1.5% which will work with some headroom in case the solution is older and has become less active.

Bleach (Surfaces)

0.1% sodium hypochlorite – The paper in the Journal of Hospital Infection available on ScienceDirect, also says that human coronaviruses can be efficiently inactivated in under one minute with surface disinfection with 0.1% sodium hypochlorite. Household bleach is usually 5.25% as sold so you could have a working solution to disable to virus at 10 parts of water to 1 part of bleach, which is a 0.525% solution.

White Vinegar (Surfaces)

Does white vinegar kill viruses? Science says definitely, but it is not on the list of the EPA’s certified disinfectants. Vinegar (cleaning vinegar or white vinegar) is about 5% acetic acid, which kills bacteria and viruses by “chemically changing the proteins and fats that make up these nasties and destroying their cell structures.” according to ABC Online. Also, 10% malt vinegar could be useful in killing influenza viruses, a 2010 paper found. Vinegar is also biodegradable.

… 10% malt vinegar … [was] effective at rapidly reducing viable virus below the limit of detection, while a low concentration of vinegar (1%) was no more effective than hot water alone. (link)

Avoid using vinegar on natural stone, waxed wood, cast iron or aluminum and never combine vinegar with bleach or hydrogen peroxide, as it can create toxic vapors.

“[Vinegar] does have acid in it and it has the capacity to damage bacteria and viruses, but it’s not something I would recommend using to prevent the spread of coronavirus,” confirms infectious disease expert Amesh A. Adalja, M.D., senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. (MSN)

Copper Surfaces

Copper does kill the virus but don’t take it internally. We can get rid of it naturally to some degree, but long-term copper overexposure can damage the liver and kidneys. It has also been implicated in psychological disorders. To make things more complicated, both too much and too little copper has been found to cause symptoms like “mood swings, irritability, depression, fatigue, excitation, difficulty focusing, and feeling out of control.” In other words, if you spend years trying to get rid of “copper toxicity” you may be causing the very symptoms that make you think you have to get rid of copper. Get tested if you are concerned, and not a hair test. If you have too much copper, alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) may work as a milder chelator of tissue-bound copper. A chelator is something that grabs and removes something else.

Does copper kill the virus on contact? It seems to, yes. After a while.

The NIH study found that SARS-CoV-2 lasts for two to three days on steel and plastic. However, copper surfaces tended to kill the pathogen in about four hours.

Then again, sweat was found to disable brass doorknobs anti-bacterial properties, so it might also reduce the effectiveness of killing this virus. Even if you have germ-resistant copper fixtures, you still need to clean them and frequently wash your hands.

Approved Commercial Products (Surfaces)

The American Chemistry Council’s (ACC) Center f or Biocide Chemistries (CBC) has compiled a list of products pre-approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for use against emerging enveloped viral pathogens a nd can be used during the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. The full list is here, updated 3/13/2020 or later.

According to WhatKillsIt.com, many think any product labled “kills human coronavirus” will kill the Covid-19 strain, but this is not necessarily true. As was seen with experience with SARS, to kill a life-threatening, emerging strain of Human Coronavirus like Covid-19, it is best to use EPA registered products, those that became registered to kill the deadly Human Coronaviruses: SARS in 2002 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) and MERS in 2012 (Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome). As we saw above, the chemical agent has to break down a lipid membrane and then a protein coat to kill the virus.

 

Commercial Wipes That Kill Human Coronavirus

As you read these options, be aware that Lysol has the ability to kill pets. Cats are particuarly succeptible. {NIH} The web site Hunker has more reasons Lysol is dangerous. {Hunker} Was an active ingredent (benzalkonium chloride) once banned by the FDA? Can it cause cancer and blindness as a doctor interviewed by Hunker says?  Don’t use Lysol if you have dogs, birds, fish, cats or humans in your home? We have seen things about a “Lysol allergy,” but is a “Lysol allergy” an allergy in the same way that burning yourself with a match is a “match allergy?” Before you use any products, check out the ingredients and decide if you want them in your home. Viruses are made of building blocks found in human and animal cells: proteins, lipids and RNA, so anything that damages viruses has the potential to damage us and our pets.

Wipe Brand Name	Human Coronavirus Kill Claim	SARS Kill Claim	MERS Kill Claims
Oxivir TB	1 minute	NONE	1 minute
Lysol Disinfecting	2 minute	2 minute	NONE
HIGHMARK Disinfecting Wipes	10 Minutes	10 Minutes	NONE
CaviWipes	1 minute	NONE	NONE
Isotex 70	1 minute	NONE	NONE
DisCide Ultra	30 Seconds	NONE	NONE
Rescue Wipes	30 Seconds	NONE	NONE
Clorox Healthcare Bleach Germicidal Wipes. EPA Reg.# 67619.12	1 Minute	1 Minute

Commercial Spray Disinfectants that Kill Human Coronavirus

Spray Brand Name	Human Coronavirus Kill Claim	SARS Kill Claim	MERS Kill Claim
Lysol Citrus Scent Antibacterial Kitchen Cleaner II	2 Minutes	2 Minutes	NONE
Lysol Disinfectant Spray EPA Reg. #777-99	30 Seconds	30 Seconds	NONE
Lysol DisinfectantMax Cover Mist EPA#777-127	30 Seconds	30 Seconds	NONE
Clorox ProQuaternary AllPurpose Cleaner	10 Minutes	10 Minutes	NONE
Clorox BroadSpectrumQuaternary	2 Minutes	2 Minutes	NONE
Clorox CommercialSolutions Disinfecting Spray EPA Reg. # 67619-17	30 Seconds	10 Minutes	NONE
Oxivir TB	1 Minute	NONE	1 Minute
Lysol PowerFoam BathroomCleaner	5 Minutes	5 Minutes	NONE
Clorox Healthcare Bleach GERMICIDAL Cleaner Spray EPA Reg..# 56392-7	1 Minute	1 Minute	1 Minute
Clorox Clean-Up Cleaner+Bleach EPA Reg.# 5813-21	30 Seconds	30 Seconds

You can see what kills the virus above. Cleaning using a detergent or soap and water while wearing gloves prior to disinfection is recommended. Ensure the product is not past its expiration date.

Some of these products are still available on Amazon and in selected Walmart, Target and other stores, but many stores are completely sold out as well and even on Amazon, many products are listed as unavailable. Get some if you can.

 

Alternative Treatments/Prevention

 

Supplements

Boron

Boron is one of the cheapest supplements you can buy, which is nice because it has some amazing benefits. Boron was used as a food preservative between 1870 and 1920, and during World Wars I and II. (WebMD) In one reported case, a boron supplement taken for 1 month stopped morning arthritis stiffness. There is a tie-in for this that relates to COVID-19. Boron is a trace mineral and micronutrient with many roles in metabolism. It is vital for plant, animal, and human health. It greatly improves wound healing, helps the body’s use of vitamin D, boosts magnesium absorption, reduces levels of inflammatory biomarkers including C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), raises levels of antioxidant enzymes, like superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase, and glutathione peroxidase, and has demonstrated preventive and therapeutic effects in a number of cancers, such as prostate, cervical, and lung, plus multiple and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Data “suggest an enzymatic regulatory role for dietary boron, which is a serine protease inhibitor.” (NIH) It was found that a serine protease inhibitor stopped SARS-CoV-2 from entering lung cells. If you consider that cancers that boron helps may have viral causes, it makes even more sense. The lowest active dose with supplementation appears to be 3 mg. Studies on osteoarthritis used 6 mg of boron while studies in youth investigating hormonal changes used 10 mg. “There is some concern that doses over 20 mg per day, the UL for adults, might harm a man’s ability to father a child. … Large quantities of boron can cause poisoning. Signs of poisoning include skin inflammation and peeling, irritability, tremors, convulsions, weakness, headaches, depression, diarrhea, vomiting, and other symptoms. ” (WebMD)

 

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is said in different places to be helpful and also to be only a placebo. As it is effective on children under 5 years old, we wonder if it could really be a placebo. Doctors have experimented with Vitamin C for viral pneumonia, one giving 1000 mg. vitamin C intravenously every six to twelve hours, for example. In one paper (pdf), vitamin C reduced the duration of severe pneumonia in children under 5 years old.

In a study with 715 students (252 with cold and flu symptoms) by two Chiropractors in 1999 titled, “The Effectiveness of Vitamin C in Preventing and Relieving the Symptoms of Virus-Induced Respiratory Infections” (NIH, SciDirect) a test population reporting symptoms was treated with hourly doses of 1000 mg of Vitamin C for the first 6 hours and then 3 times daily thereafter. The result was that reported symptoms of flu and cold were decreased 85% with the megadose Vitamin C treatment. The study lumped both cold and flu together, but these are caused by different viruses.

Another study of L-ascorbic acid (vitamin C), called it “one of the well-known anti-viral agents, especially to influenza virus.” and according to that paper, the anti-viral effect in the body was still controversial.  They found that vitamin C “shows in vivo anti-viral immune responses at the early time of infection, especially against influenza virus, through increased production of IFN-α/β.” (NIH)

While Vitamin C may work for the flu virus, the first SARS virus, SARS-CoV, and MHV, and “a number of other coronaviruses are highly pathogenic despite their sensitivity to IFN-α/β. … Coronaviruses somehow avoid or inhibit the production of IFN. … in fibroblasts productively infected with SARS-CoV or MHV no detectable induction of IFN-β occurs.” (SciDirect)

There could be another way Vitamin C works, however. Factcheck.org says that there is no evidence of vitamin C shielding people from getting the virus, but from the above research it may lessen symptoms and may also help with co-infections, allowing the body to focus on fighting the virus with antibody-secreting cells (ASCs) and follicular helper T cells (TFHs) as we mentioned above in the Immune System section. Most people do fight it off, and these cells were found to be involved in those who recover. Consider taking Zinc and Vitamin D3 with it if you do take Vitamin C.

 

Zinc

Zinc and pyrithione (an organosulfur compound) at low concentrations inhibited replication of SARS-coronavirus (SARS-CoV), the first SARS. A zinc supplement help COVID-19 related symptoms like diarrhea and lower respiratory tract infections. High level of zinc supplementation will lead to zinc toxicity, but zinc does help Vitamin C work. Foods that have zinc naturally, in order starting from the highest amounts are oysters, beef, chicken, tofu, pork, nuts, seeds, lentils, yogurt, oatmeal, and shiitake mushrooms.

Increasing the intracellular Zn²⁺ concentration with zinc-ionophores like pyrithione (PT) can efficiently impair the replication of a variety of RNA viruses, including poliovirus and influenza virus. For some viruses this effect has been attributed to interference with viral polyprotein processing. In this study we demonstrate that the combination of Zn²⁺ and PT at low concentrations (2 µM Zn²⁺ and 2 µM PT) inhibits the replication of SARS-coronavirus (SARS-CoV) and equine arteritis virus (EAV) in cell culture. (NIH, 2010)

For some reason we once memorized the fact that Head and Shoulder’s active ingredient is pyrithione zinc. Hmm. Another clue about Zinc is that it may stop the immune system storm that has fatal results for people attacked by the virus. One drug that has been used with those infected is Chloroquine. Chloroquine is a Zinc Ionophore (ion carrier), that reversibly binds zinc and enhances zinc uptake. (NIH)

The reason that Chloroquine works, I understand from an expert in viral pandemics, is that enables the body to absorb more zinc. Zinc appears to be the most effective agent in disrupting the virus and preventing the ‘cytokine storm’, which is the deadly phase in which the virus tricks the body’s immune system into attacking its own healthy tissue, with often fatal consequences. (Breitbart)

The National Institutes of Health says that 40 mg of zinc per day is the upper limit dose for adults and 4 mg per day for infants under age 6 months. (MayoClinic) Also, don’t use zinc in your nose as intranasal zinc has been linked with the loss of the sense of smell. (WebMD)

 

Vitamin D

Vitamin D is an immunomodulatory micronutrient and when it is low, studies have seen an increased risk of acute viral respiratory infections. Vitamin D exhibits anti-inflammatory effects and alleviates some kinds of lung injuries in rats. Vitamin D is “suspected to reduce the ACE2 enzyme to which past coronaviruses have attached,” and since that vitamin fought all past coronaviruses, it might help against COVID-19 as well. (VitWIki) Vitamin D helps the body produce more natural anti-viral proteins, specifically, it up-regulates the anti-microbial peptides LL-37 and human beta defensin 2. (NIH) LL 37 (cathelicidin) has broad spectrum antiviral/microbial, fungal effects. (HoffCtr) 

There have been studies that found no benefits, but a review of 25 randomized placebo controlled studies with a total of 11,321 pateints found that “Vitamin D supplementation reduced the risk of acute respiratory tract infection among all participants.” (BJM) They also found that daily or weekly dosing worked, but bolus dosing, for example, once a month, had no effect. The protective effects were stronger in those with baseline 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels <25 nmol/L. 

One functional medicine site recommends a minimum of 2,000 IU and a maximum of 10,000 IU per day with
a usual daily dosage for vitamin D of 1000 IU per 25 pounds of body weight. (HoffCtr)

You can get too much artificial vitamin D. One Canadian man taking between 8,000 and 12,000 international units (IU) of vitamin D per day for 2.5 years ended up with permanent kidney damage, so don’t over do it and get your levels tested occasionally to see where you are. One nutritionist stated that Vitamin K2 is needed to get the most out of Vitamin D, and perhaps the man with kidney damage was deficient in that vitamin. K2 helps the body take extra calcium into the bones to avoid hypercalcemia that can be caused by too much vitamin D.

Also, take Vitamin D3, not D2.

It may be, Vitaminwiki, that Vitamin D actually increases Angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) to which the virus attaches. Wouldn’t having more binding sites for the virus make it worse? Lungs may be damaged by the virus disabling ACE2, so increasing ACE2 could have a protective effect on the lungs. ACE2 can protect the lung against external damage in experimental animal models. (SciDirect) Adding more ACE2 is one suggested strategy to fight the virus. In fact, they might even inject soluble ACE2 into the blood stream to compete with cellular ACE2 preventing attachment of the virus to non-infected cells and replenishing ACE2 in infected cells. Also, it is very interesting to note that, “patients with chronic diseases exhibit lower ACE2 levels. Moreover, … it decreases by age, which would explain the vulnerability of this part of the population.” (BMJ)  Why does the virus mostly kill older people? This may be the key. 

L-Carnitine

Emerging evidnce shows that the worst effects of Covid-19 come from the virus attacking blood vessels and impairing the body’s microcirculation with feeds all organs. A study published in the JAMA Cardiology journal, found 20 per cent of 416 patients hospitalised in Wuhan with the coronavirus had heart damage.

 

Boswellia / Frankincense

Boswellia, also known as Indian Frankincense, is a powerful anti-inflammatory herb extracted from the Boswellia serrata tree native to India and some parts of Africa. It may fight cancer with boswellic acid’s ability to demethylate and reactivate methylation-silenced tumor suppressor genes. (TandF) Boswellic acid (BA) is a pentacyclic triterpene a class of natural compounds with anti-tumor and anti-viral activity. (Igenta) Down regulation of TNF-α and decrease of IL-1, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6 and IFN-γ, proinflammatory cytokines by BA has been reported. Also, positive effects of boswellia extract are seen in some chronic inflammatory diseases including rheumatoid arthritis, and bronchial asthma. (SciDirect) It induces tumor cell apoptosis, causing damaged cells to self destruct. (Karger)  It has antiviral activity as an immunostimulant mediating production of immunoglobulins like IgG which fight off both bacteria and viruses. (NIH) Heat shock proteins and histone core proteins were activated by frankincense essential oil in one study. (NIH) There is probable relevance to both RNA and DNA viruses for one heat shock protein, hsp70, can stimulate innate immune responses through toll like receptors 2 and 4 (TLR2 and 4) and can lead to host protective innate antiviral immunity. (NIH) There is no direct evidence that Boswellia helps the body fight SARS-CoV-2, yet, the above clues suggest it might.

 

Colloidal Silver

Silver works as a real broad spectrum anti-microbial on surfaces and depending on who you ask is either safe or unsafe to take internally. A professor at the Academy of Military Medical Sciences in China, Zhang Panhe, stated that a countertop started killing purposefully added SARS virus within 4 hours and had killed all of the SARS virus in a 24-hour exposure. Silver has been used for thousands of years and it kills bacteria as well as viruses in some tests.

“His gifts, which he sent on recovering from his sickness, were a great bowl of pure silver, …  among all the offerings at Delphi the best worth looking at.” (Herodotus, Greek Historian)

 

“Silver ions perform their deadly work by punching holes in bacterial membranes and wreaking havoc once inside. They bind to essential cell components like DNA, preventing the bacteria from performing even their most basic functions.” (SciMag)

 

“According to a study published in the International Journal of Nanomedicine, “silver nanoparticles are capable of reducing viral infectivity, probably by blocking interaction of the virus within the cell.” (DrAxe)

Why do silver ions punch holes in only bacterial membranes and not in our own cell’s membranes? It may be that they do, but having our cells die off, especially the older ones, can keep us healthy. Then again, there is no indication that silver targets our aging (senescent) cells.

If you try the silver internally, do not take silver salts or proteins, only pure colloidal or ionic silver. One paper says it is the ionic silver that does the killing of bacteria. Don’t take a lot of it every day for years or you could turn blue? One person selling silver was given a warning letter by the FDA. {FDA} On her site on 4/7/2020 was the statement that “According to the EPA (CASRN 7440-22-4) daily Oral Silver Reference Dose (RfD) applied to 10 ppm, one adult may ingest 178,850 servings safely over 70 years.” On Facebook, she stated,  “… it’s actually widely acknowledged in both science and the medical industry that ionic silver kills coronaviruses. And it’s now known that the Chinese are employing ionic silver in their fight against the spread of the coronavirus.”

The FDA’s warning letter stated, “There currently are no vaccines, pills, potions, lotions, lozenges or other prescription or over-the-counter products available to treat or cure coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Thus, the claims cited above are not supported by competent and reliable scientific evidence.”

We find the way this statement is worded puzzling. For one, it sounds like the FDA knows all and if they don’t know about it, it must not work. We have trouble squaring this with the fact that there appears to be competent and reliable scientific evidence to show that silver nanoparticles kill a broad spectrum of virues, including influenza virus. Studies with silver against COVID-19 have not been done, but as a broad spectrum anti-viral agent, silver nanoparticles seem worthy of further investigation.

Broad-Spectrum Bioactivities of Silver Nanoparticles: the Emerging Trends and Future Prospects. 

 

AgNPs have demonstrated antiviral activity against a number of viruses infecting both prokaryotic (De-Gusseme et al. 2010; Narasimha 2012) and eukaryotic organisms, making them a true broad-spectrum antiviral agent; (2) viral inhibition depends on the size of AgNPs (generally small AgNPs, 25 nm or less, resulted more active in viral infectivity inhibition) (Lara et al. 2010a; Speshock et al. 2010); (3) early infection might be the general time frame where AgNPs exert their antiviral activity impacting the rest of the viral replication cycle (Baram-Pinto et al. 2009; Trefry and Wooley 2013). … Several studies have analysed the behaviour of naked (without a capping agent) AgNPs in inhibition of different viruses, namely hepatitis B virus (HBV) (Lu et al. 2008), influenza virus (Mehrbod et al. 2009; Xiang et al. 2011), human parainfluenza virus type 3 (HPIV-3) (Gaikwad et al. 2013), Herpes simplex virus type 1 and type 2 (HSV-1 and HSV-2) (Gaikwad et al. 2013; Sun et al. 2005), Coxsackievirus B3 (Salem et al. 2012), tacaribe virus (TCRV) (Speshock et al. 2010), Vaccinia virus (Trefry and Wooley 2013) and monkeypox virus (MPV) (Roger et al. 2008). … Lu et al. (2008) demonstrated that larger nanoparticles (800 nm) presented high level of cytotoxicity in cell culture-based assays, but smaller nanoparticles only showed minor toxicity, in fact, HBV could be efficiently inhibited by 10 and 50 nm nanoparticles where the activity was probably due to specific interactions between the nanoparticles and the double-stranded DNA of HBV and/or direct binding with viral particles and consequent prevention of virions from entering into host cells. In this study, antiviral testing and cytotoxicity assays were performed using HepAD38, a stably transfected hepatoblastoma cell line that secretes HBV-like particles and express high levels of HBV DNA into the supernatant. Similarly, influenza virus can be efficiently inhibited by AgNPs of average size of 10 nm (Xiang et al. 2011). Naked AgNPs could provide a strong protection against influenza virus infections without the risk of cell toxicity (Mehrbod et al. 2009; Xiang et al. 2011). {NIH}

 

Elderberry Extract

Some research suggests elderberry can shorten influenza duration by two to four days and reduce the severity of the flu. Elderberry is a very rich source of the antioxidants called anthocyanins. (VeryWell) Its impact on viruses might be mediated to some degree by ferulic acid, a metabolite that appears in plasma following anthocyanin ingestion. Ferulic acid [FA] is a plant-based antioxidant primarily used in anti-aging skin care products. Acute respiratory distress syndrome [ARDS] is a severe clinical disorder caused by increased permeability of alveolar epithelial cells and pulmonary capillary endothelial cells with resulting fluid in the lungs and impairment of oxygenation. FA decreased levels of TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6, and  increased IL-10, suggested an immunomodulating effect and in a rat model with bacteria induced ARDS, a 30 days pre-treatment with FA rescued lung injury to a notable degree. (NIH)

 

Beta-glucan

This type of fiber found in some types of yeast, algae, bacteria, and fungi, reduces severity of influenza infection severity and lowers influenza mortality in animal studies. Scientists think they may help immune systems better fight tumors and bacteria as well. “Early evidence shows that the supplement’s immune-boosting abilities may also be helpful to people with AIDS.”

Oatmeal isn’t the only food rich in beta-glucan. Other food sources include barley, shiitake and reishi mushrooms, seaweed and algae. For frame of reference, one cup of cooked oatmeal has 2 grams of beta-glucan and one cup of cooked pearled barley has 2.5 grams.  (SFGate)

Glucosamine

Upregulates mitochondrial antiviral-signaling protein (MAVS), reduces severity of influenza infection severity and lowers influenza mortality in animal studies.

 

L-Lysine

Does taking L-Lysine it have any positive benefit with the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus? Arginine is said to be “an essential requirement for the replication of viruses and progression of viral infections” (FXMed). In cats, l-lysine supplements, according to Diane Addie (an international FIP expert) reportedly stated that they were not found to be of benefit against coronavirus. (JustAns) In cats, lysine helped reduce a viral eye disease, conjunctivitis, but did not reduce plasma arginine. (Avmaj) Arginine deprivation is proposed as a potential way to fight some cancers (NIH, SciDaily). This doesn’t mean that lysine doesn’t interfere with the action of arginine, however, so, we would still take it in recommended doses as a preventative measure, especially when eating arginine rich foods such as oats.

Lysine and Arginine are amino acids, breakdown products of the protein we eat. It is said that Arginine-rich foods increase viral reproduction and lysine reduces it. If you decide to take 1-2 grams per day of L-Lysine to supplement your immune system’s ability to fight viruses (GluetnFree), you would also need to avoid or reduce arginine rich foods: Chocolate, most legumes, nuts and seeds, including peanut butter and almonds, most grains except white rice, buckwheat, and amaranth. Oats which are particularly high in arginine as are brown rice and whole wheat. (MedNews, AvoGel) If you are eating a lot of these foods, perhaps supplementing with Lysine will balance the scales in your favor. Red meats, fish, dairy, and eggs all contain low amounts of L-arginine (MedNews) There are lists of high Lysine foods. (TradOven) Lysine seems to prevent the herpes virus from growing. (WebMD)

 

N-acetylcysteine (NAC)

This substance available as a nutritional supplement encourages glutathione production, thins mucus, lowers your chances of influenza infection and reduces your risk of developing severe bronchitis. In one test so far against the virus, “there was no difference in the improvement of pneumonia as assessed by CT between NAC group and non-NAC group.” Since the virus causes increased mucus production and also inhibits the ability to get rid of that mucus, resulting in more inflammation and even more mucus, NAC seems like it should improve outcomes.

 

Stinging Nettle

Stinging nettle is known to inhibit SARS viral replication in lungs of mice. Stinging nettle lectin Urtica dioica agglutinin (UDA), is a small plant monomeric lectin, 8.7 kDa in size, with an N-acetylglucosamine specificity that inhibits viruses. A study published in April 2011 found that UDA neutralizes the virus infectivity, presumably by binding to the SARS-CoV spike (S) glycoprotein. “Urtica dioica agglutinin (UDA) is a small plant monomeric lectin, 8.7 kDa in size, with an N-acetylglucosamine specificity that inhibits viruses … It is likely that UDA inhibits attachment and thus limits spread of virus from infected cells to uninfected cells by binding to released virus to prevent attachment to uninfected cells.” (NIH)

 

Selenium

Too little selenium impairs the immune system, and allows rapid mutation of RNA viruses. (NIH). The beneficial effects of selenium have almost exclusively been reported for infections by RNA viruses, so selenium supplementation might help treat COVID-19.

Beck et al. had reported that selenium deficiency could not only increase the pathology of an influenza virus infection, but also drive changes in genome of coxsackievirus, permitting an avirulent virus to acquire virulence due to genetic mutation. It is because that selenium could assist a group of enzymes that, in concert with vitamin E, work to prevent the formation of free radicals and prevent oxidative damage to cells and tissues. It was reported that synergistic effect of selenium with ginseng stem-leaf saponins could induce immune response to a live bivalent infectious bronchitis coronavirus vaccine in chickens.

A scientific study from 1998 documented that patients with viral infections have rapidly decreasing concentrations of selenium (PharmaNord) Brazil nuts are one of the best sources since about six to eight nuts, contain about 544 mcg. Because the recommended daily amount is only 15mcg to 60mcg depending on age, make sure you only eat a serving of Brazil nuts a few times a week to avoid selenium toxicity. (HealthLine)

 

Foods

 

Chicken Soup

There are a number of substances in chicken soup, such as carnosine, which enhance the power of immune cells according to  Dr Jenna Macciochi, an immune system expert. Some “properties from the chicken released during cooking” are similar to the drug acetylcysteine which is commonly prescribed for respiratory ailments. (DailyMail)

 

Reishi, Mitake or Shiitake Mushrooms

Some mushrooms have anti-viral properties. One paper says that many different compounds isolated from various mushrooms (both edible and nonedible) have been shown to have antiviral effects. A compound found in reishi,  “acidic proteinbound polysaccharide (APBP for short),” has anti-herpes virus action. Bee colonies given mycelium extract from amadou and reishi fungi saw a 79-fold reduction in deformed wing virus and a 45,000-fold reduction in Lake Sinai virus according to theMindUnleashed. The website herbslist.net states that “Maitake also has very strong antiviral properties and has been shown to kill HIV virus in lab experiments.”

 

Green Tea

Catechins are flavonols and a well-demonstrated antioxidants. The major catechin in green tea is epigallocatechin gallate, or EGCG. Relevant to the SARS-CoV-2 virus, green tea has protease-inhibiting activity which is reportedly involved in green tea’s anti-cancer benefits, and may suppress infection by other pathogens, such as the flu virus and the adenoviruses (NIH) It has been shown that the SARS-CoV-2 virus is blocked from entering lung cells by a serine protease inhibitor. (Cell) Does Green Tea inhibit serine protease?

 

Garlic

Factcheck.org says there is no evidence from the current outbreak that eating garlic has protected people from the new coronavirus, but healthful.com states that garlic improves the activity of natural killer cells, a type of immune cell that is specifically designed for cold and flu viruses as well as cancer cells. One compound in garlic, Allicin, is said to slow and kill a variety of viruses and bacteria. The main antimicrobial effect of allicin comes from its chemical reaction with “thiol groups” of various enzymes.

 

Therapeutic Efforts

Things that have been mentioned, which may either cause harm or help (research is needed) include:

• Remdesivir, a drug from Gilead Sciences’s is the first treatment to pass a strict test against the virus. It has proved effective in a major study, shortening the time it takes for patients to recover by four days on average. … NIH’s Dr. Anthony Fauci said the drug reduced the time it takes patients to recover by 31% — 11 days on average versus 15 days for those just given usual care. He also said there was a trend toward fewer deaths among those on remdesivir. Apr 29, 2020  {DailyPress}
  
  
• Anti-viral drugs – Several trials are being conducted at this time, including oseltamivir, lopinavir, and ritonavir. {WOW} In hospitalized adult patients with severe Covid-19, in a study of 199 patients, no benefit was observed with lopinavir–ritonavir treatment beyond standard care. {NEJM}
  
  
• Breathing Steam – Doctors say this won’t help because the virus is “stuck inside your cells,” but our understanding is that the virus erupts from infected cells to attack other cells, and at this time if steam could lower the viral load, it seems you would have a better chance. If this worked,2 it would have been done, but we’d like more explanation on this one.
  
  
• Nitric oxide gas inhalation – Nitric oxide (NO) is an important signaling molecule between cells which has been shown to have an inhibitory effect on some virus infections. Inhaled nitric oxide gas (NO) has shown antiviral activity against Coronavirus during the 2003 SARS outbreak. NO inhibits the replication of influenza viruses, probably during the early steps of the virus replication cycle, involving the synthesis of vRNA and mRNA encoding viral proteins. NO inhibits viral protein and RNA synthesis and an enzyme that produces NO inhibits the SARS CoV replication cycle, by up to 82% according to the claim of one person who had the virus and the respiratory distress syndrome. A direct to lung NO gas clinical trial is being undertaken by a Chinese hospital.
  
  
• Oxygen therapy – This had reported success with a critically ill woman in South Korea according to local health authority Jeong Eun-kyeong, director of Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The therapy raises oxygen saturation through delivery of high concentrations of oxygen and this does not require the use of a respirator. On February 14, 2020, South Korea reported no new coronavirus patients for four consecutive days. (UPI)
  
  
• Serine Protease Inhibitors – To gain entry into cells, many diverse viruses, Ebola virus, SARS-coronavirus, MERS-coronavirus, and SARS-CoV-2 depend on activation of their envelope glycoproteins by host cell proteases. One paper showed that “viral spread and pathogenesis of SARS-CoV is driven by serine rather than cysteine proteases and can be effectively prevented by camostat. Camostat has been clinically used to treat chronic pancreatitis, and thus represents an exciting potential therapeutic for respiratory coronavirus infections.” (SciDirect) The drug camostat mesilate that helps to inhibit the protease TMPRSS2 and is approved in Japan for pancreatic inflammation can also prevent the infection with SARS-CoV-2.Researchers found the drug, when tested on SARS-CoV-2 isolated from a patient, effectively blocked entry of the coronavirus into lung cells. The drug “camostat mesilate might also protect against COVID-19. This should be investigated in clinical trials” according to lead author Markus Hoffmann. (TimesNowNews) An in vitro study showed Camostat significantly reduces infection of Calu-3 lung cells by SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19. (Cell)
  
  
• Hydroxychloroquine and Zinc. Hasidic Jewish Doctor Vladimir Zelenko, a certified medical family practitioner in Orange county New York, has tried prophylactic pre-treatment with hydroxychloroquine with Zinc. This has worked with his hundreds of infected patients so well that he has not had to send a single one to the hospital yet. This doctor suggests the country’s high risk patients should take this drug and the vitamin at home if they are in the very highest risk category. “Zelenko has been prescribing a treatment plan of 200mg of hydroxychloroquine twice a day for 5 days, Azithromycin 500mg antibiotics once a day for 5 days, and 220mg of Zinc sulfate once a day for 5 days.” {Breitbart} Note: The author of this True Strange News article believes that two courses of Z-Pak antibiotics (Azithromycin) resulted in life-long tinnitus and hearing loss. Perhaps try a different antibiotic that is not toxic to inner ear cells. Also, this antibiotic can kill some people: “In March 2013, the FDA warned azithromycin, including brand names Zithromax, Zmax, Azithrocin and Azin, “can cause abnormal changes in the electrical activity of the heart that may lead to a potentially fatal irregular heart rhythm.” {DrugWatch}YouTube has pulled Dr. Zelenko’s video as of 4/6/2020 for violation of community standards, but there is no explanation of this. One controlled clinical trial in China with Hydroxychloroquine found it to be of no benefit compared to those who didn’t take it, {WanFang} but it also sounds like they didn’t give the patients zinc. Chloroquine is a zinc ionophore. You need the zinc too. 
• Ivermectin – Early in April 2020, researchers reported Ivermectin inhibits the replication of SARS-CoV-2 in vitro and it was included in the national therapeutic guidelines for COVID-19 of Peru. While the concentration that can be achieved in the body is much lower than what was effective in the test tube,  not anywhere near the IC₅₀, it appears to have antiviral activity. {News-Med} Mass drug administration of ivermectin to 350,000 people for treatment or prevention of COVID-19 happened in Bolivia (May 2020?). Advocacy groups in Colombia aimed for national ivermectin policy. Ivermectin inhibits certain host nuclear transport proteins, part of a key intracellular transport process viruses hijack to enhance infection by suppressing the host antiviral response. This is likely the basis for its broad-spectrum activity in vitro against the viruses that cause dengue, Zika, HIV, and yellow fever. {NIH}  A paper claimed Ivermectin binds to the SARS-CoV-2 spike receptor binding domain attached to ACE2. {LiarAntiCancer} Coving the spike receptors on the virus is a strategy vaccine candidates are persuing.  This, combined with the extensive distribution throughout the body, gives significant hope. “… the compound’s half-life is a few hours, and it’s extensively metabolized as it goes through the liver. It does distribute strongly out into tissue, though. {SciMag} “No trial has shown Ivermectin-based therapy to be ineffective. In-fact, international data reports an almost 100% cure rate and a symptom improvement within 4-6 days. … Professor Borody continued: “We have a therapy that can fight COVID-19. The medications have  been around for 50 years, they are cheap, FDA and TGA approved and  have an outstanding safety profile. Why are we just waiting around for a vaccine? ” Article: Ivermectin Triple Therapy Protocol for COVID-19 Released to Australian GPs {Bloomberg}  Ivermectin Study Reveals Fantastic Results: 100% of 60 Patients Better in an Average of Just Under 6 Days {TrialSiteNews}  Breakthrough Drug: Ivermectin Shows ‘Astounding’ Results Against Coronavirus {NewsMax} Note: “FDA is concerned about the health of consumers who may self-medicate by taking ivermectin products intended for animals, thinking they can be a substitute for ivermectin intended for humans. People should never take animal drugs, as the FDA has only evaluated their safety and effectiveness in the particular animal species for which they are labeled. These animal drugs can cause serious harm in people.” {FDA} Side effects of Ivermectin for humans is listed here: {Drugs} Several clinical trials against COVID-19 are listed here: {ClinicalTrials}

 

Shaking Viruses Apart with Lasers!

As this is True Strange News, here is a very little known strange amazing thing that very few people have even heard about, a way to kill viruses: with lasers.

“The capsid of a virus is something like the shell of a turtle,” said physicist Otto Sankey of Arizona State University. “If the shell can be compromised [by mechanical vibrations], the virus can be inactivated.” Recent experimental evidence has shown that laser pulses tuned to the right frequency can kill certain viruses. However, locating these so-called resonant frequencies is a bit of trial and error.” … 

 

As an example of their technique, the team modeled the satellite tobacco necrosis virus and found this small virus resonates strongly around 60 Gigahertz (where one Gigahertz is a billion cycles per second), as reported in the Jan. 14 issue of Physical Review Letters. Normal cells should not be affected by the virus-killing lasers or sound waves because they have resonant frequencies much lower than those of viruses, Sankey said. Moreover, it is unlikely that viruses will develop resistance to mechanical shaking, as they do to drugs. …

One challenge is that laser light cannot penetrate the skin very deeply.

– LiveSci (By Michael Schirber February 05, 2008)

As an interesting coincidence, 60 GHz is a frequency that will be used as 5G cell phone towers are deployed.

It’s now likely that 60GHz will become the next big frequency in wireless world, (Light Reading 2014)

It would be great to be able to walk through a laser apparatus and have all the bad viruses killed. Perhaps one day there will be such a technology, lasers that zap harmful viruses. Until such a device is available to the average consumer, there are a number of other things to try to boost your immune system and kill viruses, all the various anti-viral herbs, fore example.

 

Con$piracy Stuff

Some think 5G is causing COVID-19, but this can’t be correct. There are only 34 cities with 5G in the USA at this time and Italy is mostly 4G+ almost no 5G, but the virus is already in every country as of April 2020. South Africa has 1,934 COVID-19 cases and they won’t even have 5G by the year 2025.

Covid-19 virus damages the lungs causing shortness of breath. The virus attaches to proteins in the lungs then damages lung cells. People who die, do so from a lack of oxygen as fluid fills the lungs and circulating blood stops picking up the constant additional oxygen needed to keep us alive. This is not hemoglobin damage from 5G. ARDS, Advacned Respiratory Distress Syndrome, was a symptom of SARS (2002-2003) which hit the world long before 5G technology. 5G was first adopted on a large scale was South Korea, in April 2019, which was reported as being a point national pride for the country. The first deaths from Covid-19 in South Korea were about 9 months later in February 2020. There are also YouTube videos of people testing 5G using 60 GHz millimeter systems and none of them has problems working around the equipment.

If you are still concerned, get appropriate shielding and/or avoid 5G towers. A mile should do it. Because air produces signal loss, 5G frequencies above 28 GHz don’t travel much beyond a kilometer (0.62 miles). While it appears true that a 60GHz communications system must overcome the effects of oxygen absorption, at a rate of 16dB per kilometer and that 60GHz WiFi gets absorbed most by O2 molecules in the air, way more than even a heavy rain, True Strange News found no credible evidence of 5G causing breathing problems

5G being connected to COVID-19 seems to be just a bad rumor, at a very bad time. The virus is bad enough. Stay calm and do what is needed to fight the real biological virus.

 

Negative Thoughts, Etc.

There are also folks we have talked with who believe that virus manifests in people who have excess fear or otherwise negative thoughts. Although True Strange News has experienced things we can’t explain, and although we consider the simulation theory often, there is no current evidence for thoughts being able to create things out of thin air, and this includes fearful thoughts manifesting a virus.

Your thoughts and resulting moods can negatively or positively impact your immune system, however.

Tips from various web sites say be sure to laugh, connect safely with others, don’t be too clean, don’t over exercise, don’t let grief continue long term unresolved, and don’t suppress negative emotions. There are many others and they are sometimes conflicting. Is it better to be a pessimist and live longer or an optimist and have a boosted immune system, for example? Feeling concerned, on guard and pensive but ready is not the same as feeling totally stressed out, terrified and helpless. Both states fit into the pessimistic box, but one, having an inner calm but being ready to fight if needed, is more adaptive. In other words, you can express pessimistic thoughts while feeling resolute that you will do your best and then it will be what it will be.

 

Antibiotics

Antibiotics work only against bacteria, not against any virus. They may be used to fight secondary infections during the time you have a virus.

 

Smoking

Smoking has no positive effect. One emergency department doctor stated that even two puffs of a cigarette will disable hair cells in your lungs, preventing effective removal of fluids and debris. It is important to stop, use a patch or whatever you have to do.

 

Existing Vaccines

Flu or pneumonia vaccines have no effect. There was a SARS vaccine developed in response to the 2002 outbreak, but it was never sold to the public because that disease got under control before the vaccine was ready. (NYTimes) Some suggest this might be ready to use to test against the COVID-19 virus in a few months, whereas starting from scratch will take much longer. (Discover)

 

Summary of Advice

Here are some reasonable sounding recommendations, claiming to come from Dr. James A. Robb, a pathologist who studied the virus in Boca Raton, Florida.

COVID 19 VIRUS PRECAUTIONS

 

Subject: What I am doing for the upcoming COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic

 

Dear Colleagues, as some of you may recall, when I was a professor of pathology at the University of California San Diego, I was one of the first molecular virologists in the world to work on coronaviruses (the 1970s). I was the first to demonstrate the number of genes the virus contained. Since then, I have kept up with the coronavirus field and its multiple clinical transfers into the human population (e.g., SARS, MERS), from different animal sources.

 

 

The current projections for its expansion in the US are only probable, due to continued insufficient worldwide data, but it is most likely to be widespread in the US by mid to late March and April.

 

Here is what I have done and the precautions that I take and will take. These are the same precautions I currently use during our influenza seasons, except for the mask and gloves:

 

 

1) NO HANDSHAKING! Use a fist bump, slight bow, elbow bump, etc.

 

2) Use ONLY your knuckle to touch light switches. elevator buttons, etc.. Lift the gasoline dispenser with a paper towel or use a disposable glove.

 

3) Open doors with your closed fist or hip – do not grasp the handle with your hand, unless there is no other way to open the door. Especially important on bathroom and post office/commercial doors.

 

4) Use disinfectant wipes at the stores when they are available, including wiping the handle and child seat in grocery carts.

 

5) Wash your hands with soap for 10-20 seconds and/or use a greater than 60% alcohol-based hand sanitizer whenever you return home
from ANY activity that involves locations where other people have been.

 

6) Keep a bottle of sanitizer available at each of your home’s entrances. AND in your car for use after getting gas or touching other contaminated objects when you can’t immediately wash your hands.

 

7) If possible, cough or sneeze into a disposable tissue and discard. Use your elbow only if you have to. The clothing on your elbow will contain infectious virus that can be passed on for up to a week or more!

 

What I have stocked in preparation for the pandemic spread to the US:

 

1) Latex or nitrile latex disposable gloves for use when going shopping, using the gasoline pump, and all other outside activity when you come in contact with contaminated areas.

 

Note: This virus is spread in large droplets by coughing and sneezing. This means that the air will not infect you! BUT all the surfaces where these droplets land are infectious for about a week on average – everything that is associated with infected people will be contaminated and potentially infectious. The virus is on surfaces and you will not be infected unless your unprotected face is directly coughed or sneezed upon. This virus only has cell receptors for lung cells (it only infects your lungs) The only way for the virus to infect you is through your nose or mouth via your hands or an infected cough or sneeze onto or into your nose or mouth.

 

2) Stock up now with disposable surgical masks and use them to prevent you from touching your nose and/or mouth (We touch our nose/mouth 90X/day without knowing it!). This is the only way this virus can infect you – it is lung-specific. The mask will not prevent the virus in a direct sneeze from getting into your nose or mouth – it is only to keep you from touching your nose or mouth.

 

3) Stock up now with hand sanitizers and latex/nitrile gloves (get the appropriate sizes for your family). The hand sanitizers must be alcohol-based and greater than 60% alcohol to be effective.

 

4) Stock up now with zinc lozenges. These lozenges have been proven to be effective in blocking coronavirus (and most other viruses) from multiplying in your throat and nasopharynx. Use as directed several times each day when you begin to feel ANY “cold-like” symptoms beginning. It is best to lie down and let the lozenge dissolve in the back of your throat and nasopharynx. Cold-Eeze lozenges is one brand available, but there are other brands available.

 

I, as many others do, hope that this pandemic will be reasonably contained, BUT I personally do not think it will be. Humans have never seen this snake-associated virus before and have no internal defense against it. Tremendous worldwide efforts are being made to understand the molecular and clinical virology of this virus. Unbelievable molecular knowledge about the genomics, structure, and virulence of this virus has already been achieved. BUT, there will be NO drugs or vaccines available this year to protect us or limit the infection within us. Only symptomatic support is available.

 

I hope these personal thoughts will be helpful during this potentially catastrophic pandemic. You are welcome to share this email.
Good luck to all of us! Jim

 

James Robb, MD FCAP

The British Prime Minister has contracted the virus, which seems surprising given the precautions we imagine must be in place to protect world leaders. This makes us extra cautious as more protection may be needed than the basic recommendations suggest. As we have seen with China, then Italy, this virus needs to be taken very seriously.

Good luck. Stay healthy.

–

https://TrueStrangeNews.com