Vitamin D3-Influenza i.e. the Flu-Obesity

I think they are catching up and though I don’t like to blog on similar subject twice this is too important not too. A recent article in my local, in Texas local can mean something different then other parts of the country, newspaper The San Antonio Express an article by Liz Teitiz brought caught my attention.

She wrote in today (11/18/2018) that at the most recent annual Vaccine Development Center of San Antonio Conference, Dr. Stacey Schultz-Cherry a faculty member of the St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee and deputy director of the World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Studies on the Ecology of Influenza in Animals and Birds was one of several keynote speakers at that conference, where she spoke on how obesity affects the spread of and vaccination against the flu.

Dr. Schultz-Cherry noted how in the 2009 “swine Flu” epidemic for the first time studies suggested that overweight and obese people were more likely to develop more severe illness. Not sure if this means they saw this for the first time or only now able to differentiate this. I would suspect it was the first time they were able to and did look at this. Again, according to this article, the WHO has found the number of people who suffer from obesity has triple since 1975 and “the higher the obese population the more likely you are to have hospitalization and ICU and even mortality”.

These are again according to Ms. Teitiz article as I wasn’t there. Finally, according to Dr. Shultz-Cherry obese people are suffering chronic low level inflammation and immune compromised. I could not have said it better. Without adequate vitamin D3 levels the gut flora is altered. Our immune systems play a key role in regulating what is in there and if our immune systems are compromised, which I argue suboptimal blood levels of vitamin D3 because this alters the gut flora.

The gut flora then affects the immune system. It is a catch-22, they live symbiotically and if one is altered-the gut or our immune system-it effects the other. So instead of helping each other our immune system is not constantly working to protect us from what is in our gut. I have blogged about influenza before and in my book, I discuss in much more detail the link between the gut and are ability to for one fight off influenza.

Though the 1918 Spanish flu that killed millions is long ago and before almost anyone today was alive it is only a matter of time before we have a repeat. As Ms. Liz Teitiz reported and Dr. Shultz-Cherry has found-like the joke about the five blind scientists trying to describe an elephant. Where each scientist is correct in describing the part, they are examining from a fly swatter-tail, hose-the trunk to wall-the elephant’s side, etc. but none “see’ the whole picture.  So, it is here with Dr. Shultz-Cherry. In fairness perhaps, she may understand about optimal dosing of vitamin D3 but if so, it wasn’t mentioned.

See, the cheapest, safest and best solution to preventing the flu is optimal blood levels of vitamin D3. My fear is this time around without optimal levels of vitamin D3 this generations “Spanish Flu” will be far worse. I never liked trying to be a fear monger, but the past is prelude, study the past!

*The information posted above is for educational purposes only. Always check with your doctor before initiating any changes in your medical treatment. If you do not, then The Two-Minute Health Fact, Dr. Judson Somerville, nor The Optimal Dose is responsible!