Peter Lederman in Second Bout With COVID-19

Peter,
Glad you are improving.  I am an integrative MD who is aware of conventional wisdom as well as nutritional/natural modes of healing.  Ignored by the big money medical system is the foremost role of vitamin D in suppressing inflammation and the severe cytokine storm of serious covid illness.  Vitamin D 25 hydroxy blood levels should be maintained over 50 ng/ml for a protective benefit.  Most of my patients and I require 5000 IU (125 mcg) of vitamin D3 daily to maintain these levels.  If they have not been taking any vitamins, their levels are usually way below 20, posing greatly increased risks for any infection and many cancers.  In urgent situations, I advise 20,000 IU daily for 1 week, then maintenance of 5000 IU daily.  Vitamin D3 is very cheap, from any vitamin store, OTC from pharmacies.  At Costco, a bottle of Nature's Bounty 400 doses of 5000 IU is only about $16 retail, often on sale for $12.  For over a year supply, dirt cheap.

I am now 68.  In late March 2020 I had a mild covid illness, probably due to my healthy diet, slender body (6 feet, 160 lbs), and excellent vitamin D levels for the past 20 years.  Ten months after my mild covid illness, I still had the natural covid antibodies.  

@retipper 

peter

great to know you are on the mend, great that you have energy to post here and update your friends and supporters

get better, so you can get back to work... i have half dozen f9 styli that need you 😁😁😁😁

or you may consider a new career as lyricist for modern day rappers!

hope you got a laugh... cheers, thinking about you and wishing you a quick return to your full superpowers

viber6, I beg to differ with you.  The benefits of maintaining Vit D levels were recognized very early on by the "medical establishment".  You can find videos on Youtube (a public forum) dating back a year or more that were posted by reputable sources that one might identify with the medical establishment, emphasizing the importance of both Vitamin D and C.  Low Vit D was actually identified as a risk factor for severe disease.  However, neither vitamin will "cure" the active disease or prevent it in a statistically detectable way.  (Which is not to say that having normal levels of Vit D might not make the difference between an asymptomatic infection and getting sick.)  Further, there were published papers on the effect of Vit D in peer-reviewed journals.  In the only study I can recall off the top of my head, there was no benefit shown to taking mega-doses of D or C when you actually get sick or even on a chronic basis prior to infection; the benefit was associated with achieving and maintaining at least the accepted normal range of concentrations in blood.  I myself went on Vit D after reading those papers and watching a Youtube video, and because my own Vit D level was low-ish historically.

I’m spread pretty thin these days, and just caught this news.
Get well soon, Peter! We miss you.

... Thom @ Galibier Design

lewm,
Dr. John Cannell founded the Vitamin D Council to bring awareness of D's benefits for numerous conditions.  Unfortunately for covid, the public has been demoralized into thinking that nothing can be done except take vaccines, steroids, anticoagulants.  The reference norms of D25OH at 30-100 ng/ml miss the concept of what is optimal/therapeutic, which is 50-80.  When I was sick last year, I also used Ester C 1000 mg every 2 hrs while awake, NAC (N acetyl cysteine) 600 mg 3x/day to increase glutathione levels.  I made slow progress, but when I got Quicksilver Scientific's liposomal vit C and glutathione which are almost as good as intravenous forms, I made much more rapid improvement.  My patients and I who have done this KNOW that it works, unlike assertions of flawed "controlled" studies in journals, such as the recent JAMA article.  I suggest opening a professional account with Quicksilver, which will also give access to webinars by the brilliant chief scientist, Christopher Shade, PhD.

There is a long history of high dose intravenous vit C for many infectious illnesses.  Thankfully, Northshore University Hospital in NY started IV vitamin C 1.5 gm every 6 hours early last year for covid.  The Vitamin C book by Thomas Levy, MD, JD is useful.

Surviving covid is the first hurdle.  Preventing long term sequelae is best accomplished with a holistic, nutritional approach that complements usual medical therapy.  I know the medical/dental practice, Whole Body Medicine in Fairfield, Conn which is near Peter.  I had my mercury dental fillings removed in 2004 by the founder, Dr. Mark Breiner.  His son, Dr. Adam Breiner is a holistic D.O.  Dr. David Brady in the practice is a renowned nutritionist.