While a vaccine won’t be available for many months, there may be other remedies to bolster the immune system, or to protect from the severe symptoms of Covid-19. Let’s discuss them here. Authorities may be reluctant to discuss “unproven” remedies, but we need have no such compunction!
Remdesivir appears to be a possible remedy for Covid-19, although it must be administered early in the disease’s progress to be effective. It was originally designed to combat Ebola virus, so is already far along in the testing/approval cycle.
Anti-HIV drugs lopinavir and ritonavir are being used with anecdotal success in China, Japan and Thailand, to combat Covid-19.
An over-the-counter remedy being touted in Thailand is Andrographis paniculata. It is a potent anti-viral and anti-inflammation remedy touted for a variety of medical conditions; it is believed to stimulate the immune system. It is known as King of Bitters (English), Mahatikta (Sanskrit), Kiryato (Gujarati), Mahatita (Hindi), Kalmegh (Bengali), or Fah Talai Jone (Thai). It has been widely recommended in Sweden for certain viral infections, usually in the form ‘Kan jang’ where the Andrographis is combined with eleuthero (Siberian ginseng).
But there is also no research confirming that the plant can not relieve symptoms of or protect from Wuhan virus!
Our household has a largish stock of Andrographis paniculata. Ten capsules daily is recommended when suffering from cold virus; we just take one capsule a day hoping to bolster our immune systems. Next time we’re in a city, we’ll stop at a traditional Chinese drug store and hope they have Siberian ginseng.
A ringing endorsement, this is. Please turn in your scientific researcher badge at the door on your way out. You can exchange it for an Alex Jones badge.
Wow. I write “may be” instead of “is” … and that makes me a quack?
Several interesting scholarly papers turned up when I Googled; I showed only one in my post. But you deleted that link to make room for an other underlined “appears to be.”
Septimus, you titled this thread “Medicines to protect from Covid-19,” but none of your hopeful links do that with any certainty. If you will raise your eyes a little to the banner at the top of this page, you will see our motto, “Fighting Ignorance since 1973.” Posting questionable, unproven and anecdotal links purporting to “protect” is not fighting ignorance, it is spreading it.
I’m hoping this is a joke but fear it isn’t. “Prove me wrong!” is a staple of woo, and utterly unscientific.
Assuming Andrographis actually is an effective immune system booster* :dubious: that may be exactly the wrong thing to do.
It’s been observed that many COVID-19 deaths are associated with cytokine storm, where the immune system goes into overdrive and harms the host (for instance, causing adult respiratory distress syndrome). Children generally get mild infections, likely due to their less developed immune systems uncommonly generating cytokine storms.
So at best, taking unproven remedies for this virus is typically a waste of money and enriches quacks; at worst, it could cause serious harm.
*Andrographis is touted by various sources as a cure/preventative for a whole host of conditions - in addition to infections, it’s supposed to prevent or treat cancer, counter snake bite venom etc. etc.
Maybe it’ll one day be found to have some utility in medicine, but for now it qualifies under one of Jackmannii’s Laws of Quackery: the more conditions a drug/supplement is promoted to treat/prevent, the less likely it is to be useful for any one of them.
**other note: stockpiling allegedly medicinal herbs (for instance, Siberian ginseng) is a good way to promote species extinction. Overuse of dubious products has caused ecologic harm in China and elsewhere.
Do we know for sure that making the immune system stronger is a good idea?
I thought we weren’t sure if the cytokine storm was part of why the coronavirus kills. If so wouldn’t boosting your immune system put you at higher risk of complications?
I should have added a “possible” to thread title. As you yourself noted, though absurdly drawing the upside-down inference, my post was carefully written to show the “remedies” as unproven potential remedies. I thought we could use a thread to discuss possible future remedies.
Remdesivir seemed promising but I now see that “elevated liver enzymes could nail remdesivir’s coffin shut.” Other anti-virals are being tried in China, Japan and Thailand. I wonder if the results there will have scientific utility. (I’m also curious about the cost of those anti-virals: Are they very expensive?)
A useful response! Thank you. I have heard that long-term intake of Andrographis can cause liver problems, but have noticed no other contraindication. Can you help Google for it?
Is Siberian ginseng endangered? Plants in demand are often cultivated.
“The world has 11 species of ginseng, which have historically been used by various cultures for their medicinal properties. Ginseng is touted as a cure for everything from low energy to erectile dysfunction. The plant is so popular throughout China that many Asian species are now extinct or severely endangered.”
Mrs. Septimus is the family expert on traditional medicines; consulting with her I learn that I misunderstood her Andrographis prescription. (I don’t know if the following is sensical medical advice.)
That remedy may or may not combat Covid-19 but that’s not why she (and her sources) recommend it. There is evidence that Andrographis is effective at preventing or ameliorating common cold and flu. By maintaining good health despite exposure to cold or flu, the hope is that our bodies will be better equipped to face the coronavirus if/when it arrives. (I’m of an age where I want all the help I can get!)
Otherwise, adequate selenium, zinc, magnesium, and vitamin D in the diet or from supplements help to boost the immune system. And I certainly wouldn’t write off traditional herbal medicines.
The active components of turmeric are soluble in oil, and traditionally in India, turmeric is said to be ‘activated’ by brief heating in oil before being used in foods or medicines.
Why don’t you read the links I posted? Herbal medicine is not tested the way evidence-based medicine is and “boost the immune system” is a favorite sales ploy when you can’t prove they do anything really useful. There’s little or no proof that these work, in spite of them being around for a long time. Why are you so willing to put your trust in hope and fantasy instead of science?
In the US, you can sell almost any snake oil you want as long as you call it a “supplement,” or only hint that it might be effective. Why do you think manufacturers don’t run legitimate tests? Because such drugs are unlikely to pass and the tests are too rigorous. Much better to pretend, rope in the gullible, and make some money.
Also, so that you get the terminology right the next time you’re pretending to science, none of those is a “research paper”. They’re review articles. No experiments were conducted.