Strategies vs Covid-19; Japan winning its war

Last of 2 parts

ICONTINUE today my series on various strategies in fighting the coronavirus.

I will start by publishing here a letter-article sent me by Robert Wagner, an American educator who works and resides in the country as a director of the Help Philippines Schools Foundation.

Next, I will discuss my discovery, via an article by Jake Edelstein in the Asia Times claiming that Japan is quietly winning its war against Covid-19, while the rest of the world writhes in agony.

Sunning daily drives the virus away

Wagner’s piece is titled “Sun exposure may be the reason why there are no Covid-19 cases coming out of the barangay (villages).” I reproduce it in full below: “My employees were terrified. Their questions came at me in a staccato cadence: ‘Boss, what if one of us gets the virus and we bring it home to our families?’ ‘I’m from Samar, [but I’m] here in Pampanga with no family, so who will take care of me if I get sick?’ and ‘Boss, what if you get sick, who will pay us?’ The desperation in their eyes was as alarming as it was painful for me to see, as these were in fact members of my extended family, many of whom I had known for seven years or more since having decided to open a restaurant in Clark, Pampanga as a fundraiser for the family charity. As it became obvious that no amount of cajoling or reassurance that everything will be all right would allay their concerns, I turned to science and offered knowledge that might help them feel that the sky wasn’t going to fall around them.

“A significant part of one of my past lives was spent as a vitamin D researcher. The study group I became part of in the late 1990s received a grant from the NIEHS (National Institute of Environment Health Sciences) to investigate novel methods of generating vitamin D — which is not a vitamin at all, rather a prohormone — in humans to counter seasonal temperate deficiency. What I personally brought to the table was my firm’s specialization in guiding manufacturers of non-ioanizing, radiation-emitting devices used in dermatological treatments through FDA ( Food and Drugs Administration) approval. A background as a biophysicist concentrating on artificial ultraviolet (UV) light sources and applied photobiology solidified my membership in our little band of ambitious physicists.

“Over the course of nearly four years and a dozen conferences, we designed clinical trials aimed at determining which among cholecalciferol (lanolin from wool) ingestion, annual injections of Calcitriol (artificial, active form of D3) or the good old-fashioned mode of sun exposure were the most efficient technical manners of producing optimum levels of 25(OH)D in the bloodstream.

“With the dermatologists breathing down our necks to nix sunlight, we focused on injections and oral supplements. When both of those modalities turned up short of expectations, the group leaned on me for data on employing UVB lamp arrays that mimic the sun’s light spectra primarily understood as being responsible for vitamin D production through skin-residing mechanisms. And surprise, UV turned out to be the winner! Even more astounding was an ancillary discovery that people who didn’t get regular sun exposure were more susceptible to melanoma and other dermal cancers that the skin docs were so worried about.

“While in the lab, we also took note of the microbicidal capabilities that UVC and UVB displayed, later on making recommendations to FDA that hospital rooms could potentially be sterilized using lamp arrays. Our work showed that all airborne or superficial nosocomial (residing in hospitals) critters, whether viral, parasitic or bacterial, were quickly, definitively rendered inert, aka killed.

“Within a few years, an entire industry was built up around the concept. Most hospitals in Western and Asian countries today use a plethora of devices available on the market to clean their facilities with. Some are automated in wheeled robot configurations to go down hallways, into elevators and rooms, irradiating the air and surfaces during the wee hours of the morning. Others are used to sterilize the interiors of commercial offices, aircraft, trains and vessels, being pushed or pulled up and down aisles by technicians.

“Sitting my waitresses and kitchen people down individually, I outlined what we had learned more than a generation ago and proposed they all get out in the noonday sun each day for 30 minutes to a) boost their immune systems that will help fight Covid-19 symptoms, and b) destroy any SARS CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 [or] the actual coronavirus that causes Covid-19) that may have landed on their skin, clothes or hair.

“My belief that this is an effective preventative treatment regimen is supported by anecdotal evidence that seems to indicate ‘poor’ people in tropical climates like the Philippines aren’t as readily afflicted with Covid- 19 as wealthy people are. This is probably so because poor people don’t live in climate-controlled homes or ride around in airconditioned cars. The reason why flu viruses are most active in temperate climates is due to the fact that everyone is inside during the cold months, which is exactly the ideal incubation environment structures like coronaviruses need to thrive in.

“The poor are more exposed to mosquito-borne tropical diseases like dengue and West Nile virus because they can’t afford air-conditioning and their homes are open-air. Mosquitos caught flying around in noonday sun die quickly from rapid dehydration, so they pass daytime hours in dark, cool, closed spaces, coming out at dusk to hunt for blood. Rich folks in their sealed living spaces, vehicles and hotel banquet rooms virtually never contract dengue. But, because they are afraid of getting dark skin, politicians, celebrities and wellto-do business people never take advantage of the sun’s benefits that would otherwise help them avoid Covid-19, especially the elderly.

“The Covid-19 pandemic has shocked the world and people are looking for answers. Filipinos must now throw off their nonsensical obsession with ‘ whiteness’ and accept the sun as a useful tool in combating disease.”

Japan winning fight vs Covid- 19

The article of Jake Adelstein was published by the AsiaTimes on March 25, 2020. I quote below major portions of his report:

“France, Italy and parts of the United States are in lockdown. Streets are silent, shops are shut, fear reigns. It’s a grim Covid-19 spring.

“But not so in Japan. As the weather warms up, people are gathering in droves to get drunk under the blossoming cherry trees, some restaurants are offering 30 percent ‘beat the coronavirus’ discounts, public transport is full and even amusement parks are reopening.

“So, why aren’t more people dying? Japan has recorded a mere 49 deaths from Covid-19.

“The answer is not simple: multiple factors are at work.

“However, a Japanese official who gave an off-the-record briefing to Asia Times suggested that a ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’ strategy, based on minimal testing and buttressed by information massage, has been quietly emplaced.

” That may sound opaque — even inhuman. But it has ensured national calm and continued economic activity. It has kept the medical system from being overwhelmed and rests on a strong foundation: world- class treatment of the disease’s main symptomatic killer, pneumonia.

“The government has ordered schools closed and all major events postponed. Most museums, amusement parks and event spaces were closed, but some are now reopening.

“Japan is known for its remarkable addiction to cleanliness, and wearing masks for health and sometimes cosmetic reasons has been part of the culture for at least 100 years.

“Japan is not a touchy- feely nation like France or Italy. Social distancing is part of the culture.

‘ No needless tests’

“Though the scale of the epidemic cannot be gauged without tests, the Japanese government is holding back data, keeping test numbers low and doing its best to make sure that everything looks ‘under control.’

“Many who get the virus will not show symptoms or get ill, and most of those who get ill recover. But it can kill — especially the aged — and Japan has the oldest population in the world. Embattled Italy is in second place. It does so by pneumonia, viral damage and sepsis.

“The Japanese Society for Infection Prevention and Control updated their coronavirus manual on March 10.

“The tone is calm. ‘ Japan is moving from containment measures to a period of spreading infection and we must adjust accordingly,’ it says. Since March 6, Covid-19 testing won coverage under national health insurance — ergo, “as public money is being used for the coronavirus testing, it is necessary to carefully screen who gets tested.”

“It gently chides anyone who seeks “needless” testing and urges medical professionals to prevent overcrowding at hospitals by instructing patients with light symptoms to stay home and avoid others.

“Critically, it points out that since there is no specific treatment for Covid-19, the priority must be treating the illness via its pathogen causes.

Symptomatic therapy

“‘ The foundation of treatment is symptomatic therapy,’ the manual reads. When signs of pneumonia are found, it suggests using all possible methods of treatment, such as giving oxygen and vasopressors as necessary. Above all, it reminds medical staff of the top priority: ‘Protect the lives of seriously ill patients, especially in cases of pneumonia.’

“Japan has an excellent public healthcare system. Care is affordable, so most people see a physician when they are beginning to feel ill, rather than when conditions have worsened…

“The current ‘treat the symptoms approach’ seems to be working. If you go to the doctor in Japan with symptoms of pneumonia or breathing difficulties, they are unlikely to give you a test for the novel coronavirus.

“If medical pros find you have pneumonia, they will begin treating you. There is a very good chance you will be cured. And if you are cured, they probably will not test you for coronavirus. So, a case of Covid- 19 vanishes — literally and statistically.”

Investigate and learn

I relay these informative articles to the public and the government with no illusions they could become part of public policy. Rather I urge our public health authorities to investigate and learn.

We need every weapon in this war against the coronavirus.