Beware of miracle COVID-19 treatments
Q: There are a lot of alternative treatments online to help deal with COVID-19. Some sound pretty good. What do you think? — Gerald R., Richmond, Virginia
A: Every crisis provides an opportunity for scammers and dreamers — and that means there is a huge amount of products out there that promise to prevent, treat or cure COVID-19 based on nothing but guesses, suppositions, internet gossip and fabrications and, in some cases, the inclination to perpetrate fraud.
Prevention comes from being healthy and minimizing chronic inflammation in your body so your immune strength is good. It also depends on you following proven risk-reducing protocols: wearing a mask; washing your hands frequently; staying away from large gatherings; getting the vaccine; and then continuing to be masked and careful until we are sure about the impact of virus variants and how mass vaccination will play out. Treatment, obviously, should be done by your doctor or in a hospital.
The Food and Drug Administration is actively issuing warnings to companies that sell products that exploit your hope for easy solutions. Lately it has gone after ones that claim their teletemperature reading devices can diagnose COVID-19 (they can’t) and others that push hyped-up vitamins as treatments and cures for the infection. We always say take a half a multivitamin twice a day along with extra vitamin D. Stick with that.
The FDA has also sent warning letters to companies selling teas that are supposed to prevent or treat the infection and to others pushing stuff they claim will detox your cells or boost blood oxygen levels.
It’s impossible for the government to shut down all these fake Covid-19-related companies, so it’s your responsibility to steer clear of products that deliver little more than a hole in your wallet. You can check out the FDA’S list of companies pushing unproven or dangerous COVID-19 treatments by Googling “FDA warning letters.”
Q: If what you eat has so much to do with the health of your body, does it also affect your mental health? — Emily G., Rockford, Illinois
A: Yes. Various studies have found that diet and depression are related
(both ways — what you eat can fuel depression, and depression can fuel poor nutrition). In fact, it’s been shown that each 10 percent increase in eating highly processed foods raises the risk of depression by 21 percent.