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Malnourished and malnourished patients have poorer prognoses for the course of crown disease than healthy people. Nutrition scientists at the University of Hohenheim advise people in high-risk groups to improve their nutritional status and physical condition. However, the problem does not only affect older people.
Advanced age, previous illnesses, a weak immune system, or smoking – these are frequently mentioned risk factors for a possible serious course in crown disease. Scientists at the University of Hohenheim now point to another seemingly underestimated risk factor.
“People who are prone to malnutrition and malnutrition due to old age and previous illnesses, or who develop or intensify them during intensive care, are particularly at risk from COVID-19,” says Stephan Bischoff, Director of the Institute of Medicine Nutrition of the University of Hohenheim-Stuttgart. Bischoff expressly advises people in known risk groups to pay more attention to their nutritional status in order to increase the resistance of their body.
Good nutritional status: lower risk of death or consequent damage
“A good nutritional status of the patients significantly reduces the probability of going through a serious course of the disease, developing permanent consequential damages or even dying,” emphasizes nutritionist Bischoff. Therefore, the following appeal is made to his medical colleagues: the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of malnutrition and malnutrition should therefore be an integral part of treating each patient with COVID-19.
In an ongoing study, researchers at Schleswig-Holstein University Medical Center (UKSH) are already investigating whether Covid 19 patients can stabilize by targeted medical optimization of their nutritional status and whether severe courses of the disease can reduce. Specifically, it involves the administration of vitamin B3 and silica.
Malnutrition is a common phenomenon in children.
The Stuttgart nutritionist, however, urges that at-risk groups don’t just think about the elderly. “Malnutrition and malnutrition, as well as being overweight, are also a very present phenomenon in our society, even with children. With these preloads, you increase the risk of viral pneumonia and a life-threatening course of infection. “
Quarantine: danger of bad eating habits.
Even in patients who should be quarantined due to suspected COVID-19, nutritional status may deteriorate. “The 14-day quarantine at home promotes a sedentary or lying lifestyle, for example, in front of the TV or the computer,” says Bischoff. “As a result, regular physical activity and therefore energy consumption decrease.” Quarantine, which actually serves health purposes, can also lead to worsening of chronic diseases, weight gain, reduction of skeletal muscles, and a reduced immune response. This increases the risk of developing quarantined uninfected people.
Anti-Crown Nutrition Strategy: Get Expert Help
The Stuttgart expert advises people in risk groups to carry out preventive tests to detect possible nutritional deficiencies. Support for an anti-crown nutritional strategy could be obtained from people with known malnutrition and malnutrition or at risk from nutritionists or medical experts, Bischoff says. These could also assess the extent to which supplementation of the daily diet with vitamins and minerals is necessary to achieve optimal defense against infection.
Prevention: “Benefits of unproven vitamin preparations”
The nutritionist expressly advises against overestimating the effects of concentrated vitamin preparations. “It is important to prevent and treat micronutrient deficits,” says Bischoff. “However, there is no evidence that, in healthy, well-nourished individuals, routine use of high doses of micronutrients can prevent COVID-19 infection or improve disease progression.”
Covid-19: vomiting and diarrhea can interfere with food intake
According to Bischoff, staying in an intensive care unit, which may be necessary due to serious respiratory diseases, most often leads to malnutrition and malnutrition in COVID-19 patients who develop or worsen due to inflammatory processes. Although the virus primarily affects the respiratory tract, the disease can also be associated with nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, which also affects food intake and use.
Crown and nutrition: tips for doctors.
As a member of an international team of scientists, the Stuttgart professor developed specific treatment recommendations and suggestions for doctors. A 10-point guideline was published in the clinical journal “Clinical Nutrition”. The expert recommendation was initiated by the European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism (ESPEN). According to their own statements, the world’s largest society of nutritional medicine specialists, ESPEN, has brought together several thousand medical specialists from across Europe.
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