27.09.2020
17:09
People with a high chance of getting severely ill from Covid-19 have eating-related illnesses in common, according to new study by Israeli endocrinologist
September 27, 2020 Share on FacebookShare Share on TwitterTweet Share on WhatsAppShare
Obese people, people with diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease are at high risk if they contract coronavirus
Covid-19 is known to most severely affect people who were not entirely healthy before contracting it. Now it is clear that, in addition to advanced age, a high risk is run by obese people, with diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease. “And what is evident and hardly anyone points out is that most of these ailments are related to what these people eat,” said Dr. Mariela Glandt, who decided to compile her knowledge and research when the following became clear to her: “Diet it is the greatest risk of coronavirus and nobody is talking about it ”.
Endocrinologist and diabetes specialist, the Israeli specialist has just published “How to eat in the days of Covid-19”, recently translated into Spanish, and says that over the years she has worked with patients with food-related diseases and that he did not imagine that his knowledge would be relevant during a pandemic. “But I believe that food is the best way to prepare our bodies to fight against this virus, the overlap between metabolic dysfunction and vulnerability to Covid-19 is impossible to ignore,” he explained in statements released by Fuente Latina .
Israeli endocrinologist and diabetes specialist Mariela Grandt
What is metabolic dysfunction? Metabolism is the process your body uses to obtain or produce energy from the food you eat. Food is made up of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. The body breaks down food into sugars and acids, and the body can use this energy immediately or store it in body tissues such as the liver, muscles, and body fat.
A metabolic disorder occurs when there are abnormal chemical reactions in the body that disrupt this process. When this happens, the body may have too many or too few substances that it needs to stay healthy. An example of a disorder is diabetes.
With regard to the virus, all the elements at stake are still being investigated, but it is proven that insulin resistance and obesity are great destroyers of the immune system, according to the endocrinologist. People with any of these characteristics are more vulnerable to the disease and if they are infected, the coronavirus hurts them more than others. “The good news is that these dysfunctions can change quickly,” he said.
Food, the key to the disease and also to its cure
Food-related illnesses require food-related solutions as well. “Metabolic diseases are characterized primarily by an excess intake of sugar, carbohydrates and vegetable oils.” All of these cause a rapid rise in the hormone insulin and may therefore lead to insulin resistance and other hormonal imbalances.
The expert points to fast food as the great culprit of the bad eating habits of so many western countries, which see an increase in obesity in their population, such as Israel.
Junk food without nutrients, processed food full of sugar and vegetable oils, sodas and fruit juices (also natural ones), should be replaced by foods that do not destroy the metabolism. “Avoiding carbohydrates is the best way to break the cycle of insulin spikes and insulin resistance,” says the endocrinologist.
