Nutrition, COVID-19 and the CDC: How Americans Have Been Fed Information During the Pandemic

In the last four months, the pandemic has taken a drastic toll on the world in ways that go beyond the surface of infection. The lives that have been taken and the health that has been altered by those infected is only one of the many devastating consequences. Other critical repercussions include massive unemployment rates, the delay of life saving surgeries for those with cancer and other chronic conditions, business closures, isolation, impaired mental health, increased concerns of suicide, loss of connection, incredible polarization and living with a persistent sense of fear (which in itself causes a slew of often overlooked health issues). 

People describe the pre-corona world as the old way of living and the current state of the Covid-19 virus as “the new normal.” But accepting this tragic and vulnerable state as a new normal only adds an extra sense of gloom. From the start of the pandemic, health officials in the United States failed to release information regarding how to create health and support the immune system to improve resiliency–in other words, factors to protect the public amidst a pandemic.

Instead, today, the optimistic headlines for a return to normalcy involve an expedited vaccine. However, living in fear coupled with some form of a stay at home measure until one becomes available is not a way to live. It in fact may be more harmful than beneficial when you account for people’s mental health and the way in which ongoing restrictive measures limit physical activity, people’s ability to secure healthy foods and access preventative services.

The government has failed to provide information about interventions that are available to the population today that could drastically improve an individual’s response to the virus if/when exposure occurs. And that intervention starts with what is at the end of people’s forks, in addition to movement, stress reduction and sleep.

The National Recommendations

The advice and updates that Americans have relied on for COVID-19 come directly from the governing body of health information, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). At the time of publishing this article, the recommendations from the CDC include the following: 

1. Wash your hands often
2. Avoid close contact
3. Cover your mouth and nose with a cloth face cover when around others 
4. Cover coughs and sneezes 
5. Clean and disinfect
6. Monitor your health 

These guidelines are consistent with many standard public health recommendations, but they fail to acknowledge the unique convergence of this particular virus and the chronic disease terrain that persists in the United States. They fail to better understand how adverse outcomes from the pandemic are escalated by the alarmingly poor nutritional and metabolic health (heart health, blood sugar and body composition) of Americans.

The conventional healthcare system in the United States is structured to treat symptoms versus looking upstream, a functional medicine philosophy, which teaches practitioners to address root causes versus treating the symptoms of the root causes. The government and the CDC have taken a very different approach from looking upstream by failing to provide any education involving 1) How the immune system works and how to support it through lifestyle and 2) How to optimize immunological resilience and metabolic health with what you put at the end of your fork. While optimal nutrition is not a cure for coronavirus itself, it does support many of the underlying conditions and mechanisms that make the difference between mild and severe cases.   

The research that exists demonstrates that the acute care virus is only one part of the story. The CDC has recognized that the baseline levels of chronic disease play a very significant role in disease severity of those infected. And it’s well known that chronic, inflammatory conditions are largely driven by a diet rich in ultra-processed foods and void of dietary fiber, micronutrients, phytonutrients and other foods that help improve metabolic health while synergistically strengthening immune health.

Despite this very clear correlation, the recommendations for the last several months have been for everyone to shelter in place, wear masks and hope for the best. This messaging fails to educate individuals on the vast number of behaviors that have scientifically been proven to improve not just the immune system but metabolic health as a whole.

Your immune system and your metabolic function require nutrients to do their jobs and can be suppressed or hijacked when too many inflammatory ingredients are added to the mix. 

The State of Health Pre-COVID

Before diving into statistics directly tied to the pandemic, it’s helpful to paint a clear picture of what “health” in the United States looks like, both pre and during-COVID-19. Most people are surprised to learn that the metabolic health of the United States population is disturbingly low. Statistic show that: 

-Only 12.2% of adults in the United States are metabolically healthy, meaning they have a normal waist circumference, blood pressure, blood sugar, triglyceride levels, and HDL cholesterol levels and do not take any medication.

-6 in 10 adults in the United States have at least one chronic disease.

-4 in 10 adults in the United States have 2 or more chronic disease.

->100 million adults have pre-diabetes or diabetes.

-3 in 4 adults are overweight or obese.

-Between 2013 and 2016, 121.5 million American adults had some form of cardiovascular disease.

-In 2017, approximately 11 million deaths worldwide were attributable to poor dietary patterns that increased risk of disease. 

-In the United States, an estimated 678,000 deaths each year are due to poor nutrition and diet-related diseases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Underlying Comorbidities for COVID-19

According to the CDC, a comorbidity is defined as having more than one disease or condition at the same time. Other names that can be used are coexisting or underlying health conditions.

The CDC reported that as of May 30, 2020 specific comorbidities or underlying health conditions are a significant risk factor for COVID-19. The most common underlying conditions reported were: 

-Cardiovascular disease: 32%

-Diabetes: 30%

-Chronic lung disease: 18%

The CDC also reported that hospitalizations were 6 times higher and deaths were 12 times higher among those with reported underlying conditions compared with those with no known conditions.

This pattern of underlying health conditions was reported in China in March. That month, I published an article on Using Food as Medicine to Support your Immune Health During the Coronavirus Pandemic. In this article, I highlighted findings from a paper published in JAMA on March 13, 2020 that included 201 patients admitted to Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital in China with confirmed COVID-19. The study’s authors noted that approximately one-third of patients who were diagnosed with COVID-19 and required hospitalization for Acute Respiratory Disease Syndrome (ARDS) had comorbidities including hypertension, diabetes, and liver disease. 

The same associations became increasingly apparent in the United States. One study published on April 22, 2020 in JAMA included more than 5,000 patients in New York City hospitals who contracted COVID-19 and required hospitalization due to complications. 

The study highlighted that: 

• 88% of patients hospitalized had more than one comorbidity, with the most common being hypertension, diabetes, and obesity.

• Approximately 6% of individuals who contracted COVID-19 and required hospitalization were free of any comorbidities. 

• 56.6% of those hospitalized had hypertension (high blood pressure).

• 41.7% met the criteria for obesity (having a body mass index greater than or equal to 30, which is calculated by height and weight).

• 33.8% had diabetes.

Another study published on June 17, 2020 assessed those who had the virus and required hospitalization compared to those who had the virus and did not require hospitalization. They found that hospitalized patients with COVID-19 were more likely to have Type 2 diabetes and obesity compared to those who were not hospitalized. The study findings included: 

• 55.9% of those who were hospitalized were categorized as obese compared to 33.4% of those who were non-hospitalized. 

• Among hospitalized patients, 36.8% had diabetes compared to 9.7% of non-hospitalized patients. 33.6% of the hospitalized diabetes cases were T2D and a very small percentage had Type 1 Diabetes (T1D). 

In addition to the elderly population >65 years old and racial minority groups, those with poor metabolic health, are also at a disproportionately higher risk of poor health outcomes from COVID-19. While there are some exceptions where a seemingly healthy 30 year old that is active and has healthy blood sugar/blood pressure contracts the virus and has poor outcomes, that is a very small minority. 

It has become increasingly obvious that the public health threat is the virus when plugged into the chronic disease terrain that creates the perfect storm, which can also be referred to as the cytokine storm.

The concern with making recommendations that are solely based on wearing masks and washing hands is that it doesn’t address a very important factor and may create a false sense of security. For many, addressing their own underlying health issues by taking care of their bodies with optimal food, movement, sleep and stress reduction can statistically create a high level of resiliency to the virus and may help in flattening the curve. Despite knowing this information, the CDC has yet to make recommendations telling people to eat their vegetables.

The CDC Acknowledges Metabolic Health in Face of the Pandemic

On June 25, 2020 the CDC updated its recommendations to acknowledge that “people of any age with certain underlying medical conditions are at an increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19”. This list includes: 

• Chronic kidney disease
• COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) 
• Immunocompromised state (weakened immune system from solid organ transplant) 
• Obesity (body mass index [BMI] of 30 or higher) 
• Serious heart conditions, such as heart failure, coronary artery disease, or cardiomyopathies 
• Sickle cell disease
• Type 2 diabetes mellitus 

Following this acknowledgement, the CDC provided recommendations for this vulnerable group of individuals.

The CDC advises people with these chronic diseases or immunosuppression to limit interactions, take precautions when interacting with others, wear a cloth face covering and use alcoholic hand sanitizer. The website proceeds to list each disease state that increases risk or may increase risk of adverse outcomes and pairs it with “Actions to take.” The actions for every disease involve taking medication, ensuring they have enough medication stocked, and calling their healthcare provider if they have concerns about their condition. 

Some examples of “actions” the CDC recommends for specific disease states include: 

Diabetes: 

Having type 2 diabetes increases your risk of severe illness from COVID-19. Based on what we know at this time, having type 1 or gestational diabetes may increase your risk of severe illness from COVID-19.

Actions to Take: 

-Continue taking your diabetes pills and insulin as usual. 

-Test your blood sugar and keep track of the results, as directed by your healthcare provider. 

-Make sure that you have at least a 30-day supply of your diabetes medicines, including insulin. 

-Follow your healthcare provider’s instructions if you are feeling ill as well as the sick day tips for people with diabetes. 

-Call your healthcare provider if you have concerns about your condition or feel sick. 

-If you don’t have a healthcare provider, contact your nearest community health center or health department.

Serious Heart Conditions & Other Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Diseases

Obesity 

The governing body of health, the CDC, the “authority” that Americans are encouraged to trust as the source of health recommendations, acknowledge the role that chronic disease plays in the pandemic but fail to provide health-seeking recommendations during these tumultuous times. The ‘Actions to Take’ are written in a language that makes it seem as though a diagnosis of obesity or Type 2 Diabetes is a static state of being that is unable to be reversed. This treatment based approach again fails to look upstream to ask the question that functional medicine always starts with: WHY do you have diabetes? WHY do you have hypertension? Statistically, the answer to these questions, for the majority of Americans is rooted in their diet. 

But here is the good news: the message does not have to be surrounded by doom and fear. There are other interventions that you can incorporate into your life besides wearing a mask and washing your hands.

There is ample research demonstrating an indisputable role of nutrition and lifestyle on improving underlying comorbidities and metabolic function but the recommendations fail to reflect that.

If you find yourself at a higher risk due to having an underlying comorbidity or if you want to create more resiliency, choose a few goals from the list below as a great place to start: 

-Actively prioritize your health

-Create daily mantras that establish a positive mindset and decrease fear of the unknown 

-Provide the immune system with nutrients that it needs https://beingbrigid.devphase.io/immune-health/ 

-Get your vitamin D levels checked and take a supplement if you are low 

-Reduce your intake of foods that create an inflammatory response such as fried food, fast food and highly processed foods

-Remove soda, liquid sugar and added sugars from your diet to help lower blood sugar response

-Start to fast overnight for 12 hours to help with blood sugar and blood pressure levels.

-Incorporate 2-3 cups of vegetables into your diet to increase fiber, vitamin C and antioxidants

-Try to eat at least 3 different colors with each of your meals 

-Spend at least 15-20 minutes per day outside to help support your immune system and increase exposure to sunshine

-Move your body for at least 30 minutes per day, 5 days per week 

-Incorporate stress reducing practices such as taking deep breaths, meditation or yoga 

-Create a healthy evening routine that is conducive to optimal sleep

-Drink half of your body weight in fluid ounces 

-Plant a small vegetable or herb garden 

As someone with a Master’s of Science in Public Health Nutrition, I am very aware of some of the limitations that exist in our current society that make it uniquely challenging for those of lower socioeconomic status to access quality foods. The sad truth is that our current landscape is fueled by government subsidies, lobbyist, the food industry, big agriculture and politics. But the health disparities are not a reason to give up and settle for lower standards. That is why 10 of the 15 recommendations listed above are 100% free. There’s much more work to be done on a federal level with improving the food supply and decreasing influence from the food industry, but in the meantime, people can use Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) dollars to purchase apples, carrots, extra virgin olive oil, avocado, almonds and other whole food ingredients.

Knowing the Numbers 

It’s important to have an accurate idea of your risk of infection and death, if in fact you were to contract the virus. As of July 1, 2020 there were 2,737,609 cases reported in the United States. The infection rates have started to increase but the total number of deaths in the United States have gone down. The CDC has yet to report a case fatality rate but based on data reported by the CDC, the ‘best estimate’ of case fatality rate for individuals showing symptoms is 0.4%. The total fatality rate, including asymptomatic carriers is expected to be slightly lower than that. The CDC also stated that 8 out of ten deaths have occurred in those 65 years and older, which means the death rate is extremely low in individuals younger than 65 years old. 

But according to news outlets, the CDC Director, Robert Redfield told journalists on June 25, 2020 that the number of cases may be up to 10 times higher than the estimated rate. If that is the case and the number of infections is that much higher, that means the death rate may be substantially lower. 

This by no means indicates that people should be irresponsible when it comes to the pandemic. Examples of this would include going out of your house when you feel sick, not washing your hands, going to large gatherings, etc. But it does highlight the importance of not being paralyzed by fear. Unintended consequences of being overly worried and fearful can include anxiety, depression, insomnia, weight gain, extreme social isolation and more. Continue to be extra cautious, especially if you are above the age of 65, immunocompromised, or have a chronic disease that puts you at a higher risk of adverse outcomes.

Regardless of who you are, work on improving your nutrition and physical activity, protect those who are at a greater risk, lower your stress response, improve your vitamin D levels, and try to avoid spending every second that you are in the grocery store stressing about the idea of contracting the virus. 

A Message of Empowerment

You never know what you are training for in life but the goal in choosing healthy behaviors daily is to be ready for difficult times. The current pandemic has exposed the vulnerable state of our healthcare system and the alarmingly low percentage of the population that is metabolically healthy. This information has always been accessible to us but the pandemic has created more urgency to improve these statistics. Covid-19 has created a more immediate risk for those with long-term chronic diseases.

There is no greater gift that you can be given than the gift of health. It makes life so much more vibrant and better overall. In this one life that you have, try to be very intentional with how you take care of that gift. It is never too late to prioritize. As a functional medicine dietitian that has worked with over 4,000 patients, using food interventions to help improve disease, I regularly see disease improvement/reversal within a matter of a 3-6 month time. This is not about following a short-term diet to fit in a certain size clothes. It’s about creating a lifestyle that allows your body to function at its best and increases rates of survival for current and future pandemics.

Be part of the change that we need so desperately in the world. Do not rely solely on a mask to keep you well. Feed your body with the ingredients that it needs to improve the way your genetics are expressed, your immune cells function and your cells respond to the insulin your body produces.

Choose kindness, compassion and support for others. Until the light appears, we can each be a beacon of light for the world!