- intake that also reduces their need for medicine

An estimated 334 million people worldwide suffer from asthma, which is associated with chronic inflammation. Increased intake of omega-3 fatty acids may help prevent the disease and improve therapies by reducing inflammation in the upper respiratory tract. Also, omega-3 reduces the need for corticosteroids and other types of asthma medicine. In fact, the diet plays a vital role in the development of asthma, and overweight individuals seem to benefit particularly much from an increased omega-3 intake, according to a study that is published in Nutrients. But how much omega-3 does it take to inhibit inflammation, and why are oily fish and fish oil supplements better sources?

There is a clear link between magnesium intake and the risk of heart diseases and sudden cardiac death in postmenopausal women, according to a study that is published in Journal of Women’s Health. Unfortunately, many women are not diagnosed with heart disease at a sufficiently early stage. It is also a fact that many postmenopausal women take calcium supplements for bone health. However, if they also lack magnesium, which is responsible for the calcium distribution in the body, the calcium supplements may instead increase the risk of coronary atherosclerosis. According to new and earlier research, we must focus a lot more on telling women how important it is to get enough magnesium at all stages of life – not least after menopause.

Chronic heart failure is a potentially life-threatening condition that affects millions of people worldwide. A group of scientists recently looked at the relation between chronic heart failure and zinc deficiency and how zinc supplementation can improve heart health by various accounts. The scientists also investigated why zinc deficiencies are so common. Their study is published in the Journal of Cardiac Failure.

Many young men have poor sperm quality and the underlying cause is often unknown. The health of sperm cells depends a lot on omega-3 but a large number of men lack these essential fatty acids. Fish oil supplements have been shown to improve several sperm parameters, according to a large Danish study that is published in JAMA. The scientists behind the study suggest that men may benefit from taking fish oil supplements to improve their fertility and increase the odds of successful conception. However, they also point out that it typically takes one to two months for the optimal effect to show, and you must continue taking the fish oil supplement to maintain the results.

Atrial fibrillation is a rhythm disturbance in the electrical system of the heart. It is also one of the most common heart disorders and can be both harmless and potentially life-threatening. Lack of vitamin D increases the risk of normal atrial fibrillation and postoperative atrial fibrillation, according to a meta-analysis that is published in the scientific journal Nutrition. Vitamin D deficiencies are rather common so it is important to make sure to get enough of the nutrient for preventing and treating this disorder.

- which many people lack

It is not the actual COVID-19 virus that can become lethal. It is the immune system’s overreaction with hyperinflammation and a storm of cytokines that destroys healthy tissue in the lungs, the cardiovascular system, and other places in the body, according to a new article that is published in The Lancet. The capacity of the immune system determines if an infection like COVID-19 is either harmless or life-threatening. For that reason, hygienic measures, masks, isolation, and delayed vaccines are not sufficient. We also need to bolster our immune system against COVID-19 and other pandemics that may occur in the future. Let’s look closer at vitamin C, vitamin D, selenium and zinc, all of which are essential for preventing a well-functioning immune system from going off its rails. What is also worth mentioning is that many people lack these nutrients, especially older people and other exposed groups.

- for pregnant women and others

Folic acid supplements are typically recommended to people with anemia and to expecting mothers. However, folic acid supplements can also be important for the cardiovascular system, the brain and memory, and for preventing stroke. The widespread lack of this nutrient is a result of poor diets, pregnancy, ageing, alcohol abuse, and the consumption of birth control pills and various types of medicine.

- and why is the problem so common?

Lack of vitamin B12 can cause pernicious anemia, which WHO considers a global threat. Vitamin B12 is primarily known for its role in red blood cell formation, whereas its role in the brain and nervous system is often overlooked. A vitamin B12 deficiency can easily lead to disabling damage if it goes unnoticed. Pernicious anemia is an autoimmune disease that prevents people from absorbing vitamin B12 from food. The condition is potentially life-threatening but is difficult to diagnose and many people go untreated, according to Associate Professor Heidi Seage, who is affiliated with the Pernicious Anaemia Society. A worsening factor is the climate debate that has inspired an increasing number of people to turn to vegetarianism and veganism. Plant-based diets are known to cause vitamin B12 deficiency, and the problem is insidious and therefore not easy to detect. The use of diabetes medication (such as metformin) can also deplete the body’s levels of vitamin B12

PMS (premenstrual syndrome) is quite common among women of childbearing age and can easily make their lives miserable for years, causing both physical and mental discomfort several days a month. A possible cause can be lack of vitamin D, and it looks as if high-dosed supplementation with the nutrient can relieve PMS by controlling inflammation markers and influencing the body’s antioxidant capacity. This was shown in an Iranian study that is published in Scientific Reports. It is worth noting that we need magnesium to activate vitamin D in order for the body to be able to use it optimally.

– and could even make them more dangerous

Selenium is of vital importance to a strong immune defense. Still, selenium deficiency is a common problem and it increases the risk of viral infections such as influenza and the coronavirus from China, which is feared to turn into a global pandemic. It is a problem that selenium deficiency in infected animals and humans causes the virus to mutate and become more aggressive. Because of selenium’s important role as a powerful antioxidant, being deficient of this micronutrient may leave the body vulnerable to oxidative stress, which can cause tissue damage and complicate the virus infection. It is therefore important to get enough selenium at all times, as it also increases our resistance towards other viral infections such as herpes, HIV, and hepatitis, according to an article published in Nutrients.

It is hardly a coincidence that sore throats, colds, flus, and related complications such as sinus infections and pneumonia typically circulate during the winter period. They are primarily a result of having low vitamin D levels. During the winter, the sun sits too low in the sky to enable vitamin D synthesis in our skin, and we only have a limited amount of the nutrient stored in the liver. Good hand hygiene, warm soup, garlic, echinacea and other immune-boosting herbs alone will not deal with the problem, as they can never compensate for our lack of essential vitamin D, which the white blood cells of our immune system need in order to silently kill of virus. But how much vitamin D do we need, is it possible to get too much, and which mineral is necessary for activating the vitamin?

The coronavirus has spread from Wuhan in China to a number of continents, where it has caused massive fear and affected daily life and the global economy. Although most people that get the infection experience a mild course of events, the greatest fear is the potentially life-threatening complications in the respiratory system caused by oxidative stress, which have already taken thousands of human lives. Chinese scientists now call for early intravenous therapy with large doses of vitamin C to prevent oxidative stress and the life-threatening complications that follow in the wake of a derailed immune system. Many researchers also claim that higher intake of vitamin C from dietary sources or supplements help prevent by boosting and regulating the immune system in the upper respiratory tract. The same goes for vitamin D and selenium.