IS YOUR GUT MICROBIOME LINKED TO THE SEVERITY OF COVID 19?

You may not know it but all of us have a large community of micro-organisms living together within our bodies that are hugely important in making each and every one of us resistant to attacks from viruses including COVID 19 caused by SARS-CoV-2.

“The level and effectiveness of microbiomes vary from person to person and such biome differences between say, two similar people can be vastly different” states the University of California in San Diego. Such a variance in gut microbiome between people goes a long way in explaining why some react either positively or negatively towards the same kind of food intake. For example whether oranges are good/bad for you, whether rice is good/bad for you and so forth and so on.

There Is Growing Medical Evidence Suggesting The Health & Volume Of Gut Microbiome Directly Influences The Severity Of Covid-19

Over the past 20 years, research has revealed that our human bodies harbor more bacteria cells than human ones, all of which are working together to keep our bodies in balance and good health. They are comparable to a super-efficient corporate company that’s been streamlined to function at an optimum level. Each of the microbe divisions within us carry out specialised working together as a team to keep us in check. It behaves like an organ within itself that controls our brain function, our metabolism and even the hormones in our bodies.

Statistics & Research Is Now Showing That Some Of The Good Bacteria Is Missing In The Gut Of Those Covid-19 Patients That Have More Severe Symptoms

Our gut bacteria balances the response of our immune systems against pathogens in such a way that it works towards being aggressively effective against a virus attack but not enough to damage the human host.

The microbiome has a significant level of importance because it can trigger a highly effective response by our immune system in fighting viral infections that include Rotavirus & Norovirus along with other viral infections that affects the lungs such as the Flu. It does this by releasing specialised immune cells that produce a highly potent antiviral protein fighting infections head on. Thus, it’s logical to say that a weakened state of microbiome or ‘good bacteria’ will be less effective in combating viral infections resulting in illness.

As one gets older, gut bacteria decreases and because statistics show there have been more fatalities amongst the elderly and infirm, there is growing scientific evidence of the role microbiomes are playing in this disease.

There are more patients coming to light who have been infected by Covid 19 but are not recovering fully even beyond the average medical window of Covid recovery. They continue to experience a wide range of ongoing symptoms that include loss of taste and smell, shortness of breath, sleeping disorders, fever, gastrointestinal problems, fatigue, brain fog, depression and anxiety. There are a growing number of cases where these symptoms can for many months and beyond and varies from being mild to severely debilitating. This longer term illness is called ‘Long Covid’ and a growing amount of medical research is showing a direct correlation between imbalances in the volume and type of microbiome bacteria and Long Covid.

According to recents finding by the British Medical Journal, microbiome bacteria health and volume may have a direct affect on how severe Covid can affect a patient. Although it is primarily a respiratory sickness, there is growing evidence linking microbiome gut since the gut is the single biggest immunological organ inside our bodies, there is further evidence that microbes are influencing the level of our immunity response.

The Recovery Or Normalisation Of Gut Microbiome Post Covid-19

Infection Can Directly Influence Long Covid Symptoms

For decades, it’s been common knowledge between medics that there is a link between inflammation and microbiome and I’m pleased to say that this relationship between gut health and human disease is being taken more seriously though there is still a long way to go in research. It is also important to point out that the link between catching Covid-19 and gut microbiome deficiency is not causational.

MAX CHOHAN

Max Chohan is a professional literary communicator & visual content designer specialising in audience outreach through static & dynamic digital media. As a passive member of MENSA, he’s written thousands of mostly fact-based journals, articles and digital content covering a very broad subject base.