If there is one therapeutic style I really love finding out about for patients, it is ones that are really effective, easy to do and cheap.
Like, apple cider vinegar for blood sugar balance and better digestion.
Check out the study here with glucose response to 50g of white bread. Top line is bread only, three lines below is different doses of vinegar.
B12 for chronic back pain:
And today I want to give you another one to try for long covid.
Here is the backstory: hen covid was running riot, people noticed that despite, at the time people thinking covid was a lung issue (it is not), smokers seemed to do better and get less LONG COVID.
Turns out that the C19 spike protein seems to have an affinity with the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR).
“Several investigators could demonstrate that the SARS-CoV-2 related spike glycoprotein (SGP) attaches not only to ACE-2 receptors but also shows DNA sections highly affine to nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs).
The nAChR is the principal structure of cholinergic neuromodulation and is responsible for coordinated neuronal network interaction.
Non-intrinsic viral nAChR attachment compromises integrative interneuronal communication substantially. This explains the cognitive, neuromuscular and mood impairment, as well as the vegetative symptoms, characterizing post-COVID-19 syndrome.
The agonist ligand nicotine shows an up to 30-fold higher affinity to nACHRs than acetylcholine (ACh). We therefore hypothesize that this molecule could displace the virus from nAChR attachment and pave the way for unimpaired cholinergic signal transmission.”
Let me make that simple, when the nAChR is stimulated by acetylcholine, and especially nicotine (x30 stronger), it excites the CNS, gives you energy, focus and releases some dopamine.
If the spike protein is antagonising the nAChR, then you get significantly less stimulation and thus feel tired, aka long covid.
So this author utilised 7.5 mg nicotine patches every 24 hours for 7 days, to try and knock the spike protein off: Doesn’t get much easier that.
Patients scored their symptoms for 4 days before using the patches, then added them daily for 7 days and carried on daily measurements for 19 days total.
Note the first 4 days, the general long covid symptoms are steady and, as the patches go on at day 4, a steady drop, it keeps going even after they stop the patches on day 7.
Now these are his success cases, and I have tried it with a few patients with mixed success. Just like any treatment, it will work for some and not for others. For some it is everything, for others part of the jigsaw, for others nothing.
But for £10 ish you can get a x7, 7 mg nicotine patch, and you might just get a significant result for a long covid patient.