{"id":33686,"date":"2020-04-07T12:12:12","date_gmt":"2020-04-07T12:12:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dr-rath-foundation.org\/2020\/04\/fragen-und-antworten-zur-gegenwaertigen-pandemie\/"},"modified":"2021-03-29T08:02:37","modified_gmt":"2021-03-29T08:02:37","slug":"questions-and-answers-on-the-current-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dr-rath-foundation.org\/2020\/04\/questions-and-answers-on-the-current-pandemic\/","title":{"rendered":"Questions And Answers On The Current Pandemic"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]In the last week of March 2020, Dr. Rath published his Open Letter<\/a> in more than a dozen languages. Within a few days it was read and forwarded thousands of times worldwide.<\/p>\n

In the following questions and answers we deal with issues that are matters of concern to millions of people worldwide.<\/p>\n

Translations: Deutsch<\/a> | Espa\u00f1ol<\/a> | Fran\u00e7ais<\/a> | Italiano<\/a> | Polski<\/a><\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_tta_accordion style=”flat” gap=”10″ c_icon=”triangle” active_section=”1″ css_animation=”none” collapsible_all=”true”][vc_tta_section title=”Is the virus dangerous?” tab_id=”virus”][vc_column_text]Yes, but only to people with weakened immune systems. Apart from following general hygiene measures, strengthening your own immune system is by far the most important measure for preventing a viral infection.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”What can I do to strengthen my immune system?” tab_id=”immunesystem”][vc_column_text]Our body’s defense, the immune system<\/a>, is mainly determined by the functionality of the white blood cells (leukocytes). The formation of new, functional leukocytes in the bone marrow of our bodies is therefore particularly important in the defense against all kinds of infections, especially viral infections<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The most important stimulators<\/a> for the production and function of the immune cells of our bodies are found in food. They include vitamins A, C, D, E, B2, B6, and B12, folic acid, iron, selenium and zinc. Numerous other natural substances, such as green tea extract<\/a>, curcumin<\/a> and other plant ingredients<\/a> are also scientifically proven means of strengthening the immune system.<\/p>\n

Among all these micronutrients, vitamin C<\/a> plays a particularly important role, as its average requirement to achieve optimal health is the highest of all vitamins. Therefore, a chronic undersupply<\/a> of this vitamin has particularly serious consequences on health.<\/p>\n

This knowledge is well documented in biology and biochemistry textbooks. In no courtroom in the world will a defendant\u2015whether a politician or a so-called expert\u2015 be proved right when denying this knowledge.<\/p>\n

Since our modern food has lost a large part of its vitamin content due to pasteurization, transport, storage and cooking, it is advisable to enhance the daily diet through the use of supplements enriched with these natural substances. If this does not happen, the human body nearly always develops an immune deficiency and is therefore particularly susceptible to viruses and other pathogens.<\/p>\n

This scientifically proven link<\/a> between vitamin deficiency, a weakened immune system and susceptibility to infection\u2015including the current pandemic\u2015is summarized in the following diagram:<\/p>\n

\"\"[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Is there a pharmaceutical drug that strengthens the immune system to combat viruses?” tab_id=”pharmadrug”][vc_column_text]No.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”How many people in the world suffer from vitamin deficiency?” tab_id=”vitamindeficiency”][vc_column_text]Almost all people in the world suffer from a chronic undersupply<\/a> of micronutrients, a fact that contributes decisively to the development of a pandemic, i.e. a worldwide outbreak of an infectious disease.<\/p>\n

As far back as 20 years ago, the United Nations Children’s Fund UNESCO published a statistic in the context of the VMD initiative<\/a>, revealing the alarming fact that over 2 billion people worldwide suffered from a chronic undersupply of micronutrients at that time, especially vitamins and minerals. Since then the global supply of micronutrients has improved to some extent, but still more than half of the world’s population today does not even achieve a minimum supply.<\/p>\n

In order to prevent viruses and other pathogens from entering the body and to fight these pathogens successfully, our bodies consume micronutrients at a significantly higher rate than they do under normal circumstances<\/a>. This means that during an epidemic, almost everyone in the affected region suffers from a relative lack of micronutrients, even if they get a basic supply of fresh fruit and vegetables.<\/p>\n

Since virtually no one in the world is aware of the importance of an (increased) intake of micronutrients to counter infectious disease, the outbreak of a pandemic\u2015i.e. an epidemic on a global scale\u2015is almost inevitable.<\/p>\n

In conclusion: the most important explanation for the current pandemic is a global undersupply of micronutrients, with the result that people around the world have\u00a0 weakened immune systems\u2015causing the infection to reach a global scale.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Why don’t animals contract the pandemic virus?” tab_id=”animals”][vc_column_text]In contrast to humans, most other living creatures can synthesize vitamin C in their own bodies\u2015a fact that is particularly important. They are therefore not dependent on obtaining a sufficient supply of vitamin C through their daily food to defend themselves against viruses and other pathogens. As for the virus causing the current pandemic, we know that while it can be detected in animals it does not result in serious illness or death. An inevitable consequence of this phenomenon is that researchers around the world are currently desperately looking for an animal model<\/a> that is susceptible to a serious infection with the virus.<\/p>\n

This phenomenon is also supported by the fact that the virus has now been detected in a tiger<\/a>\u2014found to be in good health\u2014at the New York Zoo.<\/p>\n

In the course of our evolutionary history, humans have lost the ability to convert sugar (glucose) molecules into vitamin C. If we do not get enough of this vitamin in our food over a long period of time, there are serious health consequences. If the body has been weakened, viruses and other pathogens may then penetrate and spread without much restriction.<\/p>\n

This explains why there are reports of infected animals, but the disease itself is limited to humans\u2015and has become a pandemic among us.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Why are older people at particular risk?” tab_id=”olderpeople”][vc_column_text]A fact that is observed everywhere during the current pandemic is that the elderly in particular are becoming infected. There is a clear scientific explanation for this: the ability of the human digestive system to absorb micronutrients from regular food decreases significantly with age.<\/p>\n

This means that, in elderly people, even if their daily diet contains adequate micronutrients, an insufficient percentage of them passes from the intestinal chyme through the epithelial layer into the blood.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Why are older people living in retirement homes at particular risk?” tab_id=”retirementhomes”][vc_column_text]If the daily diet contains an inadequate supply of micronutrients, the ensuing result may be a severe nutritional deficiency and a particularly high susceptibility to infectious diseases.<\/p>\n

This also explains the high death rates in nursing homes. In many of these homes, the food supply is extremely low in fresh fruit and vegetables<\/a> and therefore completely lacking in a proper intake of micronutrients.<\/p>\n

The so-called “old people’s home phenomenon” in the current epidemic therefore has a logical and scientifically substantiated explanation. It is not age alone that explains these increased death rates, but a combination of old age with a completely inadequate supply of micronutrients in the diets of nursing home residents.<\/p>\n

One of the key lessons to be learned from the current pandemic is that there is an urgent need to improve nutrition in nursing homes, particularly by providing fresh fruit and vegetables or food supplements. Without these measures, millions of old people will be almost entirely defenseless against future epidemics. Wherever possible, retirement homes should cultivate their own fruit and vegetable gardens in order to improve the inhabitants’ supply of vitamin-rich food and, at the same time, create opportunities for positive and varied activity.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Why are people living in metropolitan areas like New York at particular risk?” tab_id=”metropolitanareas”][vc_column_text]Another observation regarding the current epidemic is the increased mortality rate in large cities and metropolitan areas, such as New York City. There is a further explanation for this, which is directly related to the undersupply of micronutrients. While the rural population is still more likely to have access to fresh fruit and vegetables, the diet of people in large cities consists almost exclusively of industrially processed foods<\/a>. Pasteurization, canning and other forms of industrial food processing inevitably destroy many of the vitamins and other micronutrients originally present in the food.<\/p>\n

Consequently, a large proportion of people living in urban areas suffer from chronic micronutrient deficiencies. Once there is a threat from certain viruses or other pathogens, the immune systems of millions of people are compromised by being exposed to these infectious diseases without an effective defense.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Why are people with cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure and diabetes at particular risk?” tab_id=”cardiovascular”][vc_column_text]Pandemic statistics in Italy show that more than 99% of the deceased patients<\/a> suffered from pre-existing conditions, particularly cardiovascular disease, including high blood pressure and diabetes.<\/p>\n

It is a scientific fact that most of today’s common diseases, including cardiovascular disease, cancer and many other chronic diseases, are closely linked to the intake of micronutrients. There are now more than 100,000 scientific studies on this correlation, which can be accessed through major medical online libraries such as Pubmed.gov<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Many of these common diseases have a genetic background, i.e. they occur more often within families. The existence of a hereditary predisposition does not necessarily lead to the expression of a disease. These triggers, also called carriers, have been extensively researched in recent decades. Today, it is clear that a chronic deficiency of certain micronutrients\u2015especially through a long-term undersupply of micronutrients in a person\u2019s diet\u2015has a decisive influence on the transition from a genetic predisposition to the onset of a disease. For example:<\/p>\n