Lower Level of Zinc in Blood May Increase Risk of Covid-19 Death: Study

There has been an increasing awareness among people regarding the food that will make our immunity stronger against the infection of Covid-19. There are particular nutritional food items recommended by the WHO which has an increase our immunity to fight the deadly virus.

During a recent online conference on Covid-19 by the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, the research team emphasised that low levels of zinc in the body can increase the risk of death by Covid-19, reported Medical Express.

According to the studies published in journals like PLOS pathogens and Advances in Nutrition, it has been analysed that intensive concentration of zinc inside the cells can effectively restrict the multiplication of some coronavirus.

The scientists examined that the amount of zinc present in the plasma can have an effect on the SARS-COV-2 virus. They conducted the study on 611 patients diagnosed with COVID-19, admitted to a tertiary university hospital in Barcelona, Spain between the period of March 15, 2020 to April 30, 2020. All the patients enrolled are under the mean age of 63 years.

However, they only examined 249 patients because of the difficulty to collect the data for the rest of the patients after being hit by the second wave of SARS-CoV-2 in Spain.

The team then used computer modelling and statistical analysis to assess the impact of zinc on the patients with the information collected during the time of admission. It includes samples of plasma zinc level, pre-existing comorbidities, laboratory findings and severity of COVID-19 cases.

At the end of the study, the team concluded that the mean baseline zinc level of the 249 participants was 61 micrograms per decilitre (mcg/dl). The patients with higher zinc levels had low inflammatory cells like interleukin-6 in their body, even when they are highly infected by a coronavirus.

It was concluded that the patients with zinc level below 50mcg/dl in their plasma are at a 2.3 times risk of in-hospital death as compared to those with zinc level 50mcg/dl or above.

So, including zinc-rich food items like nuts, whole grains, dairy products and others in your daily meals will be helpful against the Covid-19.