The Potential Influence of Vitamin A, C, and D and Zinc Supplements on the Severity of COVID-19 Symptoms and Clinical Outcomes: An Updated Review of Literature

Exploring the Interplay of Food Security, Safety, and Psychological Wellness in the COVID-19 Era: Managing Strategies for Resilience and Adaptation

The global population surge presents a dual challenge and opportunity in the realms of food consumption, safety, and mental well-being. This necessitates a projected 70% increase in food production to meet growing demands. Amid this backdrop, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic exacerbates these issues, underscoring the need for a deeper understanding of the intricate interplay between food consumption patterns and mental health dynamics during this crisis. Mitigating the spread of COVID-19 hinges upon rigorous adherence to personal hygiene practices and heightened disease awareness. Furthermore, maintaining stringent food quality and safety standards across both public and private sectors is imperative for safeguarding public health and containing viral transmission. Drawing upon existing research, this study delves into the pandemic's impact on mental health, food consumption habits, and food safety protocols. Through a comprehensive analysis, it aims to elucidate the nuanced relationship among food, food safety, and mental well-being amid the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting synergistic effects and dynamics that underpin holistic human welfare. Our study offers a novel approach by integrating psychological wellness with food security and safety. In conceiving this review, we aimed to comprehensively explore the intricate interplay among food security, safety, and psychological wellness amid the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our review is structured to encompass a thorough examination of existing research, synthesizing insights into the multifaceted relationships among food consumption patterns, mental health dynamics, and food safety protocols during the crisis. Our findings provide valuable insights and practical recommendations for enhancing food security and psychological well-being, thus supporting both academic research and real-world applications in crisis management and policy development.

Impact of Zinc, Vitamins C and D on Disease Prognosis among Patients with COVID-19 in Bangladesh: A Cross-Sectional Study

Vitamin C, (ascorbic acid), vitamin D (cholecalciferol) and zinc (zinc sulfate monohydrate) supplements are important in immunity against coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). However, a limited number of studies have been conducted on the association of vitamins and supplements with the reduced risks of COVID-19 infection. This study aims to evaluate the association of vitamins and supplements as treatment options to reduce the severity of COVID-19. Data were collected from 962 participants from 13 December 2020 to 4 February 2021. The presence of COVID-19 was confirmed by qRT-PCR. The Chi-square test and multivariate regression analyses were conducted. The ratio of uptake of vitamin C:vitamin D:zinc was 1:1:0.95. Uptake of vitamin C, vitamin D and zinc were significantly associated with the reduced risk of infection and severity of COVID-19 (OR: 0.006 (95% CI: 0.03-0.11) (p = 0.004)) and (OR: 0.03 (95% CI: 0.01-0.22) (p = 0.005)). The tendency of taking supplements was associated with the presence of infection of COVID-19 (p = 0.001), age (p = 0.02), sex (p = 0.05) and residence (p = 0.04). The duration of supplementation and medication was significantly associated with reduced hospitalization (p = 0.0001). Vitamins C, D and zinc were not significantly (p = 0.9) associated with a reduced risk of severity when taken through the diet. Hospitalization (p = 0.000001) and access to health facilities (p = 0.0097) were significantly associated with the survival period of the participants. Participants with better access to health facilities recovered early (OR: 6.21, 95% CI 1.56-24.7). This study will add knowledge in the field of treatment of COVID-19 by using vitamins and zinc supplements.

Determining the nutritional immunity information-seeking behaviour during the COVID-19 pandemic in India: a Google Trends data analysis

Objective:

During COVID-19, the Internet was a prime source for getting relevant updates on guidelines and desirable information. The objective of the present study was to determine the nutritional immunity information-seeking behaviour during COVID-19 in India.

Design:

Google Trends (GTs) data on relevant COVID-19 and nutritional topics were systematically selected and retrieved. Data on newly reported COVID-19 cases were also examined on a daily basis. The cross-correlation method was used to determine the correlation coefficient between the selected terms and daily new COVID-19 cases, and the joinpoint regression models were utilised to measure monthly percent change (MPC) in relative search volumes (RSV).

Setting:

Online.

Participants:

People using Google search during the period 1 January 2020–31 August 2020 in India.

Results:

The date of peak searches can be attributed to the COVID-19 guidelines announcement dates. All the nutritional terms showed a significant increase in average monthly percentage change. The higher than the average daily rise in COVID-19 cases leads to a higher than average increase in RSV of nutritional terms with the greatest association after 14–27 d. The highest mean relative search volume for nutritional terms was from Southern India (49·34 ± 7·43), and the lowest was from Western India (31·10 ± 6·30).

Conclusion:

There was a significant rise in the Google searches of nutritional immunity topics during COVID-19 in India. The local/regional terms can be considered for better outreach of public health guidelines or recommendations. Further automation of Google Trends using programming languages can help in real-time monitoring and planning various health/nutritional events.