NakakaaSARS na!

How can we decisively continue to maintain the relatively SARS-free situation of the Philippine society? Imagine, if all men and women are forced to wear medical masks, why, we’d be worse off than the extremist Taliban regime that used to lord over Afghanistan who forced all women to cover their faces. It would be such a calamity not being able to appreciate the many beautiful faces of women if they start walking around in masks.

What will now happen to our Halloween tradition? Are we going to see mask-less Hallow’s Eve parties in SARS-hit Asian societies from now on since people would be wearing masks every day anyway?

To avoid getting infected by SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) on a forthcoming trip to Indonesia and Thailand, a politician told the Philippine STAR that he recently bought several masks but his favorite one was the one with a Spiderman design!

A business tycoon told this writer: "Please inform your readers that there is no reason to overreact or panic about SARS, because it just really means being afflicted by Severe Absence of Romance and Sex!"

How do we defeat SARS? But more importantly, how can we prevent the fear epidemic that has afflicted some Asian societies? There are four great impelling motives that move people to action – fear, hope, faith and love. Let us prevent the spread of SARS with national discipline, a massive cleanliness campaign, better health habits and eternal vigilance! Let us smother fear with the overwhelming force of our hope for a better future, with invincible faith in God and in each other, and with our boundless love of life!

SARS Rumors And Humor

We have to ensure that no SARS epidemic shall ever be able to enter Philippine territory and that it will never survive our Severe Acute Air Pollution. Otherwise, all the world’s worst terrorists such as Osama bin Laden, the fugitive Saddam Hussein and other rascals of crime can easily slip into the country by entering our airports with their hideous faces covered conveniently by medical masks! Can you imagine Saddam, Count Dracula, O.J. Simpson, the Yakuzas and other scums of the earth surreptitiously entering our international airport and swaggering in their designer masks like modern-day Zorros, using SARS as their excuse not to reveal their faces?

A reader of Philippine STAR from San Jose, California e-mailed, asking for a column on how to prevent SARS. Other overseas Filipinos from New York, the Middle East and Hong Kong also e-mailed and suggested that we discuss the SARS topic. They all expressed hopes that the country will be spared from SARS with an effective prevention battleplan. Is there really such a battleplan by the government?

Despite the crisis, people still find some humor on this matter. A Filipino engineer from Dubai e-mailed and half-jokingly suggested that if medical masks are not enough, maybe it’s better to wear the so-called "bunny suits" used in bio laboratories or Intel labs? A half-serious and half-irritated teacher from Cebu suggested that those infected by the "SARS paranoia" should wear spacesuits to be totally safe!

Contract Designs Furnitures president Bernard Go claims he had erased all his SARS text jokes, after the Department of Health came out with an advisory that SARS can be transmitted through text jokes!

Apart from trying to be a vegetarian and eating more fruits, a female student from Parañaque claims that eating onions and garlic might ward off SARS daw! If true, this would be good news to farmers in the Ilocos region.

A housewife asks, with all the countless scientific, medical and other efforts to crush SARS, how come the best and brightest leaders worldwide have seemingly forgotten to add prayers into their arsenals?

A young biscuit factory owner recommended that immigration and airport officials should be more efficient in screening all arrivals – whether balikbayans, tourists, OCWs or even VIPs, no exemptions and no delays – to protect the whole country from SARS. He said that SARS prevention must never be taken lightly, and must be dealt with seriously, or else the joke is on us!

Paging GMA, The Terror

During these times of international emergency when even the Chinese government angrily fired its health minister and the mayor of Beijing, the well-known temper of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo should be extremely useful now for the national welfare. The public will heartily cheer GMA and her public approval ratings will zoom up if she can strike terror into the hearts of all politicians and bureaucrats who may be negligent, lazy or lax in keeping the Philippines SARS-free! GMA should personally make unexpected random visits to the lackadaisical immigration and arrival areas of our international airports to heap fire and brimstone on any inefficient official.

A well-meaning top senator told this writer: "NaaaSAR na ako sa sobrang mga SARS news na yan! Can you, in the media, please tone down all these excess SARS news? The unnecessary anxieties created by all these negative news on SARS is worse than the ailment itself. And if you cannot stop yourself from writing about SARS, at least write something more positive, such as tips on prevention na lang!"

Prevention As Cure

At a recent dinner hosted by the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce & Industry, Inc. (FFCCCII) graced by newly-elected president Robin Sy, his classmate Lucio C. Tan of Philippine Airlines, businessman Elpidio Duca and Cardinal Santos Medical Center director Dr. Charles Chante representing Health Secretary Dr. Manuel Dayrit Jr. at Century Seafood Restaurant, this writer asked the latter how prepared the Philippines is for the possible outbreak of SARS. Secretary Dayrit replied: "In the field of epidemiology, on a scale of one to 10, the preparedness of the Philippines to cope with this possible threat is seven or eight. We are doing everything possible to prevent its spread here."

The 67-year-old business leader Robin Sy commented: "The true meaning of SARS is Simpatico and Attractive pa si Robin Sy!" Seriously, he informed Philippine STAR that the federation has published full-page newspaper advertisements as its public information campaign to dispel unnecessary fears and to increase public awareness about this ailment which has so far spared the Philippines.

Hong Kong-based international Chinese-language magazine Yazhou Zhoukan (Asia Weekly) deputy chief editor Chiew Chee-Phoong e-mailed this advice to this column for Philippine STAR readers, a list of tips on how to prevent SARS which he had received from Parco M. Siu, a Ph.D. candidate in the West Virginia University School of Medicine in the US.

Siu said that the fact that the mysterious pneumonia has widely spread in Hong Kong (his hometown), has driven him to do a literature review on the suspected cause (i.e. coronavirus) of the SARS. He wrote: "As a biomedical researcher, let me show you my concern and make the following suggestions.

The basic mechanism of a viral attack is that the viruses replicate themselves using the host’s (in this case "our") DNA genetic replication system. By doing this, our body couldn’t function well due to the massive viral replication. Supposedly, the immune cells in our body will fight off the infected viruses quickly. However, the viruses are so smart that they could produce some chemical substances to cause our immune cells to die. Besides, this coronavirus is a new kind of virus which belongs to a mutated strain and our body cannot recognize it. So far, no antibiotics have been proven to be 100 percent effective in treating viral infection.

The only effective way to get rid of it is by ourselves. It likes a prolonged battle between the viruses and our immune response. In fact, viruses couldn’t kill all the immune cells in a healthy individual. The stronger immune function you have, the less the viral injury you get. Therefore, the degree of sickness after infection and the rate of recovery mainly depends on how strong your immune function is.

You cannot avoid the infection unless you avoid infected individuals and areas. But you can try your best to boost your immune function by several regimens. Make sure you are "extremely healthy" at least during this critical period. Stronger immune function could keep the viral damage minimal even if you were infected. Also, a stronger immune function delays the onset of any detrimental effect from the viral infection. Scientists are now working on tracking the treatment and so make sure you survive until an effective treatment occurs. The following suggestions aim to strengthen your immune function within a short period of time:

• Antioxidant nutraceuticals. Antioxidants are chemicals found in foods that exert a great value in strengthening our immune system. Boost up your immune function by taking a cocktail of antioxidant supplements such as Vitamin E 1000 IU per day. Alpha-tocopherol is the biological active form of Vitamin E. This comes in two forms: d-tocopherol and dl-tocopherol, the former being the natural form and the latter, the synthetic. Try to get the d-form because it is absorbed faster in our body. Then there’s vitamin C (ascorbic acid) 1,000 milligram (mg) to be taken daily. Instead of supplements, you can take two pieces of citrus fruits (e.g. orange) a day to get your Vitamin C. You should also have beta-carotene, not more than 10,000 IU daily; Selenium, 200 microgram daily; zinc, not more than 500 milligram (mg) daily; lipoic acid, 50 mg daily; and glutathione, 50 mg daily. No any adverse effects have been reported from the above suggested supplementation dose.

• Let green tea be your daily beverage, because it contains tremendous amounts of antioxidant flavonoid, catechins. Eat more tomatoes, broccoli or fruits and vegetables in red and dark green color. They carry a huge amount of antioxidant carotenoids, lycopene and carotene.

• No intense physical activities during this critical period! It has been shown that intense exercise will suppress your immune function (related to the upper respiratory infection) even several days following your workout. Instead of intense exercise, light-to-moderate workout helps if you have been training regularly.

• Make sure you get enough carbohydrate foods (e.g. rice, food rich in starch) because carbohydrate is the primary food for immune cells. Drink some Gatorade or Pocari if needed since these are good sources of carbohydrate.

• Make sure you get enough sleep and avoid too much stress! Anxiety, depression, and tiredness will influence your body’s stress hormones (e.g. catecholamine and glucocorticoids) and so suppress your immune status.

• Mouth-mask helps though it’s not 100 percent effective. But it can still lower the risk of infection.

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The above information is supported by peer-reviewed biomedical literatures, which means they are credible and reliable!

SARS is a difficult but winnable war; it is not the end of the world. Do not allow the worse epidemic of fear to paralyze our capacity to laugh, to work, to plan, to dream and to live life to the fullest. The SARS challenge in Asia should test the sense of unity of the whole nation and the political will of our leaders to keep the Philippines continuously SARS-free!

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Thanks very much for all your comments, suggestions and even jokes sent to wilson_lee_flores@yahoo.com or wilson_lee_flores@hotmail.com or P.O. Box 14277, Ortigas Center, Pasig City.