As we arm ourselves for our battle with COVID-19, we must not forget zinc.  This is especially true for those over the age of 40, and the need increases with increasing age. According to the US Department of Agriculture, 73% of Americans are deficient in zinc, and deficiency is especially found in older people—even those who report taking zinc supplements.  Zinc is one of the foundation nutrients needed for building a strong immune system. Even a small deficiency can significantly impair immune function. Research over the past twenty years has shown that having adequate zinc reserves in cells inhibits replication of the coronavirus family of viruses, of which COVID-19 is a member. If a virus can’t replicate (reproduce itself), it can quickly and easily be eradicated by the immune system.  Zinc has also been shown to restore vigor to immune cells and to reduce excess inflammation. Controlling excess inflammation is extremely important in COVID-19 infections b…

Your body is harboring a couple of potential saboteurs! The words saboteur and sabotage come from French mill workers who would throw their wooden shoes, called sabots, into the machinery at work to make it break down or halt as a form of protest. The two potential saboteurs threatening to break down your body are inflammation and oxidation. Both are body processes that are helpful under normal circumstances, but if they get out of control, watch out!  If they’re allowed to develop into chronic inflammation and oxidative stress, they become health saboteurs of the first order and play a major role in every chronic disease, in problems with energy, and in the aging process itself. Unfortunately, almost everyone today is being damaged by these saboteurs. This is how it happens. Inflammation is the body’s response to injury, irritation or infection.  Cutting your finger, for example, will initiate an inflammatory process that enlarges blood vessels (the reason…