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who took a probiotic with a specific combination of • My article Pediatrician-Approved Natural
Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium daily throughout Remedies for the Flu
the cold and flu season. This particular combination • My online course Everyday Holistic
of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium can be found Pediatrics – the ONLY comprehensive online
in Metagenics Ultra Flora Children’s Chewable video course of pediatrician-designed, mama-
probiotic, Ultra Flora Synergy powder, and Ultra approved natural remedies to boost your child’s
Flora Balance capsules. The recommended dosage immune system and get them through their fever,
for children and adults is ¼ tsp 2x/day, 1 capsule flu, cold, cough, earache, vomiting/diarrhea, sore
2x/day, or 1 chew 2x/day. Probiotics are why throat and pinkeye using diet and lifestyle,
fermented foods pack such a punch, so if your homeopathy, herbs, essential oils, and acupressure!
child’s palate hasn’t expanded yet to include a lot of
fermented foods, be sure to give her a probiotic As a disclaimer, I am not in any way recommending
supplement to keep her gut and immune system natural treatments as a replacement for standard medical
healthy! If you want to know more about which care or vaccination, but until that time that effective
probiotic supplement is right for your child, be sure medical treatments or vaccination for COVID-19 are
to download my FREE Guide to Choosing Your developed and approved for use in kids and adults, I will
Child’s Probiotic! be using all the tools I have that I know can work for other
• Vitamin C – Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant viral respiratory illnesses, like the flu. And you bet if Kenzi
which assists our ability to ward off and deal with and Bodi get sick, I will be pulling out my vitamin D3,
infection. Remember the vitamin C and sepsis study vitamin C, Windbreaker, Elderberry syrup and VClear,
above? I have been using Metagenics Ultra-Potent C OnGuard or Thieves essential oil, and loading them up
because it has added ingredients such as lysine and with antioxidant-rich foods. For an easy reference, you can
glutathione which assist in fighting viruses. download my FREE GUIDE: Natural Remedies to Beat
• Vitamin D3 – There is speculation that rates of the Flu! (This is for the flu, but may have relevance for
illness increase over the winter because of the COVID-19).
widespread deficiency of Vitamin D. As mentioned Phew – there you have it. Everything I’ve learned so
above, Vitamin D deficiency may be one of the risk far and want you to know about COVID-19, and
factors for sepsis. Studies have shown that people everything I intend to do for my family, from a holistic
supplemented with adequate levels of Vitamin D3 pediatricians’ perspective. We will continue to learn as
during the cold and flu season had significantly more research is done, and I’ll be sure to update this post
lower rates of infection. Vitamin D3 increases our to share everything I know so make sure you’re signed up
body’s production of cathelicidin, an antimicrobial for my newsletter to be the first to know of any updates..
compound, to help fight viral and bacterial In the meantime, stay calm but be prepared.
infections, that I discussed above in the section on If you found this useful, please be sure to share with
sepsis. The Vitamin D Council recommends a anyone you know who could benefit.
maintenance dosage of 1000IU of Vitamin D3 per xo Holistic mama doc – Elisa Song, MD
25 pounds of body weight (the dosage may be
higher in people with Vitamin D deficiency, which Keep Up to Date on the Latest COVID-19 News:
is epidemic and can be measured through an easy • WHO: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19)
blood test). **Vitamin D3 is one of the supplements outbreak https://www.who.int/emergencies/
that I am “religious” about giving to my kids.** diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019
• Zinc – Zinc is required for the normal functioning • CDC Coronavirus Disease 2019 page https://www.
of white blood cells. Supplementing with just 15mg cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
of zinc per day in adults has been found to improve • WHO COVID-19 Situation Reports: https://www.
our immune cells’ ability to ward off infection. w h o.int/em er g en cies/di s e a s es/n o v e l-
coronavirus-2019/situation-reports
If you or your child does get sick… • CDC’s COVD-19 travel advisory page https://www.
If you DO start to feel a fever and cough coming on, cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/index.
remember – it is very likely the common cold, influenza, html
or one of the other more commonly circulating viruses
and NOT COVID-19 – so DON’T PANIC. And even if it References
is COVID-19, remember that most people appear to have 1. www.who.int/dg/speeches/detail/munich-security-conference
MILD symptoms. If I were concerned that I or my family 2. WHO COVID-19 Situation Reports: https://www.who.int/emergencies/
diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/situation-reports
had COVID-19, I would still use the same pediatrician- 3. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/22221751.2020.1729071
approved natural remedies for colds and flu-like illnesses 4. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2762028
5. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2761659
that I detail in these 2 resources:

Song—Coronavirus Pediatrician's Perspective Integrative Medicine • Vol. 19, No. 2 • April 2020 35