I always knew there are people who are wary of or do not believe in vaccines. But it was only recently that I learned that they are lumped together and called Anti-Vaxxers.
A barangay representative came to our house today to conduct a survey. The main question was: magpapabakuna po ba kayo?
Out of the 8 persons in our household, including the kasambahays, 7 said NO.
I always knew there are people who are wary of or do not believe in vaccines.
But it was only recently that I learned that they are lumped together and called Anti-Vaxxers.
Labelled Foes
How cute. So that it would be easy for those who reign to wage a war against labeled enemies, like one would on Dilawans or Dilimanians, ad infinitum.
This column is supposed to dwell on the arts and culture, but I apologize to Gwenn Canlas, our beauteous kapit-kolumnista here in Opinyon, for my foray into her area, health.
What we know of COVID-19 is that it attacks the cells and wreaks havoc on the respiratory system, most specially. The lungs suffer severe inflammation.
Shortness Of Breath
According to WebMD, more than 8in 10 cases are mild.
But for less than 2 out of 10, the infection gets more severe.
They have shortness of breath known as dyspnea and this leads to Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome or ARDS.
ARDS can cause rapid breathing, a fast heart rate, dizziness, and sweating.
It damages the tissues and blood vessels in your alveoli, causing debris to collect inside them.
The alveoli are the tiny sacs in your lungs that suck in the oxygen and transmit this to the rest of the lungs and on to the other parts of the body.
Fluid In The Lungs
Alveoli are considered the workhorse of the respiratory system.
The debris of damaged tissues makes it harder or even impossible for you to breathe.
Fluid could also collect in your lungs.
That means your blood may not supply your organs with enough oxygen to survive, so these organs are forced to work harder, leading to damages and, in numerous cases, death of the mortal body.
WebMD emphasizes that not everyone who has COVID-19 has these serious complications.
My niece in Dubai caught the virus but was advised just to ride it out in her apartment. She easily did.
The Silver Bullet
Why are we being led to believe that vaccines are the silver bullet that will vanquish the virus?
Our macho President announced last year - after realizing that we cannot sampal (slap) our way out of the pandemic - that when the vaccine comes, our problems would be over.
But, as usual, like him, his team botches its work.This time with the procurement of vaccines. Hindi pa ba kayo nagsasawa?
When we listen to the so-called AntiVaxxers, we are told that we can fare better if we only fortify ourselves with mightier cells and tissues.
Stem Cells Therapy
Our cells have the capacity to fight, heal, and regenerate themselves.
The cells, too, could adapt to adverse conditions, not just to virus invasion.
Eating healthier and exercising more regularly are a prerequisite.
Susan Grande of Agusan insists that stem cell capsules can make you stronger and much more resistant to disease and even aging.
She recommends Purtier which combines the placenta of a New Zealand deer and several herbs and flowers.
Stem cell treatment used to be painful, laborious, and price prohibitive.
The proponents extract white blood corpuscles from your marrow, mix them with other “secret ingredients” in their kitchen, and then inject back the mix into you, making you feel and look younger.
Living Proof
Apo Enrile reportedly took this route and did not, as another rumors says, entered into a pact with Mephistopheles.
Writer Barbara “Tweetums” Gonzales also swears by stem cell capsules, although what she endorses is of a different brand and of different ingredients. Mainly made of some kind of seaweed, if I remember right.
Going on 80, Tweetums says that it has helped her recover from her stroke steadily and has made her sex life with her husband, who is seven years her senior,wet and wild.
Ms. Grande, meanwhile, has shown me testimonies on the efficacy of their capsules against COVID-19.
Though it could indeed save you half to a million pesos when you get hospitalized because of the virus, Purtier is still beyond the pockets of the common tao.
They will be more inclined to rely on folk remedies.
VCO, Turmeric, et al
Virgin coconut oil, curcumin, turmeric, and even the lowly saluyot have shown capacity to control inflammation, the deadly result of COVID-19.
Local scientists have also asserted that VCO has strong anti-viral content in its lauric acid.
Poor Pinoy scientists. Weren’t they developing better tests for COVID-19 but were dismissed by their own leader who claims, again, that the Chinese were better?
Do not believe in lard-ass comment that we have colonial mentality. Common people have always relied on local.
Traditional Way
We have another friend who has caught COVID-19. She is in isolation and she is able to battle the disease with suob, a much maligned (by medical establishments) steam inhalation resorted to with success by the common tao for centuries.
If not that, what about breathing techniques, such as the ancient Daoist method that trains the lungs to use air efficiently and cope with diseases more effectively?
Big pharma, with the help of food and drug authorities, does not look kindly at inexpensive options and food supplements.
It has denigrated tawa-tawa (versus dengue), malunggay (versus diabetes and more).
Look at how it takes cheap shots at effective cough remedy lagundi for being mere “dahon.”Just the other day, it has already clamped on Purtier for what it says as “false claims.”
Doctors who believe and practice integrative or holistic medicine do so under the radar for fear of being labeled illegal.
Acupuncture
Big pharma has also been trying to raze down acupuncture. But today, acupuncture has been made potent by laser, not the kind that threatened to cut James Bond’s balls in Dr. No.
Using precisely the points the Chinese needle cure use, the Germans have developed a technology that harnesses low-intensity laser that talks to and works on your cells to battle ailments.
What about energy healing such as reiki that channels the power within us and around us to combat negative energies such as those carried by viruses?
But most of all, who can question prayers?
If spoken not as words, but unsheathed from the depths of your soul, the power of prayers are beyond the commerce of man.