The case for zinc as part of COVID-19 response efforts

Nutrition is essential to fight disease. Sanku & Semilla Nueva offer a series on nutrients and their role in optimal health and immunity for COVID-19 response. In the first issue, we explore zinc’s promising potential in prevention and mitigation.

Tortillas are the staple of every meal in rural Guatemala — accounting for nearly 50% of the diet. Here, the entire family is ready to enjoy biofortified tortillas with higher zinc, iron, and quality protein content — nutrients key for fighting disease in the face of a pandemic.

By: Anne Wanlund, Katey Linskey, Dr. Vincent Assey, Dr. Manolo Mazariegos, Curt Bowen

As the world searches for answers on how to mitigate the effects of COVID-19, it is important to remember the critical role of micronutrient interventions in maintaining public health. Zinc, an essential micronutrient, is an unsung hero in our bodies — supporting and sustaining healthy immune system function and reducing the severity of respiratory infections in children and the elderly. Zinc deficiency affects one third of the global population, and is responsible for 16% of lower respiratory tract infections globally.¹ The administration of intravenous zinc for treating COVID-19 is undergoing clinical trials, given the success of supplementation in slowing virus replication in SARS and other coronaviruses.² Zinc’s clear contributions to bolstering immunity and its undisputed impact on health are especially significant during a disease…