How to significantly reduce your risk of contracting the Zika virus

   Zika en Espanol    Zika em português

Recently changed Virus pages on Vitamin D Life

Important updates - April - May 2016

• Pan American Health Organization April 14, 2016
  Database of papers on Zika Virus - published and soon-to-be-published, large variety of topics
• Zika virus cartoon video 85 seconds in English and Spanish
• The Zika Virus: Pandemic Preparedness Is Needed Now! HuffPost May 2016
  17 page excellent overview - which includes the following two quotes
  "Since 1976, as many as three new infectious diseases have emerged each year: HIV/AIDS, SARS, H1N1, Ebola, MERS, and West Nile encephalitis are just some of the most serious and headline grabbing ones. "
  "As of 2014, more than 346 infectious diseases were linked to 16% of all human deaths worldwide annually"
• Of US pregnant women who were tested for Zika, 279 were positive – how many are actually infected - May 2016

Zika virus is an enveloped virus

• Zika virus Wikipedia
• Viral envelope Wikipedia: examples: Herpes simplex virus (cold sore), varicella-zoster virus (Shingles), cytomegalovirus, Epstein-Barr virus, Hepatitis B virus, retrovirus - like HIV, Dengue virus, Yellow fever virus, Measles virus, Mumps virus, smallpox, West Nile virus

Zika virus is also a Flavivirus virus

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flavivirus lists 50-100 Flavivirus viruses: humans, mammals, sea birds, etc.

''Put cursor on image to see table of Virus Families in Wikipedia''

Vitamin D has been shown to treat most enveloped viruses (by strengthening the immune system)

• Vitamin D can inhibit enveloped virus (e.g. Corona, Herpes, Zoster, Epstein, Hepatitis, RSV) – March 2011
• Hepatitis B virus might be treated by Vitamin D – April 2015
• Four antiviral strategies – includes vitamin D – Vasquez Dec 2014
• 25-Hydroxyvitamin D3 suppresses hepatitis C virus production – Oct 2012
• Immune response to respiratory viruses – vitamin D connection – review May 2015
• Rotovarious virus less of a problem for pigs with enough vitamin D – CT May 2014
• Major interactions between Vitamin D, Vitamin A, and Influenza – Sept 2013
• Vitamin D prevents Hepatitis-C and helps treat it (many studies)
• Shingles and vitamin D
• Overview HIV and vitamin D
• Influenza prevented by 40 ng levels or treated with vitamin D hammer (50,000 IU) – June 2015
  Prevention AND treatment: of an enveloped virus. Vitamin D given to everyone. Not a random controlled trial

Related information on Vitamin D Life

• Virus blocking by placenta when mother has enough vitamin D
  2 immune systems aided by Vitamin D: Mother's and placenta
• Infectious Disease typically not treated if use less than 4000 IU vitamin D daily– review Oct 2014
• Infection fighting ability increased with 5,000 IU Vitamin D daily – April 2015
• Viral infection reduced 90 percent with 2000 IU of vitamin D – Dec 2010
• Immune System response of infants is associated with higher levels of vitamin D – RCT Nov 2014
• How you can greatly cut your chance of getting the flu (vitamin D just twice a month)
• All items in category Immunity 262 items

Important notes

1. Zika virus is transmitted by sex as well as mosquito NYT Feb 2, 2016
   Thus it is probably unsafe for a man who has been in tropical Americas to have sex for - weeks? months?
   Unknown: Does the man have to have had symptoms to become infectious?
   dengue, chikungunya, and West Nile are not sexually transmissible
2. Zika eggs laid on vehicles (trucks, cars, boats, airplanes) can travel 1,000's of miles before getting instant mosquitos after a rain
   Zika eggs can lie dormant for over a year before being hatched by water
   Wonder how long it will be until countries start fumigating vehicles and contents passing thru customs.
3. Deet caused problems in 1/4 of employees if used for a long time (months?) Scientific American
   rashes, skin irritation, numb or burning lips, nausea, headaches, dizziness and difficulty concentrating.

See Zika on the web - the latest is at the bottom

• Zika virus outbreak in the Americas (2015–present) Wikipedia
• How Scared Should You Be About Zika? NYT Jan 29 2016
  "Think of Aedes aegypti as the Norway rat of mosquitoes;
  it has evolved to live in close quarters with humans, and the trash that humans create"
• Short Answers to Hard Questions About Zika Virus NYT Jan 29 2016 excellent!
  "The Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus, is also known to transmit the virus, but it is not clear how efficiently. That mosquito ranges as far north as New York and Chicago in summer."
• "Microcephaly is rare, and it has many other causes, including infection of the fetus with rubella (German measles), cytomegalovirus or toxoplasmosis; poisoning of the fetus by alcohol, mercury or radiation; or severe maternal malnutrition and diabetes. It is also caused by several gene mutations, including Down syndrome."
• Vitamin D is better than ANY vaccine and increases the immune system by 3-5 times
  YouTube Video, Aug 2009, Dr. Pendergast
• Zika Is the Next Front in the Mosquito Wars Bloomberg Feb 4, 2016
  "The Aedes aegypti mosquito weighs less than a grain of rice, lives only a few weeks, and doesn’t stray more than 100 yards from where it hatches" (Note: Eggs can hitch a ride on vehicles - just add rain 1,000's of miles away and get instant mosquitos)
  "The number of reported cases of dengue each year has jumped from about 125,000 in the 1970s to more than 3 million in 2013."
      Vitamin D Life wonders what % of that 24X increase is due to substantially decreased vitamin D levels during that time period
  "There were 214 million malaria cases globally in 2015 and 438,000 deaths, compared with about 13,000 from dengue"
• Brazil had eradicated by 1958 but it did not need a visa to get back into the country
• How a Medical Mystery in Brazil Led Doctors to Zika Excellent article by NYT Feb 6 2016
   Download the NYT PDF from Vitamin D Life if you cannot access NYT
• Why some people are mosquito magnets NBC News May 2011
  ~20 % of people are high attractor types - no known reason
  Dark color clothing, Carbon Dioxide,
  "Those with higher metabolic rates produce more carbon dioxide, as do larger people and pregnant women"
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosquito
  "Of 72 types of odor receptors on its antennae, at least 27 are tuned to detect chemicals found in perspiration"
  "Various species of mosquitoes are estimated to transmit various types of disease to more than 700 million people annually"
• Ride With the Mosquito Hunters Protecting the US Against Zika Wired Feb 2016
  "In the thick of summer, some mosquito somewhere (in Texas) will pick up Zika and spread it. “It’s a matter of when, not if,”"
  "A. aegypti likes to fly low, biting ankles and feet"
  "A. aegypti, the interloper from Africa that’s already brought dengue, yellow fever, chikungunya with it to Texas. Zika will soon be on the list."
  "The mosquito control division regularly sets out traps baited with dry ice (carbon dioxide, which attracts the bugs)"
• Study in Brazil Links Zika Virus to Eye Damage in Babies NYT Feb 9, 2016
  all 10 Zika newborns had eye damage
  “Based on my experience, I would say a large number of these kids will be blind,”
• This Mosquito Likes Us Too Much For Our Own Good NPR Feb 11, 2016
  "Aedes aegypti is the dog of the mosquito world. It acts as if it's man's best friend."
  "For a long time it was known as the "Yellow Fever" mosquito because it's the primary vector for the virus that causes yellow fever. Aedes aegypti also spreads dengue and chikungunya."
  "But Aedes aegypti is what's known as a "sip feeder." It takes lots of little sips of blood from lots of people. "
  It doesn't bite at night like the mosquitoes that transmit malaria, so bed nets are not necessarily useful.
  They rest both inside and outside houses so there's not an easy way to target the adult mosquito with pesticide."
• Aedes aegypti is a Floodwater Mosquito University of Florida
  Their eggs MUST DRY OUT then later be wetted before hatching can begin
  "Unfortunately, for those who are diligent about dumping water and cleaning up containers around their home, this type of local and small scale effort will not contribute much impact to reducing mosquitoes in the floodwater sites"
• Prepare for ‘Guerrilla Warfare’ With Zika-Carrying Mosquitoes, Experts Warn NYT Feb 12
  “It’s the cockroach of mosquitoes,” said Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “It lives indoors around people and hides in dark places.”
  "That makes it much harder for droplets sprayed from airplanes or trucks to come into contact with it to kill it. (Floodwater mosquitoes, the ones that bother Americans on summer nights, rarely spread disease. Spraying works on them because they are often flying.)"
• NPR
  "The Aedes aegypti likes to lay its eggs in several places, giving its offspring a better chance to survive, and those eggs can stay viable for an incredible 450 days, in a kind of suspended animation,"
• http://www.wired.com/2016/02/cdc-sees-birth-defects-pregnant-us-travelers wired Feb 26
  9 pregnant US travelers with Zika virus: 1 severe microcephaly. 2 miscarriages. 2 abortions;
• Zika is expected to infect 1 in 5 Puerto Ricans, raising threat to rest of U.S.
  On Monday, authorities in Puerto Rico began distributing free Zika prevention kits to pregnant women that were created by the CDC and the CDC Foundation.
  The kits include information and tools to help them reduce risk of infection and include repellent, products that kill mosquito larvae, and condoms."
• Zika Virus and Pregnancy: A Review of the Literature and Clinical Considerations - March 2016
  audience = doctors. The words vitamin nor immune are not in the PDF
   Download the PDF from Vitamin D Life
• Research indicates other mosquitoes may be able to carry Zika Reuters March 3
  "Culex quinquefasciatus is 20 times more common than Aedes aegypti,"
  Infected the mosquito in the lab, do not know if it can transmit the virus to humans
  "Culex quinquefasciatus also exists in more temperate climes, such as the southern United States, where it is known to carry the West Nile virus, and can survive winters. Unlike Aedes aegypti, Culex quinquefasciatus could keep a virus in circulation during cold months."
  " . . which rests in trees and other high areas, would need to be different from those for Aedes aegypti, which rests in low spots, often indoors."
• A Zika breakthrough: Scientists detail how virus can attack fetal brain Washington Post March 4
  Study "took place in a controlled environment, with lab-grown stem cells"
• CDC update - very little Zika above 6500' (2000 meters) March 11
  Not a surprise - lots of UVB at high altitude ==> more vitamin D ==> improved immune system
  So many people have good immune systems at high altitude that viruses are not able to become contagious
• http://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/273469-hhs-chief-zika-cases-rise-to-450-in-us 450 cases of Zika infection in US & Puerto Rico as of March 17, 2016
  Seems strange that the Zika infected people are not encourage/forced to wear mosquito repellant so as to minimize the chance that a local mosquito does not get the virus from them: Comment by Vitamin D Life
  Only 1 in 4 people get Zika symptoms
  Perhaps 3 out of 4 people had immune systems which were strong enough to fight off Zika
    Vitamin D strengthens immune systems
• Frightening images show the insidious way Zika appears to attack babies’ brains April 11 Washington Post
  Science has found exactly how Zika virus stops brain development
  from report in Science Zika virus impairs growth in human neurospheres and brain organoids full free PDF is online
• Zika is a big news in many countries March 18 (but not so much in the US) (from Unfiltered,news - Google)

• CDC map as of April 2016

• Zika Is a Delayed Epidemic Atlantic April 19, 2016
  Great title, nice article
  What about kids who get infected? “Are there going to be long term cognitive consequences of pediatric exposure? We don't know,”
  . . . that for the Gulf Coast of the U.S., Zika could be “a catastrophe to rival Hurricane Katrina” if preventive measures aren’t taken.
  Several countries—Brazil, Ecuador, Jamaica, Colombia, and El Salvador—have advised women to delay getting pregnant for anywhere from six months to “indefinitely,”
• Zika threatens TWO BILLION people across the world April 21, 2016

 Download the e-life PDF from Vitamin D Life

• ZIKA VIRUS NET huge site, sections include
  Breaking Zika News, Signs & Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment, Prevention, Epidemiology, Transmission
  Zika Virus, History of Zika, Clinical Trials, Literature, Guidelines, Books
  Disease Transmission, Aedes albopictus, Aedes aegypti, Life Cycle of Aedes aegypti
  Zika Virus Prevention, Mosquito Control, Avoid Mosquito Bites, Prevention for Travellers
  "your own immune system is the best fighter for this virus."
  Eggs will most often be placed at varying distances above the water line.
  " Laid eggs can survive for very long periods in a dry state, often for more than a year. "
• President of Brazil: Do not come to Olympics if pregnant April 25, 2016
  Note: She may not be the President of Brazil later this year
• Zika Virus Causes Brain Defects in Babies: CDC April 2016
  "We don't know if the risk is somewhere in the range of 1 percent or in the range of 30 percent,"
• Elsevier resource center
  English Feb 2016, added Portuguese and Spanish May 2016
• Rio de Janeiro’s 2016 Olympic Games Must Not Proceed Harvard Public Health Review May 2016
  Anticipates a global pandemic
  "But for the Games, would anyone recommend sending an extra half a million visitors into Brazil right now? Of course not: mass migration into the heart of an outbreak is a public health no-brainer."
• Zika virus in pregnancy: where to find useful guidance May 2016
  Links to official sources around the world
• How Zika Spreads - which has a daily Zika update

Guillan Barre Syndrome increase may also be related to Zika

• Normally extremely rare, and only in elderly and can lead to complete paralysis from the neck down
• Zika virus's other looming threat CNN Feb 5 2016
  "Guillan Barre Syndrome an autoimmune disease, puts everyone, potentially, at risk - males and females, pregnant or not, and there's nothing we can do to make sure any particular case of Zika infection doesn't turn into GBS"
  " GBS is normally rare — affecting less than 2 people per 100,000 in any given year in the United States"
• Here’s the Other Zika Problem Experts Are Worried About Time Feb 8, 2016
  "Researchers are studying a possible link between Zika and Guillain-Barré syndrome"
  “One thing that has struck us is the cases have tended to be disproportionately young and relatively healthy,” Sejvar said. “We are seeing quite a few 20, 30, 40 year olds who are otherwise healthy.”
  In addition, the cases appear particularly severe. “Over time people often get better, but one thing that we have noticed is that even among otherwise healthy people, six months later they are still having neurological problems,” Sejvar said. “Some can’t go to work or need help with daily activities. That’s something we found peculiar.”

• Evidence links Guillain-Barré Syndrome to Zika virus MedicalNewsToday March 2
  24 GBS out of 100,000 people getting Zika virus
  98% of GBS had Zika antibodies

Mosquito repellent is also very good

About a 40X reduction in mosquito landings with good repellent such as high strength DEET
Many other repellents are not nearly as good
No indications of reduction in mosquito bites so far

•  Download Consumer Reports April 2016 on Mosquito Repellent from Vitamin D Life
  only 4 are highly rated for the Zika mosquito. Note: CR did not rate the high concentration Deets
• http://www.mosquitorepellentreviews.com/
• Insect Repellents: Use and Effectiveness
• Mosquito repellent effectiveness: A placebo controlled trial comparing 95% DEET, Avon Skin So Soft, and a “special mixture”
• Environmental Working Group's guide to bug spray ingredients Review June 2013
• EWG'S GUIDE TO BUG REPELLENTS source of above
  West Nile virus, infected 5,674 Americans in 2013 and 286 died.
• Zika Virus: Airlines, Cruise Company Allow Employees to Avoid Outbreak Countries ABC News Feb 4 2016
  "employees can change their schedules to avoid work in areas affected by the Zika virus outbreak."
• Amaerican Mosquito Control Association 1 page Fact Sheet
• INDEPENDENT LABORATORY TESTING CONFIRMING DETER INSECT REPELLENT® EFFECTIVELY REPELS MOSQUITOES FOR 6 HOURS has the following

• What's The Best Way To Keep Mosquitoes From Biting? Feb 5, 2016 Excellent
  Person who was interviewed wrote a book "Prevention of Bug Bites, Stings, and Disease" in 2009 (on Amazon
     Excellent book!!
  "DEET is shorthand for the chemical name N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide
  "Picaridin is a little more effective than DEET and seems to keep mosquitoes at a greater distance," he says. When people use DEET, mosquitoes may land on them but not bite. When they use a product containing picaridin, mosquitoes are less likely to even land. Repellents with IR 3535 are slightly less effective, Strickman says, but they don't have the strong smell of other products.
  "To avoid irritating the eyes, put the repellent on hands and rub it on the face."
  " tucking pants into socks or shoes helps keep mosquitoes from getting inside clothing."
  
  No such attachment on this page
• MOSQUITOES Michigan date unknown
  The third pattern is an egg laid singly out of the water.
  These eggs are adapted to withstand dry conditions until there are floods and they can hatch.
  The pattern of egg lying depends on the specific type of Mosquito.
  Most mosquitoes stay close to where they were hatched so they can raise another brood.
  Some mosquito species only have one generation each year. Others can have four or more!
• Off! Mosquito Clip On Fan, Does It Work?
  Does not work well in winds or even if you are walking much
  “A clip-on fan can be handy in certain situations but don’t count on it as your primary repellent.”
• Tests show that sounds do not repel mosquitos BBC News 2012
  also Wikipedia

Recommendation: Use mosquito repellent every 4-6 hours to deter mosquito landing
   & Vitamin D to improve immune systems if a mosquito does bite

A loading dose of 400,000 IU of vitamin D (generally taken over a week) will strengthen immune system for ~ 3 months
A loading dose does not require a prescription and costs as little as $2
For most adults 400,000 IU will be enough to

• improve immune systems ability to fight off many diseases, not just Zika
     immune system of mother as well as immune system of the placenta
• typically make people feel much healthier for months

Mosquito traps will reduce the number of mosquitoes in a yard (but not all of them)

• Many companies use one or more attractants such as Carbon Dioxide, Lurex and Octenol
• Mosquitoworld  http://propanemosquitotrap.com/   http://www.mosquitoreviews.com   http://www.mosquitotraps.com/
• One review found models trapping hundreds to as many as 4,000 mosquitos in three hours

Bacteria-Laden Mosquitoes may be a low-cost way to stop both Dengue and Zika virus

Technology Review Feb 26
Gates Foundation, using bacteria natural to half of all insects, cost of $5/person and perhaps as low as $1/person - with no annual update cost
Has already been tested in Australia, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Rio de Janeiro to stop Dengue
No data just yet as to effectiveness.
Vitamin D Life comment - while there can be problems with this method, fumigating entire countries is probably worse

The Mosquito is the deadliest animal

Mosquitoes actually have 6 needles, not just one

3 minute Video Scientific American June 2016
1 saws the skin, 3 widen the hole, 1 pumps the blood, 1 de-clotts the blood (and creates itching and provides virus)
Also - the needles "sniffs out" and bends to the blood

Other deadly viruses carried by the same mosquito

• Mosquito control: can it stop Zika at source? WHO Feb 17
  "Compared with the situation 50 years ago, the worldwide incidence of dengue has risen 30-fold"
  Vitamin D Life wonders how much of that 30X increase is due to lowered levels of vitamin D in the same time period
• Pinterest has a nice Infographic on Dengue - which is carried by the same mosquito

short URL for this page = http://is.gd/ZikaVitD