can you cure coronavirus with flu shots?

in #coronavirus4 years ago

Recently, Trump asked if available flu shots have any impact on curing the new coronavirus flu. I did laugh at first, but then I started thinking what if it does?!!

So I started to think if there is any rational argument to make on this issue. I do know about biochemistry, but I don't have any medical degree, so if parts of my arguments are not correct, I would be happy if someone points them out. I am just using my common knowledge to connect some dots.

Let us see what a vaccine is and what it does to our body!
Vaccines and especially flu shots, are simply a solution containing virus particles. Viruses are made of genetic materials in the form of DNA or RNA, which is protected by a protein shell. The genetic material of the viruses can be used to reproduce itself using a host cell. Our immune system can only detect the protein shell of the virus. I am not sure what is in the flu shot, but it makes sense to contain the proteins from the most recent flu viruses. By injecting those protein particles into the body, our immune system gets a chance to produce related antibodies, so when the actual viruses get into your body, the immune system is ready to fight. Essentially we are giving a cheat sheet to the immune system before the real exam.

The flu virus attacks the lungs, and as it progresses, lungs can't function properly, and what is the function of our lungs? To provide oxygen to our body (and get rid of carbon dioxide). I don't know if this is common or not, but when I get flu, my whole body and muscles start to sore similar to when I have an extensive workout. In both cases, the sore is somehow related to the low oxygen level and anaerobic metabolism.

Now I want to talk about how our body fights against the flu. Again I am not sure, but it seems that our body has a specific defense mechanism to fight against the flu virus. It is the production of mucus. That is where coughing and runny nose physically remove the virus from the body. If you catch flu in the absence of flu shot, in the beginning, the body does not know that it is being attacked (especially in a case of new flu virus). That is why you don't produce lots of mucus (dry nose and dry coughs), and usually, a couple of days later, the mucus production increases and coughing and runny nose get rid of the virus. (I guess mucus is also a better environment for the body to fight)

Now imagine you are exposed to a new flu virus, and your immune system has no antibody for this new case, and as a result, it won't trigger the production of mucus immediately. Now the question is if you receive a flu shot, does the body starts the mucus production immediately? There is a catch here. That is when you receive flu shots; the body is learning about the new viruses, but if you receive the same flu shot later (or you get exposed to these viruses), your body already knows these virus particles and starts the production of the mucus. (This is a hypothesis, and it can be tested)

When I start to feel sick, I have some tricks that fix the flu immediately, and it won't take more than three days to get better and often is just one day. (1) I will make something warm like warm milk or soup. Then I will drink it put on some clothes and get into bed. I start sweating, and it is not really comfortable, but when I wake up in the morning, the flu is usually gone. Of course, I have to do a big laundry the next day. (2) I start smoking, lol, yes, I start smoking, and if I have a favorite, I usually switch to a different brand (if you are a smoker, you might know that changing the brand makes you cough for a while and that is what I want. Smoking causes my lungs to produce a lot of mucus, which in turn activates my body's physical defense system to get rid of the virus.

So at the end of the day, new flu viruses won't trigger the mucus production immediately, and if we can turn it on, it might be helpful. There are many ways to activate this defense mechanism, and flu shot might be one way (maybe not the best way), but this won't be the first time to cure a disease by making the patient sick. In cancer therapy, they start killing you slowly, hoping to see cancer dies before the patient dies.

No need to take this seriously, it is just a thought experiment.

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