So, what is COVID-19 trying to tell us?

1. Pay attention

No other virus, war, natural disaster or other similar adversity has managed to draw the COLLECTIVE attention in such a powerful way for a very long time. The question what exactly we need to pay attention to is complex (as there are many things that we have been sweeping under the carpet). But isn’t it wonderful that we are forced to slow down, stay home, and (hopefully) reflect without distractions on what is important, what is valuable and what is worth spending our life on. Of course, if we waste this valuable time on watching cute puppies and posting stupid videos on Facebook instead of paying attention to what really matters, we are seriously missing the point here.

2. We are in all connected (otherwise known as “A lesson in Oneness”)

If we ever needed proof that we are all connected and that everything we touch (literally as well as metaphorically) is connected to everything else, now we have it. Finally (and hopefully) a big realization is starting to dawn on us: we can no longer continue to “pee” in one end of the pool (i.e. the Planet) and go swim in the other end thinking that our shit won’t catch up with us. We all swim in the same pool and whatever we do in that pool does come back to us. Thus, taking “dirty” production out of Europe into China (and this is just one of millions of examples of separation) cannot and does not serve Europe (or any other continent for that matter). For the shit inevitably comes back, as the virus spread is illustrating clearly. Incidentally, isn’t it remarkable that a situation that calls for social isolation (i.e. apparent separation) in fact intensifies the feeling that we are all connected, that we are all in this (and every other thing) together!

3. It’s time for renewal

Old structures need to be torn down so we can start fresh (hopefully with new awareness albeit with little resources). On the face of it, it is not accidental that the virus has so far targeted the life of primarily old people with one, two or more pre-existing conditions, i.e. these are people that should have been dead a while ago if it weren’t for the artificial ways of extending life. But the artificial life-saving resources are now running out (no breathing machines, no medical personnel or other supplies). So that should make us rethink the life-saving technologies that so many people have come to rely on and have, as a result, relinquished personal health responsibilities. What about focusing on disease prevention plans instead (when the pandemic is over): healthy eating, exercising, meditating, etc.? How many people would have heart disease and diabetes (the two top conditions that go hand-in-hand with coronavirus deaths), if there was no junk food or modern stress?

4. Get comfortable with death by making every moment of life count

Death in and of itself is not a tragedy. Rather, a wasted life is a tragedy. A person who has lived with integrity, has contributed meaningfully to themselves and to the society, and has maintained quality relationships during their life time, has no regrets. This kind of person is ready to die anytime, and happily. Become that person yourself. Re-evaluate your priorities and start spending time on what matters. Let go of the grudge. Start to feel that you are connected to all other human beings. Forgive. Feel more love and less resentment. Stop living a tragic life and your death won’t be tragic either. They can both be a celebration.

So these are some of the messages I think we need to hear right now. Of course, there are many other things to be taken into account and much more will be revealed to us in the course of this experience. That’s why we need to stay flexible, observe carefully (pay attention), ask smart questions and continue to search for their answers deep within. This way we are really taking advantage of the situation by cleaning up our own baggage. Any other behaviour (e.g. impatience, frustration, anger and looking forward to this blowing over so things can go back to “normal”) is immature. We need a shift in consciousness (to shift the virus) and if we resist it, the virus will persist.

It’s been my experience as a practicing dietitian that most healthy people do not readily meet their dietary potassium requirements. Being able to eat a lot of food (calories) can help, since potassium is actually found in a wide range of foods. Obviously, the more food eaten, the greater likelihood of eating enough potassium. But, what about the individual that is always restricting calories for weight management? Or, what about the person who eats a lot of calories, but they are junk food calories? Theses scenarios will hinder meeting overall current potassium recommendations. While potassium plays a huge role in maintaining overall health, there is some emerging discussion that potassium plays a role in COVID-19 recovery (preliminary report, not yet peer reviewed). Therefore, knowing potassium food sources should be considered a basic nutrition education strategy for self-care during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Current potassium recommendations

In 2019, potassium recommendations were adjusted. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) reset the recommendations for the population. Previously, the potassium requirements were 4700 mg for all adults, regardless of gender. Previous pediatric recommendations ranged from 3000 to 3800 mg. The updated requirements are more refined and are based on both gender and age.

Updated potassium requirements in mg are as follows:

1-3 years old 2000 mg for both genders

4-8 years old 2300 for both genders

9-13 years old 2500 for males and 2300 for females

14-18 years old 3000 for males and 2300 for females

19-50 years old 3400 for males and 2600 for females

51+ 3400 for males and 2600 for females

Some potassium food sources

A large can low sodium V-8 juice has 1180 mg

1 small can low sodium V-8 juice has 700 mg

6-oz. baked potato has about 850 mg

11.2 fluid ounce box Naked brand coconut water, about 530 mg

1 cup orange juice has about 500 mg

1/2 cup lima beans have 476 mg

1/2 cup soybeans have 476 mg

1 cup cooked spinach has 466 mg

A medium banana has 420 mg

1 cup cantaloupe has about 417 mg

1 cup of honeydew melon has about 400 mg

8 fluid ounces of skim milk has about 400 mg

1/2 cup sweet potato has about 400 mg

3 oz. salmon has about 380 mg

1/2 cup navy beans have 376 mg

1/3 avocado has about 360 mg

1/2 cup uncooked oatmeal has about 335 mg

6 prunes have about 290 mg

3 oz. chicken or beef has about 290 mg

1/2 cup baked beans have 285 mg

1/2 cup sliced strawberries have about 250 mg

1 cup unsweetened cranberry juice has about 200 mg

1/2 cup cooked carrots has about 185 mg

For an understanding of how your favorite food stacks up regarding potassium, visit FoodData Central.

Potassium supplements

As you can see in the list above, there should be plenty of appealing foods to meet your potassium requirements. With that said, many individuals will wonder or think they can just pop a supplement. However, this is not the case! Most multi-vitamin and mineral supplements typically have less than 100 mg of potassium. And, potassium supplements sold as single entity supplements provide the same. Your best bet is really to focus on nutrient dense foods that you enjoy eating in order to both improve your diet and meet your potassium requirements. Most potassium rich foods are high in nutrients and fiber, both of which you need to stay well, boost immunity, and feed your gut bacteria.

Final thoughts on potassium food sources and COVID-19

While there is no guarantee that ramping up potassium food sources will protect you from COVID-19, there are plenty of solid science backed reasons to pay attention to this nutrient! Low intakes of potassium can put one at risk for various conditions such as high blood pressure. Research also suggests that diets low in potassium promote blood sugar problems, kidney stones, and increase calcium loss from bones. Calcium lost from bones can lead to osteoporosis. When needing to improve your self-care through diet, healthy individuals cannot go wrong by adding more good quality potassium rich foods to their diet. In such unsettling times, even some positive self-care can feel empowering. Be well.

The coronavirus pandemic has well and truly got our attention right now, and one word that keeps popping up is “unprecedented,” meaning that it’s uncharted territory to all concerned, which is true.

However, my Dad was born in exactly the same circumstances, during the great Spanish flu pandemic which raged from 1918 to 1920. He was called a “flu baby” and was born premature, and they thought he was born dead, so the overtaxed medical staff put him in a shoebox and put it to one side while they tended to the mother and all the other thousands of patients they had. Some time later a nurse noticed the baby moving in the shoebox, and my Dad’s life was saved, which is why I am able to be here writing this article.

But there’s more! In that flu pandemic, people were told to stay at home, just like today. They were told to stay away from other people, like today. There were worldwide lockdowns, where no one was allowed to go out into the streets, and some were shot for doing so. Meetings, work, churches, synagogues, mosques, sports – all were closed down. Those were the days before antibiotics had been discovered, and many of the health aids we have today were unavailable, so over 50 million people died worldwide, mostly from secondary causes which could have been treated by modern medicine. I remember my parents, who were born in Durban, South Africa, often talking about it and how terrible it was.

But it passed. And this one will too. But it is imperative that we stay away from each other, and stay at home, and wash our hands and faces and practice very strict hygiene. Cities in the 1918 pandemic that did this for 6 weeks or more were the ones that fared the best, and had very few deaths. This is the key: if the virus can’t spread, it dies within days. It can only live by finding a new host. Deny it that option, and it will die.

In 1920, once the virus had died out, the world continued. It was rough for a while economically, but people managed. So don’t lose hope, the sun will come out again. Times are hard now, but they won’t last forever, and if we do it right and play our part, being responsible and thinking of others, it will shorten the time that we all have to suffer.

Learning from the 1918 pandemic, it is obvious that we must be in no hurry to come out of lockdown. Some cities did that when the infection rate dropped, and they had a resurgence of cases, so we must stay in lockdown until this enemy is dead.

So enjoy the spring – it is a sign of the hope that is budding, that this tragic worldwide scourge will soon be but a memory, and we will once again picnic in the sunshine with our family and friends, and enjoy our world!

Easy Ways to Create a Coronavirus Crisis Management Plan

As small business owners, we’re prepared for a lot of things, whether it’s a seasonal shift in sales or an unexpected employee absence we have to step in and cover.

But we’ve never seen anything like the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving us uncertain about how to cope in these strange times.

I know that this is a scary and isolating time both personally and professionally. I hope you’re staying safe and healthy, and that this article can help you with planning for business challenges related to the coronavirus.

I’ve personally had to pivot many times as an entrepreneur, and while it can be stressful, it can also be a time of innovation and growth.

As you’re creating your coronavirus crisis management plan for business, here are a few things to focus on:

The Importance of Helping Over Selling

I get that you have a company to run, and I’m not suggesting you start giving things away for free or risk your health to open up shop. What I’m recommending is that you take a step back and think about your community while you’re running your company.

Maybe there is a way that what you offer could help people in this difficult time. One of our clients, The Broken Whisk, has had to stop serving customers in their Agassiz, B.C. restaurant. They instead created a select menu of gourmet meals for only $5 each, which can be ordered in advance and picked up.

And not only is their Facebook post getting liked and shared because it’s a delicious offer and a way of giving back to the community, it’s also started a chain of charitable giving. More and more people are donating money to buy meals for those in need.

Is there a way you can adapt your current marketing model to better serve your customers and community?

Online Events & Offerings

Obviously, hosting a conference or awards dinner is off-limits at the moment. A huge part of your planning for business challenges related to COVID-19 is going to include an online marketing strategy.

Think of some ways you can still connect people from the comfort of home, including webinars, Facebook Live videos and virtual conferences using tools like Zoom. And don’t just focus on coronavirus-related content. Keep producing video that will benefit your small business marketing strategy long after the COVID-19 crisis is over.

Here’s a good example of a pivot to online marketing. A Stroke of Genius is a client of ours located in North Vancouver, BC. As an interior decorator, Barbara Aylesworth has built her company working directly with clients and manufacturers. However, with the COVID-19 crisis, she’s had to pivot her marketing strategy to include virtual consultations and project management.

Barb is also inviting people to send in their pics of decorating and design challenges via Instagram, offering to then send her ideas for possible solutions.

This is a fun and inspiring way to engage her community when people need it the most!

Should You Stop Marketing During COVID-19? Read more on our website.

Unless you sell toilet paper or hand sanitizer, you may be concerned about the impact of the coronavirus on your small business; your revenue, employees, and empty marketing funnel. So does that mean you should hunker down and stop your marketing efforts for the time being? No!

I’m a firm believer in focusing on what we can do and change while finding the opportunities amidst adversity. In this article, I’m sharing some ways you can address the challenge of marketing during a crisis and keep your company going.

Business Planning for Future Growth

Of course you have to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic with the right messaging, but don’t get tunnel vision when it comes to your marketing strategy and ad dollars.

While consumers are spending more time online, they’re not keen to make decisions about the future right now. If you have a service that requires your customers to plan far ahead or travel, your conversion rate will suffer during the outbreak. So don’t expect that the same content and ads that brought in traffic before the pandemic will keep coming.

But all is not lost! This can be an opportunity to engage with your customers on social media and increase your brand awareness with content and even paid advertising. With paid ads, you may even find that you have less online competition during an economic downturn, meaning you’ll pay less for more eyeballs and clicks.

From promoting spring-themed gift cards on your website to creating useful articles on financial planning during COVID-19, give your customers a reason to stick with you-even if the pandemic is bringing you more business.

For example, Your Yoga Flow is an online app that provides virtual yoga classes. If anything, they’re seeing an increase in sales as people try to stay active and healthy while cooped up at home. By not just selling their services, but providing a free meditation during “these trying times,” they boost brand awareness, give something back and stay top-of-mind.

If you’re willing to look forward while creating your coronavirus crisis management plan, you’ll be better positioned to stay relevant and remarket to your audience at a later time.

Empowering Your Employees

According to recent statistics, over 500,000 Canadians, or approximately 2.5% of the workforce, have filed E.I. applications already. If you haven’t had to make hard decisions about laying off staff, how can you keep your team busy and optimistic about the future?

Here are a few ideas:

• Offer training opportunities to help your team and your company in the long-term-whether that’s getting a new certification or reading relevant industry books.
• Consider making vacation policies or work hours more flexible to accommodate employees whose kids may be out of school, for example.
• Share jobs across departments to increase responsiveness to your customers.
• Involve your team in “back burner” projects or things you’ve put off because you were too busy before.

If your team is working remotely, make sure to check in with them often. A virtual daily coffee or 15-minute meeting to see how everyone is doing can be vital to your team’s mental health and well-being.

No matter what type of company you have, your customers are looking for help and assurance right now. As you’re developing your coronavirus crisis management plan, keep in mind that everyone is being bombarded with messaging noise.

That means emails from every company they ever followed on social media, bought a product from or signed up to get an eNewsletter from! As you pivot your small business marketing strategy to survive the COVID-19 crisis, make sure all of your communications provide succinct, meaningful and relevant information.

The more value you can offer your customers right now, the more successful you’ll be as we shift to a new way of marketing and emerge from a global crisis that made our world a lot smaller.

Pandemics in human history always often result in untold and sometimes unparalleled problems that would need great thinkers to offer solutions. Researchers are positive opportunists who do not relent in their efforts in continually investigating the ‘what’, ‘when’, ‘who’, and ‘how’ of every situation just to bring relief to mankind. In the current outbreak, researchers in the diverse disciplines must think of how to offer a new lens of understanding to the outbreak and more importantly offer urgent solutions to its associated challenges that threaten human structures for survival.

Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 global pandemic, scholars in the field of Health and Allied Sciences have started investigating the etiology, epidemiology, pathophysiology, histopathology, clinical evaluation/treatment/management and diagnosis of the COVID-19. A survey of the scholarly works in this field shows great contributions of Asian researchers, especially from China, where the outbreak began. These hardworking researchers never relented in their efforts in investigating medically, what should be done to fight the virus. These remarkable researchers kept on pursuing this path even under perilous working conditions that resulted in the loss of some. They have truly demonstrated and shown what researchers must do all the time in constantly searching for solutions to alleviate the pain of their fellow humans even in times of pandemic. However, more has to be done by their colleagues in other countries. There is a need for medical scientists to investigate the genome sequence of the novel coronavirus in different regions of the world. Interestingly, other scholars in the field of medicine are busily investigating this phenomenon to inform knowledgeably on the coronavirus, suggesting preventive measures and more importantly, finding medical cure and vaccine to fully combat it. For instance, while medical scientists search through the lens of orthodox medicine, herbal practitioners are experimenting on ways of using herbal extracts in producing medicine that can boost the immune system and/or provide a strong immune buffer to fight the coronavirus. These efforts are commendable. More work has to be done in searching for more efficient means of conducting tests on COVID-19 patients, carrying out contact tracing, and precautionary/preventive measures for the coronavirus.

Researchers in the field of Engineering, particularly Computer and Mechanical Engineering are devising technologies to help in mitigating the spread of the COVID-19. Digital technologies such as drones and robocops have been designed and used in some countries, to sum up, manual enforcement of lockdowns. Likewise, mobile technologies such as the development of new apps for contact tracing of patients of the COVID-19 as well as those who have had contact with them are being designed. For instance, MIT researchers are developing a system based on artificial intelligence to complement the manual contact tracing carried out by public health personnel that relies on short-range Bluetooth signals from smartphones. In South Africa, ambulances endowed with automated test kits and laboratory services designed as a result of diligent efforts in research are being used in testing and tracking persons with the COVID-19 even in remote, hard-to-reach areas. In Ghana, the Ministry of Health recently launched the COVID-19 app for tracing people infected or who have had contact with carriers of the COVID-19 virus. These technologies developed as a result of rigorous studies by some mechanical engineers as well as computer hardware and software engineers are being deployed to aid in the fight against the COVID-19. More technological tools to fight the coronavirus are still required and dedicated researchers in the field of engineering are constantly on the table investigating these potentials.

Researchers in agriculture has a great research task in stock for them. The lockdown has resulted in a high record of postharvest losses in countries. What are the efficient ways of mitigating post-harvest losses during periods of pandemic and lockdowns? How can farmers use online marketing strategies and platforms to connect to clients to patronize their products to prevent them from incurring high financial losses? What can the ministry of food and agriculture do to assist these poor farmers in managing the crisis of lockdowns? What are some of the efficient ways the perishable farm produce could be processed into non-perishable products by food manufacturing companies? These are excellent themes that merit investigation by agriculturalists during this pandemic outbreak. Sadly, studies in these areas are yet to be undertaken.

The tourism and hospitality management sector have been hit greatly due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many scheduled tours and tourism activities have been canceled due to travel bans and lockdowns. It is estimated that the tourism sector globally will lose high revenue up to the value of close to two billion dollars. This is the time researchers in tourism and hospitality management might consider virtual means of marketing these tourism sites through intensified research into smart tourism and e-tourism. This growing field in tourism has not been given much attention, especially in developing countries. This pandemic period should be the time that researchers in this field would find ways of increasing public awareness of smart tourism and e-tourism.

Scholars in the Social Sciences and Humanities such as sociologists, anthropologists and culturists have the task in investigating the sociological impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak such as ways of dealing with social anxiety as a result of the pandemic. Also, an assessment of the economic impacts of the COVID-19 on business activities, the need to embark on e-business, e-marketing, e-banking and other electronic forms of carrying out business activities are important topics that must be explored. Social and Cultural anthropologists should look into the cultural and social perceptions of the different people across the regions of the world about the coronavirus and recommend the application of culturally relevant interventions to combat the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. Likewise, psychologists and psychiatrists must suggest ways of dealing with post-traumatic disorders from quarantining, as well as stigmatization and discrimination against COVID-19 patients and their relatives.

Moreover, this is the time for educational technologists to come out with proactive ways of undertaking online instruction via various forms of learning management systems, intelligent tutoring systems, and social media platforms. Artists must creatively produce animated cartoons and other forms of signs in e-formats to be promoted online in fighting against the myths and misinformation surrounding the treatment of the COVID-19 and the need to expunge all forms of stigmatization and discrimination against persons who are tested for COVID-19. Of course, this is the time that researchers in all fields of study must collaborate to investigate pluralistic means of fighting the COVID-19 global pandemic.

Although 3 dogs have been known to test positive in China for Coronavirous or COVID-19, the World Health Organization (WHO) and The Centre of Disease Control (CDC) state it is very unlikely that you and your dog would cross contaminate each other with COVID-19. The dogs that tested positive in China were thought to have been exposed to very high concentrations of viral contaminants to have the detectable level that they did.

You may have noticed on your dog’s vaccine check list there is a “coronavirus” strain listed. Fortunately, this is specifically a canine type of coronavirus only. Unfortunately, that strain is not the same as COVID-19. COVID-19 has the possibility of other types of animal-human transmission.

Should My Dog Wear A Mask?

No. Applying a mask to your dog may interfere with your dog’s breathing and cause more harm than good.

A dog is highly likely to not be comfortable in the mask and keep trying to pull it off.

And finally, masks are designed for human faces, human nose and mouth measurements. If you every examined your dog’s mouth line, you see it cuts deep along his or her cheeks. No human mask would be able to cover that effectively.

There are medical masks made for dogs that wrap around their snout. However, it is not recommended for the same reasons. Not comfortable, can interfere with breathing and the dog will keep trying to remove it. Most importantly, your dog is not likely to get our COVID-19 strain.

How To Protect Myself and My Dog?

I’m sure many of you are doing a great job at these protective practices. They are the same as you have been hearing all over?

Wash your hands with soap and water for 20-30 seconds

Frequently clean high-traffic, high-touch surfaces

Self-isolate, it is okay to be around your dog

Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth before washing your hands, these are the easiest areas for germs to get into you and make you sick!

COVID-19 generally has an incubation period of anywhere from 2 days, which is rare, to 5-14 days which is more average, this is time you are sick before you start to have symptoms

Humans are very contagious in this incubation phase, even before they have symptoms

Humans remain contagious when they blow their nose, and cough.

Research has also found humans even shed the virus in their faeces.

Sources:

https://pethelpful.com/misc/Can-Dogs-and-Cats-Get-Coronavirus-Your-Pets-Health

https://vetmed.illinois.edu/pet_column/coronavirus-pets/