No harm in trying VCO vs COVID-19, says Nograles
With the surge in the number of active COVID-19 cases in the country, Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said on Thursday that all safe and possible treatments for COVID-19 should be explored and studied as he continued distributing free virgin coconut oil (VCO) to Level 1 hospitals to help patients now suffering from mild symptoms of the dreaded disease.
The Palace official, who also co-chairs the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF), clarified that the distribution of VCO was a personal initiative, not an official IATF undertaking, and that private funds were used to purchase VCO supplies on top of VCO that had been donated by concerned parties.
According to Nograles, he decided to distribute free VCO to Level 1 hospitals “after consulting the DOST (Deparment of Science and Technology), doctors, and experts who said that VCO could have possible benefits for COVID-19 patients with mild symptoms.”
“More importantly, there are zero risks involved; VCO may help them, and certainly will not endanger their lives,” he stressed.
“At this point, we should be doing everything we can to help those who have contracted COVID-19. If there are possible treatments out there backed up by science, and trying these treatments have little or no risk involved, subukan natin.”
Nograles pointed out that the DOST had already conducted studies that showed that there were possible benefits for COVID-19 patients who take VCO regularly. The clinical trials showed that VCO could be used to prevent COVID-19 symptoms from worsening, as patients who regularly took VCO experienced diminished or reduced COVID-19 symptoms in around two weeks.
The study recommended that VCO be used as an adjunct supplement to “probable and suspect cases of COVID 19” and theorized based on the trials that VCO could prevent COVID-19 mild positive cases from becoming more severe.
The Palace official on Wednesday personally led the distribution of VCO to two NCR Level 1 hospitals, turning over 72 bottles of VCO to the SDS Medical Center and 48 bottles to Novaliches General Hospital in Novaliches, Quezon City.
Previously, Nograles distributed VCO to Caloocan City Medical Center, San Lorenzo Ruiz Women’s Hospital, and Ospital ng Malabon.
The VCO will be given to patients voluntarily, and their progress will be monitored in order to document the effects of VCO intake. Patients with COVID-19 symptoms are advised to take one tablespoon of VCO with each meal for three straight days. If tolerated well, they may double the dosage from the fourth day onward, until the patient tests negative. Patients may also swab VCO on their nostrils and gargle with VCO to help alleviate symptoms.
