The Blood and the Immune System: COVID-19 Associated Coagulopathy
Now is the time to support and strengthen circulatory health…and it is all about balance. This is the first of a mini-series of articles addressing a central challenge highlighted in recent discoveries surrounding the COVID-19 situation.
Out of the earliest observations by those on the front lines about how a COVID-19 related illness turns lethal, it has been established that the circulatory system plays a prominent role. Older people often have conditions in which damage to the blood vessels is already more likely, such as diabetes and high blood pressure. This makes them more vulnerable to a cascade of rapidly amplified coagulation (blood clotting) events related to oxygen deprivation, organ failure, and additional infections.
In the past few weeks, there has been an increasing focus on the younger population and how the novel virus is perceived to be associated with blood clotting phenomena. As has been pointed out by the American Society of Hematology, there has been a significant increase in strokes among younger adults linked with COVID-19. Additionally, a syndrome which appears as a widespread rash in infants and small children (also related to hyper-coagulation and inflammation of the blood vessels) has been connected with COVID-19 positive status. These various scenarios, although both having to do with hyper-coagulation, proceed along different paths than the above described cascading amplification which tends to occur in the older population.
The principle function of the blood is to carry life-giving oxygen, along with other substances, throughout the body. After all, our life on earth begins with our first breath and ends with our last! In support of this life-giving function, there are two polar opposite blood processes. To fend off damaging influences, we have immune cells and proteins which circulate in the blood whose job is to identify, engulf, and dissolve elements that could cause harm to our blood’s path. On the other hand, the coagulation system, including platelets and other clot-forming substances, has the task of preserving the structure and form of the blood vessels. When arteries and veins become irritated and inflamed, the coagulation system steps in to protect the integrity of the path of the blood. Here we can see that the blood circulation system has a threefold character to its activity consisting of a central task, and two supporting functions.
In a healthy body, these three functions work harmoniously to create a living dynamic balance between the formative process (coagulation) and the dissolving processes (immune function). Keeping this balance enables oxygen-carrying red blood cells and other nutritive substances to permeate every part of the living body. If the formative influence takes the upper hand, blood vessels become stiff and unyielding, and blood pressure goes up since the heart must work so hard against inflexibility. If the dissolving process becomes overzealous, healthy tissues may be damaged and the integrity of the blood vessels compromised. It becomes apparent that imbalances in any one of these functions will affect the other two.
Therefore, whether for preparedness or recovery, it makes sense to support our cardiovascular health actively. In this way, we can ensure that we are most resilient when life’s challenges engage us. For starters, here are a few suggestions in this spirit:
Dietarily, concentrate on whole foods (especially vegetarian foods which are rich in silica such as bananas, beets, nettles and/or horsetail tea, green beans, oatmeal, and millet) while (for many people) reducing animal flesh. This will support the resilience of the tissues lining the surfaces of lungs and blood vessels and also reduce stress on the kidneys.
Exercise regularly. Walking is one of the best exercises as it physically massages the metabolic organs. It is safer for the cardiovascular system to exercise several times daily rather than intensely once daily. For example, three 15 minute sessions spread out over the day is better than one 45 minute workout. Walking also can spiritually benefit us in our efforts to understand our karma. If you can safely walk backward during part of your walk along the same path you have just tread, this latter effect is strengthened. (This is according to the anthroposophic view of the human being)
Consider using the nettle plant as tea, food (cooked!), or in supplement form. The stinging nettle has a strong relationship to iron which is the principle means of carrying oxygen in red blood cells, while also being known traditionally and scientifically as a gentle coagulation inhibitor. Rudolf Steiner made the following thought-provoking comment about nettles in one of his lectures to farmers:
‘This is a plant we do not like to stroke — it is the stinging nettle. Truly it is the greatest benefactor of plant growth in general, and you will scarcely find another plant to replace it. If it should happen to be unobtainable in any place, then you must get it dried from elsewhere. The stinging nettle is a regular “Jack-of-all-trades.” It can do very, very much. It, too, carries within it the element which incorporates the Spiritual and assimilates it everywhere, namely, sulfur, the significance of which I have explained already. Moreover, the stinging nettle carries potassium and calcium in its currents and radiations, and in addition, it has a kind of iron radiation. These iron radiations of the nettle are almost as beneficial to the whole course of Nature as our own iron radiations in our blood. Truly, the stinging nettle is such a good fellow and does not deserve the contempt with which we often look down on it where it grows wild in Nature. It should really grow around man's heart, for in the world outside — in its marvelous inner working and inner organization — it is wonderfully similar to what the heart is in the human organism. The stinging nettle is the greatest boon.’
4. Olive leaf has a strong history within various medical traditions of being used for cardiovascular health. Not only does it have immune strengthening and anti-viral properties, but studies have shown that it favorably affects blood clotting activity. The heart, even way back within the temples of ancient mystery wisdom, has been associated with the spiritual being of the sun. And about the sun-loving olive tree, Rudolf Steiner made the following cryptic (at least to me!) reference to the Apostle Paul:
‘Geographically, too, the world is full of secrets. And the region of the Earth where the olive tree flourishes is different from the regions where flourish the oak or the ash. Man as a physically embodied being has a relationship with the elemental spirits. In the world of the olive tree the rustle and movement, the whisper and gesture, are not the same as in the world of the oak or the ash or the yew. And if we want to grasp the connection of the Earth-nature with human beings, we need to pay attention to such peculiar facts as this — the fact that Paul carries his message just as far over the Earth as the domain of the olive tree extends. The world of Paul is the world of the olive tree.’
Paul the Apostle walked his path to Damascus and made discoveries about his life purpose. The heart, with its sensitive understanding of our inner life, has the task of modulating the flow of our blood along its way. It this manner, it serves us in walking our own healthy path towards finding our life’s meaning and purpose.
