Posted on 12/18/2021 1:17:10 PM PST by LadyDoc
The Philippines on Saturday recorded 291 new COVID-19 cases to bring the country’s caseload to 2,837,555, the Department of Health (DOH) reported.
The DOH said that of the 291 new reported cases, 260 or 89 percent were recorded in the recent 14 days (December 5-18).
(Excerpt) Read more at newsinfo.inquirer.net ...
we are now having few cases reported, and our rural town is almost completely open (limited indoor seating and masks but the open air markets and parties are going on all the time now).
We have about 40 percent vaccinated (some with one shot, and many with the weaker Chinese vaccine. the Russian Sputnik vaccine, or the British AstraZenaca shot... The US vaccines were not available until the middle of the year).
Ivermectin was forbidden by the Dept of Health, but Duterte allowed us to buy it with a prescription in September.
Ironically most of those dying are elders with heart problems from high blood pressure, and we now have an epidemic of diarrhea in the kids.
Luckily our area of Luzon did not get hit by the terrible typhoon yesterday.
The government hints it is herd immunity.
No hard news about how many folks took Ivermectin, but the pharmacies are always running out of it, even the on line pharmacies (my son in law is anti vax and I put him on it as prevention).
And is very worried about the new Omicron variant restarting the problems.
But without a major increase in deaths, the dilemma is poverty caused deaths from all the businesses being shut down: From malnutrition, from people dying of stroke or heart attack because they can't afford to buy medicine since everyone is out of work.
Hi, Doc. Let me ask you a question. Is high blood pressure only a problem if it is uncontrolled? If you have it controlled with exercise and meds, is it still an increased risk factor? I have not seen this simple question answered anywhere. I thought I’d ask since you pointed out most dying are elders with heart problems or high BP.
I’ve stepped up my exercise frequency and intensity and am reducing my BP meds. This morning it was 113/63, pulse 52 (average of three readings). I will continue reducing BP med dosage. I’m a 70 year old male.
If you saw the typhoon thread last night you’re aware that my gf’s family in Cebu and another FReeper’s family in a different part of Luzon endured severe damage to their houses. Lost roofs and still can’t contact for update. O-My-Kron is the least of their worries.
Your vitals are way better than mine but since my mother lived to 102, ended only by a fall, I hope I’ve got a few years left anyway. And I have the same question about controlled co-morbidities although my BP and heart rate are not as well controlled. But they’re not worse than my mother’s were.
My Mom’s numbers were SKY HIGH, too. She walked a lot up to about her late 70s and was always skinny as a rail. Unfortunately, I don’t recall if she was using BP meds, but I think she was. I know she had a glucose problem and always had sugar free jam and candies.
My doc says the modern thinking about controlling BP is to use lower dosages of multiple medications. He has me on FOUR BP meds! It seems weird, but it also works for me.
I know that for my mother and I, and brother, too, that CA channel blockers are the only category of hypertensives that work for us. But all of us are/were on an ARB also for good measure and protective purposes.
Data sources:
Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource
Worldometer.info
( 50,570 “official” COVID deaths in the Philippines in two years / 109,581,078 population of the Philippines ) x 100 = 0.046 %
Less than 5-one-hundreths of one percent in two years.
There's a ;pt of media shrieking over this small number in the larger scheme of things.
The data suggests that the Philippines is five TIMES more capable than the Fauci-led, CDC-muddled and Walensky-FDA-managed “pandemic.”
Perhaps the US should fire the leaders of the US response and hire the health folks in the Philippines?
As for diet and exercise,that will control mild cases. But we see high blood pressure in our farmers who are thin and do heavy physical labor. And not just mild cases, but over 180 systolic.
One generic amlodipine costs 6 pesos, about 12 cents... But the minimum wage is 360p a day, and any farmers who are cash poor grow their own food but have little extra cash for medicine. And many who worked overseas were laid off and no longer send money to family.
The city has a program to pay for certain medicines but this is mainly for elders.
Usually the typhoons take out electricity, internet, and roads. but usually folks get a cellphone charge from someone with a generator. So keep calling their cellphone.
And even if the home is destroyed, they move to a friend or relative's home or a public shelter.
We got heavy rain but I live north of Manila so this one missed us
Amlodipine was very effective for me but I lost the ability to .... Well, you know. So back to diltiazem which doesn’t lower blood pressure in the wrong male area.
Thanks for your comment to me and good luck to you.
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