Will Vitamin C protect against Swine Flu or increase your chances of death through an immune system over-reaction Cytokine storm which is believed to be a cause of many deaths during the 1918 Flu?

Answer 1

Taking Vitamin C should help strengthen your immune system and protect you against getting the Swine Flu. In the 1918 outbreak of Spanish Flu, it appears that the flu virus itself caused Cytokine storms, not Vitamin C or other products that were being taken by the victims. The nature of a Cytokine storm itself better explains this. When an intruder (the flu virus) enters the body, white blood cells sense the intruder and send T-cells and macrophages to attack the intruder. If a particular molecule called a Cytokine activates the immune cells at the site of the intrusion, too many immune cells can be called to the infected area, causing tissue around the infected area to become inflamed. If a Cytokine storm happens in the lungs, it can cause permanent lung damage. A prolonged Cytokine storm can shut down breathing and cause death.