MONROVIA – US-based organization has donated several cartons of selenium drugs purposely to boost the immune system of COVID-19 patients in Liberia. Selenium is a mineral found in the soil. Selenium naturally appears in water and some foods. While people only need a very small amount, selenium plays a key role in the metabolism.
According to recent studies, Selenium has attracted attention because of its antioxidant properties. Antioxidants protect cells from damage. Evidence that selenium supplements may reduce the odds of prostate cancer, HIV and coronavirus exists.
Among healthy people, selenium deficiencies are uncommon. But some health conditions – such as HIV, coronavirus, Crohn’s disease, and others – are associated with low selenium levels. People who are fed intravenously are also at risk for low selenium. Doctors sometimes suggest that people with these conditions use selenium supplements.
Selenium has also been studied for the treatment of dozens of conditions. They range from asthma to arthritis to dandruff to infertility.
To help combat coronavirus and other diseases, the Andrew Young Foundation (AYF) donated 15 cartons of selenium drugs to the Health Ministry in Liberia. Each cartoon contains 200 boxes with 68 packs of 100 tablets of selenium.
The Andrew Young Foundation was among several organizations that aided Liberia during the fight against Ebola in 2014. As a humanitarian organization, AYF said it decided to support Liberia in this time of health crisis as a way of maintaining its long-standing relationship with Liberia.
Dr. Wilhelmina Jallah said the donation of the drug is very timely. She said it would help to boost the immune system of people that have contracted the coronavirus. The Health Minister noted the drugs would also be administered to people with different illnesses, like HIV, sexually transmitted diseases, and cancer, among others.
The Minister clarified that selenium is not a direct treatment for COVID-19 but rather a booster of the immune systems. Expressing fear of the drugs getting expired in stock, the Liberian Health Minister said portion of the donated drugs will be distributed to several health facilities to deal with other complicated health issues.
“Although it is not enough because the intended purpose was for it to only be administered to people with COVID-19 to boost their immune system, but we do not want it get expired while in stock so we will distribute some to other health facilities,” she added.
Dr. Jallah also stated that this was the first donation made by the Andrew Young Foundation since the outbreak of the coronavirus in Liberia.
According her, there are several organizations and individuals that collaborated with the Andrew Young Foundation in donating to the people of Liberia this year.
Meanwhile, Dr. Jallah has appreciated the organizations for their support to Liberia and expressed the desire for continuation of partnership with them to ensure that lives are saved in Liberia.
Liberia’s fight against COVID-19 has been relatively successful. Since Mach when the country recorded its first index case, the Country has recorded 82 deaths with 816 recoveries from total conformed cases of 1286 as of August 21, 2020.
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