RFK Jr. Vitamin’s attention to fighting measles “but experts say not so fast

While measles cases continue to appear in some US states, treatment and prevention are in mind.

While most infected individuals have been unacceptable, school -age children, US health agencies have emphasized the importance of taking two doses of measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) to prevent the disease.

In a recent option of Fox News Digital, HHS Secretary RFK Jr. shared his “deep concern” about the explosion of measles and its rapid escalation.

RFK Jr. Noted that while there is no antiviral approved for measles, disease control and prevention centers issued a statement last week supporting vitamin A administration under the supervision of a physician – as supportive care.

Previous research published in the International Epidemiology Gazette has shown that vitamin A, regarding the measles vaccine, can be an effective intervention in preventing measles mortality in children.

RFK Jr. Repeated the importance of maintaining good nutrition and consuming different vitamins – such as A, B12, C, D and E – as “best protection against chronic and infectious disease.

While studies have suggested that vitamin A can help fight a measles infection, Neil Maniar, PhD, MPH, professor of public health practice at the Northeast University in Boston, reiterated that he does not prevent the disease.

“The two -dose MMR vaccine is our safest and most effective tool to prevent this very contagious disease,” he told Fox News Digital.

“Vitamin A can be useful as part of a wider treatment protocol, especially in areas where children are deficient.”

Vitamin A can reduce the severity of measles symptoms, as well as the possibility of mortality from the disease to individuals who are vitamin A deficiency, noted the expert.

“For children who are diagnosed with measles and vitamin A deficiencies, taking doses suitable for vitamin A age can reduce the chance of progression of illness or severe death,” he added.

The expert warned that vitamin A can be harmful in high doses, so it is “critical that vitamin A should not be seen as the main course of treatment for all cases of measles”.

Dr. Daniel Kuritzkes, the head of the Bigram Infectious Disease Division and the Boston Women’s Hospital, stated that vitamin A deficiency is common in developing countries, which coincides with increased measles mortality in those areas.

During an interview with the Fox News Digital, Kuritzkes referred to research from the Harvard-Chan School of Public Health in 1993, which “favored a benefit” of supplementing vitamin A in reducing measles mortality for children in “Limited Resources” or developing countries.

Saahir Khan, MD, an expert on infectious disease with USC medicine in Los Angeles, agreed that vitamin A is not a direct treatment for measles.

“On the contrary, children who lack vitamin A, as mainly in limited environments such as sub-Saharan Africa, have shown that they have more severe disease manifestations-from measles and may benefit from the supplement of vitamin A to correct their basic deficiency,” he echoed in Fox News Digital.

“Studies have not shown a clear, sustainable benefit for supplementing vitamin A among patients in resource -rich environments such as the United States that do not have a fundamental deficiency of vitamin A.”

Although vitamin A is unlikely to damage the patient “in appropriate doses, Khan shared that controlled studies” do not support this practice “.

The CDC recommends supplementing vitamin A only under the guidance of a healthcare professional, for whom Kuritzkes said is “critically important” to ensure that the correct dose is administered.

“Inappropriate dosage can result in toxicity and a condition known as hypervitaminosis, a health problem caused by many vitamins A,” he warned.

“Thus, people should not administer additional vitamin A general purchased at a pharmacy or health food store for their children.”

Maniar, Kuritzkes and Khan emphasized that vitamin A is not an alternative to vaccination, as the MMR vaccine is the “most powerful tool” in preventing and controlling explosions.

“It is essential to work in partnership with communities to educate individuals and families on the importance of the MMR vaccine and ensure that this vaccine is available to all those in need,” Maniar added.