Hats off to Dr. Zulfikar Bux

Jan 12, 2022 Letters

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Dear Editor,

Kaieteur News – The Coronavirus pandemic continues on its destructive path with no end in sight. As cases here and abroad continue to rise, and as the experts experiment with various drugs and work painstakingly at producing various vaccines, the word that’s out remains – there is no definitive cure. Notwithstanding this dismal prognosis, we continue to hear positive results from persons who used and have been using simple every-day natural products that cost very little and are readily available.
I have seen videos online, and also have first-hand knowledge of persons here in Guyana and overseas who have successfully used these products and have recovered from COVID-19. I am talking about ginger, turmeric, garlic, lemon grass and other ‘bush teas’ and drinking lots of water and hot liquids. Also, persons who have crushed onions, put them in a soft cloth and placed them on their chest have experienced relief from congestion and were able to breathe more easily.
Everyone acknowledges the utmost importance of having a healthy and heightened immune system. I have listened to knowledgeable medical personnel explain the benefits of adding supplements of zinc and vitamin C to our diet (Lists of foods containing zinc and vitamin C are easily available on the internet) in order to boost our immune system. Kaieteur News of Tuesday, January 11th. 2022, greets us with the bold headline: ROBUST IMMUNE SYSTEM NEEDED TO COMBAT OMICRON. This is according to Medicine Specialist, Dr. Zulficar Bux, who has always presented a balanced approach to fighting this pandemic. Nevertheless, while endeavouring to boost our immune system, we must continue to take precautionary measures – staying home as much as possible, practising social distancing, wearing masks, sanitising.
Here are some cases in point. My friend in NY was diagnosed with COVID-19. As her condition worsened her husband called for an ambulance. The ambulance came, but the seasoned ambulance driver advised her NOT to go to the hospital as she would be in the waiting room among many others. They took his advice, and cared for her in a secluded area at home, being careful to use masks and sanitisers. She told me that when she visited Guyana late last year, she had taken back with her lots of “tea bush” including lemon grass. So her husband and sons fed her a constant diet of teas, chicken soup, along with the juice of ginger, turmeric and also garlic. She has fully recovered. My other overseas-based friend related that she and her entire household – husband and children – became sick with flu-like symptoms. She too was advised by a nurse acquaintance of hers to self-quarantine. So her husband, in doctor-like fashion, boiled all of the aforesaid ingredients and had every member of the family drink regularly. By this time her daughter had also lost the ability to taste and smell. In less than two weeks the entire family was back on their feet. I can think of other recoveries that tell the same story.
Some persons boil the ingredients. I prefer to use them raw, so I blend together ginger, turmeric, lemon juice, and a few cloves of garlic, with water and strain. A bit of honey makes it more palatable. Some persons may not be able to stomach the taste of raw garlic, and the experts say that too much heat lowers its potency, so I sometimes dice it finely and sprinkle it on hot food – – rice, greens, etc. In that way the salient nutrients are preserved and the dish is enhanced by a tantalising aroma.
I wish I could accurately tell you what quantities are needed as you blend ingredients together, but I cannot. Nevertheless I encourage one and all to use these commodities daily, if possible, in small quantities (my family does!) as a prophylactic and hopefully curative attempt at arresting the virus.
Lastly, I was told by a former employee of UNDP, that while he worked there, IAST staff, were sent to India, under UN auspices, to be trained in ethnopharmacology. This has been defined as “the scientific study of substances used medicinally, especially folk remedies, by different ethnic or cultural groups.” I am aware that traditional medicine does not normally take on board this branch of ‘ science’, but we should all be aware that the Pharmaceutical Industry frequently does research among Indigenous Communities here and elsewhere then uses that “Intellectual Property” for their own PROFIT.
I am in no way down-playing the use of vaccines, but desperate times require desperate and sometimes unconventional measures. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. We can indeed get through this together.

Claudia Heywood

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