Part Two: The Societal Responses and Effects of SARS2 2021-01-27 David Dougherty

Mr. Dougherty is an ecologist and environmental scientist.  After a decade as a consultant on hazardous materials in the private sector, he spent two decades in the federal government of Canada working on myriad aspects of environmental policy.  He retired from Health Canada, where his policy research included chronic and infectious diseases, in 2012.  He then became active in the Canadian Association for the Club of Rome and published a climate fiction novel.

Vitamin C (ascorbic acid): Yes, vitamin C is partly converted to oxalate, which enters the urine and can precipitate to form oxalate-based kidney stones.  This is problematic in men, but women.  Dietary sources of vitamin C are usually insufficient to cause stones, which have been found only to form when supplementation is above 1,000 mg (1 g) per day.  As a result of this, until the pandemic is over, I will reduce my own intake from 2 g to 1 g.

[relevant to slides 6, 59, 60, 70]

    See https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26463139/

Vitamin D: Yes, vitamin D can have side effects if taken in excess.  Dietary sources and sun exposure are usually insufficient to cause undesired health effects.  [I would not generation of vitamin D from exposure can provide very high levels of vitamin D in the blood.]  High levels of vitamin D can cause high calcium in the blood, which leads to nausea, vomiting, weakness, and frequent urination.  It can also lead to calcium-based kidney stones.  As the calcium source is the bones, it can lead to weakened bones and pain in the bones.  The problematic dose levels appears to be in excess even of the high doses being used to treat COVID19 (50,000 IU per day).  I am going to maintain my current dose of 3,000 IU.

[relevant to slides 6, 60, 70]

    See https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/expert-answers/vitamin-d-toxicity/faq-20058108

Air Decontamination with Ultraviolet Light: UV-C (but not UV-A or UV-B, which are not sufficiently energetic) is useful in air ducts for inactivating viruses and killing other pathogens.  It can also be used to decontaminate materiel and surfaces.

[relevant to slides 6, 49]

    See https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/drugs-health-products/covid19-industry/medical-devices/ultraviolet-decontamination-notice.html

    and https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/coronavirus-covid-19-and-medical-devices/uv-lights-and-lamps-ultraviolet-c-radiation-disinfection-and-coronavirus

Minimum wage rates around the world: While there are no data for many countries, there are international comparisons of minimum wage (nominal and purchasing-power-parity).  One shows the ten highest countries by PPP are:

1. Argentina
2. New Zealand
3. Luxembourg
4. Australia
5. Germany
6. San Marino
7. United Kingdom
8. Taiwan
9. Turkey
10. Netherlands

The ten lowest countries are:

1. Mauritania
2. Georgia
3. Liberia
4. Bangladesh
5. Tanzania
6. Kyrgyzstan
7. Democratic Republic of Congo
8. Guinea-Bissau
9. Solomon Islands
10. The Gambia

Canada is 13th, USA 22nd.

Perhaps some enterprising economist or social scientist will plot minimum wages against SARS2 death rates and infections rates, but that is a task for another day.

I have added this information in an annex.