Scientists have identified the cause of prolonged COVID-19

A new study has identified iron deficiency in the blood as a major cause of long-term COVID-19 cases.

A paper by scientists at the University of Cambridge claims that low iron levels promote inflammation and anemia, and stop the production of healthy red blood cells in patients just two weeks after being diagnosed with COVID-19. Even more recently, scientists have linked the prolonged course of the coronavirus to a frightening loss of IQ due to "brain fog" for months.

At least three out of 10 people infected with SARS-CoV-2 were at risk for long-term COVID-19 infection, according to the university. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that on average, about 3 million Americans who have had prolonged COVID-19 are now being treated for anemia or iron deficiency.

"When the body has an infection, it responds by removing iron from the bloodstream. This protects us from potentially deadly bacteria that take up iron in the bloodstream and grow rapidly," explained study co-author Hal Drakesmith. - 'It's an evolutionary response that redistributes iron in the body and the blood plasma becomes an iron desert.'

The expert added that when this happens over a long period of time, iron deficiency causes oxygen to be less efficiently transported throughout the body. And this, he said, has a negative impact on metabolism and energy production.

According to the study, in which blood samples were analyzed over the course of a year, patients with severe and mild cases of COVID-19 showed similar patterns in their blood. "Iron levels and how the body regulates for iron deficiency were disrupted early in the infection and took a very long time to recover, especially in those people who reported a prolonged course of COVID-19 several months later," the researchers concluded.