Poor nutrition changes the way a body fights infection: this might protect against severe COVID-19

In people with low leptin levels, such as those with protein energy malnutrition, the immune system produces more anti-inflammatory cytokines and fewer inflammatory ones. This shift in the immune response in favour of an anti-inflammatory profile would, in theory, counteract the dire consequences of the hyper-inflammatory response often seen in severe COVID-19 cases, where the patient’s organs can be damaged.