Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment the Government has made of the potential effect of poor nutritional status on mortality rates for covid-19.

In 2020, the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) conducted a rapid scoping exercise on nutrition and immune function in relation to COVID-19 and found a lack of robust evidence at this current time to suggest that specific nutrients or supplements can prevent individuals from catching COVID-19 or mitigate its effects. Their report is available at the following link:

https://app.box.com/s/36j0gn01npxfjigjmzogyomysd17l3hq

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, Public Health England and the SACN are continuing to monitor evidence as it is published.