Natural Cures For Lyme Disease
An infectious bacterial infection, lyme disease is caused when a person is bit by an infected tick. Though lyme disease brings with it very serious consequences like heart palpitations and nervous disorders, it is difficult to diagnose and treat.That is why the first symptoms of lyme disease, like red spots, fever, fatigue and headache, as soon as they are detected, must be treated immediately.
Lyme Disease Treatments Near Me
When youre diagnosed with Lyme disease in its early stage, Dr. Kotsanis starts your treatment with antibiotics that can clear the infection. This usually cures most people quickly. However, when Lyme disease isnt diagnosed early, it can require up to a month of oral antibodies and, in severe cases, even IV antibiotics.
Some Lyme disease treatments offered at Kotsanis Institute include:
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Insulin potentiation therapy: A special form of antibiotics is given to at-risk patients.
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IV therapy: A Glutathione or Myers Cocktail helps more severe cases of Lyme disease.
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Pulsed electromagnetic field therapy: This is used to help manage pain and to recharge a patients cells to restore their health.
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Therapeutic apheresis: Its a blood filtration that extracts the infection or bacteria from Lyme-infected cells found in your blood.
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Ultraviolet blood irradiation therapy: This oxidative therapy is given intravenously, and can absorb viruses and bacteria in the blood.
Essential Oils For Lyme Disease
Essential oils are concentrated liquids from plants. Some of them have antibacterial properties, meaning they can kill bacteria.
A 2017 study evaluated the use of 34 essential oils to kill B. burgdorferi bacteria in a laboratory setting. Cinnamon bark, clove bud, and oregano essential oils killed the bacteria without any regrowth. <
These results are promising, but theres no evidence that they work in humans with Lyme disease. Essential oils are used in aromatherapy, where the fragrant oils are inhaled through a diffuser or diluted in a carrier oil and applied topically. Its not safe to ingest essential oils, especially in the quantities that you would likely need to treat Lyme disease.
Some people claim that immune system-boosting supplements can naturally treat Lyme disease.
These include:
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Patients Turning To Herbal Remedies
Because patients are currently turning to herbal remedies to fill the treatment gaps left by antibiotics, this research is a critical step in helping clinicians, as well as patients, understand which ones may offer the most potential benefit.
According to this study, carried out by Prof. Ying Zhangs group at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the seven herbal medicines that have the ability to kill B. burgdorferi in test tubes are:
- Cryptolepis sanguinolenta
- Uncaria tomentosa
- Cistus incanus
- Scutellaria baicalensis
It is important to note that each of these products have the potential to produce significant side effects in patients, and should be taken only under advisement of a clinician knowledgeable of their capabilities and toxicities.
Of these products, the Cryptolepis sanguinolenta extract caused complete eradication, while doxycycline and cefuroxime and other active herbs did not. This extract has been used for the treatment of malaria as well as the tick-borne infection Babesia, a malaria-like parasite.
This study is believed to be the first time this extract has been documented to have a potential impact on B. burgdorferi, and additional laboratory and clincial studies should be conducted to investigate the potential role Cryptolepis sanguinolenta could play in the treatment of Lyme disease.
Risk Factors For Lyme Disease
Below are the most common risk factors for ticks and Lyme disease:
- People who live, play, exercise, or work outdoors in areas where Lyme disease occurs.
- Engaging in outdoor activities in or near common tick habitats such as wooded areas, tall grasslands, and along nature trails.
- Having a pet that may carry infected ticks home on its skin and coat.
- Children, especially between the ages of five and nine years of age, and older adults.
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Arsenicum Album Homeopathic Treatment For Lyme Disease With Chronic Fatigue
The homeopathic medicine Arsenicum album is a metal-based remedy which is prepared from Arsenic. Arsenicum album is prepared by isolating arsenic from various metals, such as cobalt, nickel, and iron. Highly diluted arsenic preparations are used to make of Arsenicum album. It is a well-indicated remedy for weakness and body fatigue in Lyme disease. Characteristic of this remedy includes a marked weakness and extreme restlessness. It is also indicated in cases of Lyme disease when there are tearing pains in the limbs, which gets worse during the night and while the person is at rest after exertion. There is a sudden decrease in strength during the second stage of Lyme disease, which is well indicative of this remedy.
Key indications for using Arsenicum Album for Lyme Disease:
Fatigue Tearing Pains
Subculture Studies To Evaluate The Activity Of Natural Product Extracts Against Stationary Phase B Burgdorferi
To confirm the activity of the natural product extracts in eradicating the stationary phase B. burgdorferi cells, we performed subculture studies as previously described . We further tested the top active natural product extracts to ascertain if they could eradicate stationary phase B. burgdorferi cells at 1 or 0.5% by subculture after the treatment . Treatment with 1% Cryptolepis sanguinolenta extract caused no regrowth in the subculture study . However, the other natural product extracts including Polygonum cuspidatum, Artemisia annua, Juglans nigra, and Uncaria tomentosa could not eradicate B. burgdorferi stationary phase cells as many spirochetes were still visible after 21-day subculture . At 0.5%, all the natural product extracts treated samples grew back after 21-day subculture , however, only one of the three Cryptolepis sanguinolenta extract treated samples grew back. This indicates that 0.5% Cryptolepis sanguinolenta extract still has strong activity and could almost eradicate the stationary phase B. burgdorferi cells. By contrast, the clinically used antibiotics doxycycline and cefuroxime at clinically relevant concentration could not sterilize the B. burgdorferi stationary phase culture, since spirochetes were visible after 21-day subculture .
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Where Is Lyme Disease Found
This illness is found worldwide and in regions all over the United States, including Colorado, New Mexico, Wyoming, Utah, and Nebraska. While the CDCs data shows a larger prevalence of Lyme disease cases on the East Coast, in the upper Midwest and along the West coast, this data reflects only confirmed cases. Ticks prefer wooded areas, tall grasses, shrubs, bushes, and they can even invade residential and commercial lawns.
Lyme Disease Treatment Littleton
Lyme disease is quickly becoming one of the fastest growing infectious diseases in the United States. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control states that health providers and state health departments report roughly 30,000 confirmed cases of Lyme disease to the CDC each year by. However, the CDC also suggests that the actual number of cases is closer to 300,000 ten times the number of cases that are actually reported. Because of the rate at which this illness continues to grow, now is the time to increase awareness of and vigilance against this tick-borne illness to effectively prevent, diagnose, and treat those people who have contracted Lyme disease.
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Lyme Disease Treatment And Prevention Tips
By Leah Zerbe, MS, NASM-CPT, NASM-CES
Lyme disease is a complicated infection that is caused by bacteria thats transmitted from a tick or insect bite. The majority of cases of Lyme are due to a bite from a type of deer tick known as the black-legged tick, which can carry and pass on bacteria known as borrelia burgdorferi.
According to the Michigan Lyme Disease Association, more recently its also been found that other insects can also spread Lyme disease or cause similar infections including other types of ticks, mosquitoes, and possibly spiders or fleas.
Overall, up to 300,000 Americans are diagnosed with Lyme disease every year, according to new research from the Centers of Disease Control , and many seek Lyme disease treatment. Lyme disease cases are largely concentrated in the Northeast and upper Midwest, with 14 states accounting for over 96 percent of cases reported to CDC.
Lyme disease symptoms can start with flulike symptoms, headaches, muscle and joint pain. Over time, the symptoms can continue to worsen and turn into a long-lived inflammatory response that is similar to an autoimmune illness.
Setting The Stage For Chronic Inflammation
Though the immune system plays a key role in protecting cells of the body from microbe invasion, the health of cells is also a major player. When cells become chronically stressed, they are more susceptible to being invaded by intracellular bacteria and other microbes. There are five primary categories of factors that weaken cells and set the stage for the chronic inflammation associated with Lyme disease.
#1. Poor diet
When cells arent fed properly, they cant function properly. Processed foods sourced from grains, beans, and grain-fed meat are overloaded with raw carbohydrates and refined fats that disrupt cellular functions. On the other hand, theyre deficient in the nutrients that cells need to function properly. Poorly nourished cells cant properly defend themselves against microbes.
#2. A toxic environment
In the modern world, chronic exposure to low levels of toxic substances and free radicals in food, water, and air is hard to avoid. The list includes man-made toxins associated with petroleum products, free-radicals in processed food, and natural toxins such as mold. In addition, the acid and free radicals associated with inflammation are highly toxic to cells. Toxic substances disrupt cellular processes, damage internal working parts of the cells, and weaken cell membranes. Weakened cells are more vulnerable to microbe invasion.
#3. Chronic stress
#4. Physical stress
#5. Microbes
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Garlic Myrrh Thyme Kill B Burgdorferi
Dr. Zhang and his team had previously found some highly active essential oils that were effective against biofilm and stationary phase B. burgdorferi.
In this new study, the researchers screened another 35 essential oils for their antibacterial properties. Using pressed essential oils from plants or their fruits, the researchers tested the activity of the plants fragrant essence.
Lab-dish tests revealed that ten of these 35 plants have strong activity against the latent, persister forms of Lyme disease. These essential oils derived from garlic cloves, myrrh trees, thyme leaves, cinnamon bark, allspice berries, cumin seeds, and eucalyptus, among others.
We found that these essential oils were even better at killing the persister forms of Lyme bacteria than standard Lyme antibiotics.
Dr. Ying Zhang
Also, five of these oils were effective against dormant forms of Lyme bacteria in a concentration of only 1 part per 1,000. Specifically, essential oils from garlic bulbs, allspice berries, myrrh trees, spiked ginger lily, and may chang trees completely eradicated all Lyme disease bacteria in 7 days, and no regrowth occurred in 21 days.
Thyme leaves, cumin seeds, Amyris wood, and cinnamon bark oil were also highly effective against stationary phase B. burgdorferi.
If tests in rodents confirm their cell culture findings, Zhang and colleagues will start organizing human clinical trials.
Botanical And Natural Medicines
A panel of natural product extracts: Polygonum cuspidatum, Cryptolepis sanguinolenta, Artemisia annua, Juglans nigra, Uncaria tomentosa, Scutellaria baicalensis, Stevia rebaudiana, Cistus incanus, Andrographis paniculata, Ashwagandha somnifera, Dipsacus fullonum rad, grapefruit seed extract, LL37, monolaurin, colloidal silver, and relevant solvent controls were identified. The botanical medicines or natural products were chosen based on anecdotal clinical usage and preclinical data from the literature. Primary criteria for selecting compounds for the present study included agents that had shown significant anti-borrelial effects in previous studies, have favorable safety profiles and can be absorbed systemically. Additional criteria for selecting compounds included anecdotal reports from patients and/or providers, anti-biofilm effects and ability to cross the blood brain barrier.
Table 1. Botanical and natural medicine sources, validation, and testing.
Doxycycline and cefuroxime were dissolved in suitable solvents to form 5 mg/ml stock solutions. The antibiotic stocks were filter-sterilized by 0.2 m filter and stored at 20°C.
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Strategies To Tackle Lyme Disease
I have Lyme disease, writes this weeks viewer. Is there anything I can do to treat it naturally?
Lyme disease, the most common American tick-borne infectious disease, often goes undiagnosed or becomes misdiagnosed. That becomes a real problem when you consider that in America, up to 300,000 new cases a year of Lyme disease diagnoses have been reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , an increase of up to 10 times what researchers previously believed.
Lyme disease, or borreliosis, is caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi, which can proliferate to every area in your body. An infected blacklegged deer tick transmits the virus to humans through a bite.
Unfortunately, Borrelia burgdorferi has the ability to proliferate within every area of your body, hiding from and suppressing your natural immune system. Lyme infections literally hijack your immune system like AIDS.
Lyme is one of the most challenging, difficult situations in my practice because it mimics other illnesses such as the flu, manifesting as diverse symptoms like headaches, muscle aches, stomach ulcers, constipation, and joint pain. That makes diagnosing and treating Lyme very difficult.
A weakened immune system paired with suboptimal cellular function and protection, chronic bacterial infections, and exposure to environmental toxins, like molds and parasites, can make things much worse for those who suffer from chronic Lyme.
Wishing you health and happiness,
How To Distinguish Lyme Disease From Fibromyalgia
Both fibromyalgia and Lyme disease can cause fatigue and pain, but there are many differences between themThe cause for fibromyalgia is not clear, but it is related to genetic factors, often triggered by stress , and associated conditions like osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and Ankylosing spondylitis. Fibromyalgia gives rise to widespread pain and tender points, body fatigue, depression, headache, pain, and cramping in the lower abdominal region.
Lyme disease, on the other hand, is an infectious tick-borne disease caused by the bacteria of borrelia type. After the bite of the tick, the bacteria penetrate into the bloodstream and trigger symptoms inside the body. Symptoms of Lyme disease include a headache, chill, fever, swelling of lymph nodes and a rash called Erythema migrans. As the condition takes the chronic form, there are chances of developing arthritis, nerve involvement leading to numbness or tingling sensation, depression, anxiety, palpitations and short-term memory loss.
Although symptoms overlap between Fibromyalgia and Lyme disease, these diseases are distinguished by the presence of a rash which is a hallmark of Lyme disease . There is no such rash in fibromyalgia.
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Heavy Metals And Chelation
Some sites discussed heavy metal toxicity, particularly due to mercury, as copathogenic with Lyme disease . Specifically, Lyme disease was said to predispose to symptomatic mercury toxicity consequently, mercury chelation was a recommended adjunct to other treatments for Lyme disease. The interventions marketed for mercury toxicity included chemical chelators such as dimercaptosuccinic acid, 2,3-dimercapto-1-propanesulfonic acid, alpha lipoic acid, and ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid . Some herbal therapies such as garlic, cilantro, or chlorella were also said to be beneficial for heavy metal intoxication. In addition to chelation, some sources recommended the removal of all mercury-containing amalgam dental fillings and root canals as part of Lyme disease therapy . Some have suggested receiving future dental care only from biological dentists .
Bismuth and silver, in contrast to mercury, were heralded for their therapeutic rather than toxic properties. Silver is said to support the immune system as it attempts to kill off these bacterium . Silver kills lyme through oxidation first, then alkylation. Usually sold in colloidal form, silver particles are administered both orally and parenterally . Bismuth compounds were promoted for killing cyst forms of B. burgdorferi and are sometimes combined with EDTA to sequester additional substances .
Natural Lyme Disease Treatment Options
1. Eat to Improve Immune Function
The best way to overcome chronic Lyme disease is by naturally boosting your immune system, lowering inflammation and managing the root causes of your symptoms. Your body can overcome Lyme disease for good only once you control the inflammatory responses its triggering.
My basic dietary advice for anyone struggling with an inflammatory condition is to try removing grains, fruit and sugar from your diet while consuming anti-inflammatory foods mostly vegetables, nuts, seeds, coconut, bone broth, organic meat and raw cultured dairy. If you want to learn more about this approach to controlling leaky gut syndrome and inflammation, you can find out much more detail in this article about healing leaky gut syndrome.
Some of the best foods for naturally raising immunity include:
2. Supplements to Help Improve Cellular Function
The next step in Lyme disease treatment is improving cellular functioning and protection. Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria, along with viruses and parasites, can attack healthy cells and weaken your defenses. In order to restore cellular health, consider adding these essential nutrients to your regime:
3. Get Enough Rest and Manage Emotional Stress
To prevent a Lyme infection from continuing to worsen and spread, you must address stress with natural stress relievers if you are truly going to heal:
4. Reduce Mold and Parasite Exposure
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Some Of The Best Herbs For Lyme Disease