ANOTHER LYME PATIENT MISDIAGNOSED WITH ALS

http://www.mercurynews.com/columns/ci_15633546
Fisher: After long struggle with Lyme disease, Bart's going home
By Patty Fisher
pfisher@mercurynews.com

Bart Fenolio still tires easily, needs a walker to get around and has occasional memory lapses. He knows it could take years for him to overcome the devastating effects of chronic Lyme disease.

But for a 70-year-old guy who had been told he was dying of Lou Gehrig's disease and couldn't breathe on his own or pick up a cell phone when I saw him six months ago, Fenolio looks pretty darn good. And he is counting his blessings.

"I'm just so lucky to have a family and so many friends who could advocate for me," he told me Thursday as he prepared to leave the San Jose nursing home where he has been recovering since December. "I've lost a lot of muscle mass — I've got no buns — but I'm finally on the road to recovery."

In January, I told the story of the former San Jose State track star, classic-car nut and golfer who contracted Lyme disease from a tick bite but was misdiagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, an incurable illness. The longtime owner of a Campbell tropical fish store was bitten by the tick while walking his dog in Morgan Hill seven years ago and began to develop symptoms two years ago.

Only through the persistence of Heidi, his wife of 46 years, and their scientist son and social-worker daughter was Bart given a series of Lyme tests that came back positive. He says his doctors at Kaiser Permanente insisted he had ALS even though he began to improve with antibiotics, and he left Kaiser to get the treatment he needed.

Fast-growing disease
Lyme disease, a bacterial illness spread by ticks, is the fastest-growing infectious disease in the country, with 28,921 confirmed cases and 6,277 probable cases reported in 2008.

First identified in Connecticut in the 1970s, it still is not understood. Tests for Lyme are notoriously unreliable, and it can masquerade as Parkinson's disease or arthritis.

After I wrote about Fenolio's case, I was inundated with inquiries from people with similar stories and those who suspected they might have the disease. I have been referring them to the California Lyme Disease Association at http://www.lymedisease.org/.

Since then the Fenolios, who retired to San Diego four years ago but came back to the Bay Area to find a Lyme specialist, have been living here, Bart in a nursing home and Heidi with friends in Saratoga. They have become strong advocates for Lyme education.

"We have met so many people who were misdiagnosed," Heidi said.


"There's so much of it out there," Bart added, "but people don't realize it."

Legislation that would provide more money for research and testing for Lyme is inching its way through Congress. But advocates for patients with chronic Lyme suffered a blow in April when a federal review panel refused to endorse the use of long-term antibiotics, saying that treatment posed too great a risk of side effects.

The panel's decision infuriated Bart and Heidi because they are convinced that the antibiotics he has been taking since October saved his life.

"Why withhold treatment when you've already got a death sentence?" Heidi asked. She is confident that some day Lyme will get the attention it deserves. But for now, patients have to fight for treatment.

"I always say we're just five years too early," she said.

The disease has taken its toll on the family financially as well as physically. Medicare has picked up much of the cost of Bart's treatment, but the Fenolios have spent about $100,000 of their savings.

"It's been a real journey," Heidi said, shaking her head. "I don't even know how to describe it. This week especially has been just horrible for him because he can't wait to get home."

At last, Bart's wait is over. This morning, he and Heidi are scheduled to fly to San Diego, where their daughter will meet them in Bart's 1939 Ford woodie wagon. A procession of woodies driven by members of the San Diego Woodie club will escort them home. Then Bart will be able to sit in his backyard by his koi pond, feel the ocean breezes, enjoy Heidi's veal scallopini and sleep in his own bed for the first time in a year.

"It will be so good to get him home," Heidi said. "Just to be able to hold his hand during the night, I can't even tell you."

To Read another article on this important subject click below. ALS CAUSED BY LYME DISEASE WITH BABESIA COINFECTION
http://lymesentinel.blogspot.com/2009/05/als-caused-by-lyme-disease-with-babesia.html

TREATMENT DIFFICULTIES IN LYME DISEASE

Borrelia defeats antibiotics



Townsend Letter, July, 2010 by Jule Klotter
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_7396/is_324//ai_n54480497/


The Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) asserts that Borrelia burgdorferi (the tick-transmitted spirochete that causes Lyme disease) readily succumbs to antibiotic treatment. Microbiologists who have studied the organism disagree. It survives assaults from drugs and the immune system by hiding in biofilms and by changing form (See Townsend Letter, July 2009; 312:30-31). Norwegian researchers Oystein Brorson and Sverre-Henning Brorson say: "B. burgdorferi has the ability to convert (and reconvert) to cystic forms both in vivo and in vitro" when exposed to the antibiotics ceftriaxone, doxycyclin, ciprofloxacin, and vancomycin. When the environment is safe for growth, the bacteria returns to its motile form.


Recent studies involving the use of the new antibiotic tigecycline show the difficulty of finding a treatment for Borrelia. In vitro laboratory tests found that tigecycline inhibited and destroyed the cyst and motile forms of B. burgdorferi. Unfortunately, in vitro research does not always match the results of in vivo research. Researchers at University of California-Davis tested this antibiotic on mice with different stages of Borrelia infection (1 week, 3 weeks, or 4 months) in a controlled study. Three months after treatment, infection status was evaluated by culture, quantitative OspA (outer surface protein A) real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and subcutaneous transplantation of joint and heart tissue into other mice. Not surprisingly, tissue from the saline-treated control mice were culture-and PCR-positive for Borrelia. Some tissues from the antibiotic-treated mice were also PCR-positive, although the DNA markers were greatly reduced compared with the controls. Antibiotic treatment at the 1-week stage appeared to be more effective than treatment that began at the later stages.


All of the antibiotic-treated mice were culture-negative. Even though the spirochetes could not be cultured, mice that received transplants from the antibiotic-treated mice developed spirochetal DNA in multiple tissues. Moreover, ticks that fed on the antibiotic-treated mice acquired Borrelia and were then able to transmit the infection to other mice. Clearly, negative cultures do not mean that Borrelia is absent. The researchers conclude:" ... antibiotic treatment [with tigecycline] is unable to clear persisting spirochetes, which remain viable and infectious, but are nondividing or slowly dividing."



Unfortunately, tigecycline is not the only failure. The UC-Davis researchers state: "Treatment failures have been documented with nearly every type of antimicrobial drug, based upon clinical relapse, culture, or PCR." Studies such as this one support the view that the IDSA's treatment guidelines are inadequate. They also show how challenging this infection is.

Barthold SW, Hodzic E, Imai DM, Feng S, et al. Ineffectiveness of tigecycline against persistent Borrelia burgdorferi [abstract]. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. February 2010;54(2):643-651. Available at: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19995919.> Brorson O, Brorson S-H. An in vitro study of the susceptibility of mobile and cystic forms of Borrelia burgdorferi to tinidazole. Int Microbiol. 2004;7:139-142. Available at http://www.im.microbios.org/ . Accessed April 21, 2010.

Brorson O, Brorson SH, Scythes J, MacAllister J, et al. Destruction of spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi round-body propagules (RBs) by the antibiotic tigecycline [abstract]. Proc Natl Acad Sci U.S.A. November 3, 2009;106(44):18656-61. Available at: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19843691 . Accessed April 21,2010.

Johnson L. LYMEPOLICYWONK: Barthold and Luft--persistence and integrity in science [blog]. December 15, 2009. www.lymedisease.org/news/lymepolicywonk/290.html . Accessed April 27, 2010.

briefed by Jule Klotter
jule@townsendletter.com

COPYRIGHT 2010 The Townsend Letter Group

COPYRIGHT 2010 Gale, Cengage Learning

YOU NEED A HEALTHY DIET TO RECOVER WELL FROM LYME AND OTHER CHRONIC ILLNESS

Dr. Ron Schmid is a naturopathic doctor. At one point he had Lyme disease and used diet to heal and keep Lyme under control. He realizes that we probably never totally eliminate all of the Lyme bacterium and that we need to remain vigilant when it comes to what we put in our mouths. In the two videos below, he discusses the type of diet he uses and a bit about his experience with Lyme disease. His two books are The Untold Story of Milk, Revised and Updated: The History, Politics and Science of Nature's Perfect Food: Raw Milk from Pasture-Fed Cows  AND  Traditional Foods Are Your Best Medicine: Improving Health and Longevity with Native Nutrition

Dr. Schmid advocates a diet rich in hig quality protein and animal fats and plenty of vegetables. I believe he advocates that most vegetables be eaten raw and fermented. Others who follow the research of Dr. Weston A Price feel that certain vegetables should also be cooked, to eliminate certain toxins and antinutrients. Personally, I am still researching as to what my optimal diet should be. What I like to do is to study information from many varied points of view and then pick out the parts that seem to make the most sense to me. Dr.Ron seems to have the same view. So....take a look and see what you think








If you want to learn more about the Weston A. Price philosophy and Dr. Ron's version of it. He has a website and a blog here. There are also more videos on his blog  http://www.drronsblog.com/index.php/2010/06/dr-rons-video-blitz/

IMPORTANT RADIO SHOW

IN SHORT ORDER radio program is back on the air by popular demand. This show ran over four years uninterrupted, had 250,000+ listeners, and is back with an even better format.

The program will be co-hosted by Dr. Warren Levin of Vienna, Virginia. He has over 50 years experience as a treating physician and successfully utilizes alternative therapies in his practice.

Our first guest will be Dr. Mindy Beth Lipson discussing the emotional effects of tick-borne disease. Question for treating clinicians: Is emotional effects of tick-borne disease serious?

Dr. Lipson was trained in the San Francisco bay area with a doctorate in Clinical Psychology from the Wright Institute at Berkeley. Dr. Lipson completed her pre-doctoral internship at Jacobi Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine and completed her post-doctoral fellowship in conjunction with the National Center on Addiciton and Substance Abuse at Columbia (CASA) and Palladia, Inc. in New York City. She has worked in the clinical/health fields for over ten years in extremely diverse areas such as medical/health, trauma, chronic mental illness, addiction, grief, stress, domestic violence, sexual offenses, relationship issues, child, adolescent and adult development and self actualization.

Her training has provided her with excellent opportunities to provide traditional, eclectic approaches as well as, newer, more innovative and holistic healing techniques, such as Energy Psychology. She is interested in the emotional effects of tick-borne diseases and is currently working on research which she plans to publish in a book discussing this fascinating, cutting edge topic. Dr. Lipson utilizes imagery/visualization, hypnosis, EMDR, biofeedback (HRV), Clinical EEG Neurofeedback and spiritual practice to increase the healing/curative response. Dr. Lipson works with many holistic, diverse health professionals in the greater United States to provide excellent services to those she serves. She is adept and intuitive in helping those she serves to find their way to healing when faced with difficult medical conditions or challenging life circumstances.

Dr. Lipson is also a Lyme Literate Psychologist, writer and activist. She is a member of the American Psychological Association. Dr. Lipson's main office is in Mamaroneck, NY. She recently opened an additional office in Scottsdale, AZ.

When: Sunday (weekly)

Time: 7-9 PM EST

Title: In Short Order

Link: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/in-short-order

NEW STUDY LINKS VACCINES TO AUTISM

http://www.ageofautism.com/2010/07/new-study-shows-vaccines-cause-brain-changes-found-in-autism.html
 New Study Shows Vaccines Cause Brain Changes Found in Autism

By Dan Olmsted and Mark Blaxill

Abnormal brain growth and function are features of autism, an increasingly common developmental disorder that now affects 1 in 60 boys in the US. Now researchers from the University of Pittsburgh and Thoughtful House Center for Children in Austin, Texas, have found remarkably similar brain changes to those seen in autism in infant monkeys receiving the vaccine schedule used in the 1990’s that contained the mercury-based preservative thimerosal.

The group’s findings were published yesterday in the journal Acta Neurobiologiae Experimentalis. They used scanning techniques that assessed both brain growth and brain function in the same animals over time. The research team was able to see differences in the way the brains of vaccinated and unvaccinated animals developed. Scans were performed before and after the administration of primary MMR and DTaP/Hib boosters that were given at the human equivalent of 12 months of age.

Throughout the study period, vaccinated animals showed an increase in total brain volume – a feature of the brain in many young children with autism - when compared with unvaccinated animals. However, a specific part of the brain associated with emotional responses that is thought to be important in autism, the amygdala, did not show abnormalities until after the 12-month vaccines had been given. In addition, after the 12-month vaccines only, the functional brain scans showed significant differences between vaccinated and unvaccinated groups. These functional scans looked at the activity of receptors for morphine-like compounds (opioids) that may play a role in the brain of children affected by autism. Vaccine administration was associated with an increase in opioid binding activity in the amygdala compared with a decrease in the unvaccinated group.

The results indicate that multiple vaccine exposures during the previous 3-4 months may have had a significant impact on brain growth and development in ways that are consistent with the published data on autism. For the amygdala, the novel findings of abnormal growth and function appear to be a function of more recent vaccine exposures - the 12-month primary MMR vaccine and the DTaP and Hib boosters.

In an accompanying editorial Dr. Kris Turlejski, the Editor-in-Chief, described the findings as “alarming”, “support[ing] the possibility that there is a link between early immunization and the etiology of autism.”

In the same primate model, the research team has already identified delayed acquisition of vital brainstem reflexes in infants exposed to the thimerosal-containing hepatitis B vaccine on the first day of life, compared with unvaccinated animals. A larger, second phase study is currently underway to see if these findings can be replicated.

Dr. Andrew Wakefield, who is not a listed author but whose support in the design of the study is acknowledged, said “I hope the model will not only provide important insights into the origins of autism, but also ways of safely testing possible new autism treatments and vaccines.”

References:

Laura Hewitson, Brian J. Lopresti, Carol Stott, N. Scott Mason, and Jaime Tomko. Influence of pediatric vaccines on amygdala growth and opioid ligand binding in rhesus macaque infants: A pilot study. Acta Neurobiol Exp 2010. 70: 147–164

Kris Turlejski. Focus on Autism Editorial Comment Acta Neurobiol Exp2010. 70: 117–118

Dan Olmsted is Editor of Age of Autism. Mark Blaxill is Editor-At-Large. Their book The Age of Autism; Mercury, Medicine and a Manmade Epidemic is available for pre-orderHERE.

VACCINES: WHAT CDC DOCUMENTS and SCIENCE REVEAL....DVD

ALLEN STEERE INSINUATES CHRONIC LYME PATIENTS ARE NEEDY, VULNERABLE AND NAIVE

                             The Lyme Microbe Is A Pleomorphic Organism. It changes form and escapes immune surveillance, testing and antibiotics. This can account for the difficulty with treatment

Below are selected bullet points from a powerpoint presentation by Allen Steere. This presentation is typical of the side of the Lyme controversey which adamantly states there is no such condition as chronic lyme disease. Allen Steere was an Epidemic Intelligence Service Officer who entered into the lyme scene when a Lyme, Ct housewife, Polly Murray, made an appointment at Yale to report the strange symptoms that she, her family and neighbors were experiencing. Here is an excerpt from The History of Lyme disease As a Bioweapon by Elena Cook. She talks a bit about Allen Steere who...again ...presented the powerpoint below.http://spitfirelist.com/news/history-of-lyme-disease-as-a-bioweapon/ 
"When Polly Mur­ray made her now-famous call to the Con­necti­cut health depart­ment to report the strange epi­demic among chil­dren and adults in her town, her ini­tial recep­tion was luke­warm. How­ever, some weeks later, she got an unex­pected call from a Dr David Sny­d­man, of the Epi­demic Intel­li­gence Ser­vice (EIS), who was very inter­ested. He arranged for fel­low EIS offi­cer Dr Allen Steere to get involved. By the time Mrs. Mur­ray turned up for her appoint­ment at Yale, the doc­tor she had expected to see had been rel­e­gated to the role of an onlooker. Allen Steere had taken charge – and his views were to shape the course of Lyme med­i­cine for the next thirty years, up till today. [x]

To under­stand the sig­nif­i­cance of all this, we need a closer look at the Epi­demic Intel­li­gence Ser­vice, the EIS.

The EIS is an elite, quasi-military unit of Infec­tious Dis­ease experts set up in the 1950’s to develop an offen­sive biowar­fare capa­bil­ity. Despite the ban­ning of offen­sive biowar in the 1970’s, the crack troops of the EIS con­tinue to exist, osten­si­bly for non-offensive research into “emerg­ing dis­ease” threats, a blan­ket phrase cov­er­ing both bioweapon attacks and nat­ural epi­demics at the same time. Grad­u­ates of the EIS train­ing pro­gram are sent in to occupy strate­gic posi­tions in the US health infra­struc­ture, tak­ing lead­er­ship at fed­eral and state health agen­cies, in acad­e­mia, indus­try and the media. The organ­i­sa­tion also extends its influ­ence abroad, train­ing offi­cers for pub­lic health agen­cies in Britain, France, the Nether­lands etc.

In fact a high pro­por­tion of Steere camp Lyme experts are involved with the EIS. Given that the EIS is a small, elite force, (in 2001 the CDC revealed there were less than 2500 EIS offi­cers in exis­tence since the unit was first cre­ated in 1951 [xiii]), it seems incred­i­ble that so many of America’s top Infec­tious Dis­ease experts would devote their careers to what they them­selves claim is a “hard-to-catch, easily-cured” disease."

About a year ago I met a woman who had once been a patient of Dr. Steere. She didn't appear to be aware of how he fit into the Lyme controversy. She told me that Steere warned her never, for the rest of her life....to donate blood again. If Lyme is easily cured and totally erradicated from the body with 2 to 4 weeks of antibiotics, as he claims....then why the admonition NOT to donate blood. What did Steere know that he is not making public? Because the testing for Lyme disease is so inaccurate......what kind of proof do they have that patients are cured with this cookbook type of treatment? There are many reasons why you can have Lyme disease but yet test negative http://tinyurl.com/2g7za2b  There is also an excellent website with studies that show lyme disease can be a persistent and or relapsing infection . I recommend you mark this site in your Favorites http://www.lymeinfo.net/lymefiles.html   Why are these studies ignored by those who claim that there is no chronic lyme? One more important link that will explain some of the politics involving financial interests...etc which seem to fuel this debate. http://tinyurl.com/2e64xeq

Below Allen Steere is basically insinuating that anyone who remains sick with the same symptoms or are only partially better after the two to four weeks of antibiotics, must have a personality disorder (needy, vulnerable and naive) and are just very open to the suggestibility of the doctor who Steere claims must be intentionally or unintentionally misleading the patient and making the patient believe he is sick. This is absurd and insulting to the thousands of people out there who are sick and dying with misdiagnosed conditions (largely coined as autoimmune). Many patients can be helped with specific high dose ORAL antibiotics and do not need the expensive IV treaments. For most people this treatment is safe and effective.....certainly less harmful than letting an infectious neurodegenerative disease run rampant under the surface while only providing the patient with symptomatic treatments. Of course symptomatic treatments are much more profitable than ones which cure. Steere's power point slides are below in red.

LYME DISEASE: Study Highlights and Controversial Issues
http://www.acponline.org/about_acp/chapters/ri/steere.pdf
Allen C. Steere, MD
Rhode Island Chapter
American College of Physicians
2010 Annual Scientific Meeting
May 13, 2010

COUNTERCULTURE IDEOLOGY
Subjective pain, neurocognitive and fatigue symptoms may be causedby active infection of the brain with Borrelia burgdorferi


•Standard serologic tests for Lyme disease are often negative.

•Chronic coinfections may be factors in this disease course.

•These symptoms are difficult to treat and their suppression may require months or years of antibiotic therapy, only to have them recur later, requiring more antibiotic therapy.

•These patients often report that antibiotics are the only therapy that has them, and the medical establishment tries to keep them from receiving the therapy that they need.
 
Mind-Body Medicine

The Power of Suggestion*

•“In its classic form, this narrative begins with a vulnerable, naïve, or needy person (often a patient, quite often a woman) and an authority figure (typically a doctor, healer, hypnotist, or priest, but invariably a man) who is believed to possess personal charisma, special skills, powerful medicines, or expert knowledge that brooks no skepticism.”

•“The patient believes whatever is said, does whatever is said, and –strangest of all –physically experiences whatever is said.”

•“Usually, recovery is only temporary. The narratives conclusion is clear: suggestion’s cures are at best palliative.”

*Ann Harrington, The Cure Within: A History of Mind-Body Medicine
 
POLITICS INTRUDE ON LYME DISEASE TREATMENT GUIDELINES
In 2006, the IDSA received a subpoena from the AttorneyGeneral of Connecticut, Richard Blumenthal. The AG wasconducting an antitrust investigation of the IDSA relating tothe clinical practice guidelines for the treatment of Lyme disease.


•Practice guidelines developed by the IDSA are prepared to assist practitioners in making decisions about appropriatediagnosis and management of specific clinical conditions.

•In his investigation, the AG said that he found undisclosedfinancial conflicts of interest among members of the panel thatwrote the guidelines, and the panel improperly ignored orminimized alternative medical opinion regarding chronicLyme disease.

Politics Intrude on Lyme Disease Treatment Guidelines*

* Klein JO, Clin Infect Dis2008;47
 
A CRITICAL APPRAISAL OF CHRONIC LYME DISEASE
There is no convincing evidence for the existence of symptomatic, chronic Borrelia burgdorferi infection among patients after receipt of recommended treatment regimens for Lyme disease.”


•Chronic Lyme disease is the latest is a series of syndromes that attribute medically unexplained symptoms to particular infections. Other examples that have now lost credibility include “chronic candida syndrome” and chronic Epstein-Barr virus infection”.

•Chronic Lyme disease, which is equated with chronic B. burgdorferi infection, is a misnomer, and the use of prolonged, dangerous, and expensive antibiotic treatment for it is not warranted.

* Feder et al. N Engl J Med2007;357:1422
 
FOR BOOKS ON LYME DISEASE  http://astore.amazon.com/thelymdissenb-20?_encoding=UTF8&node=2

BRAIN DAMAGING SUBSTANCES

 Dumbing Down Society Part I
Foods, Beverages and Meds
Jun 28th, 2010
By Vigilant

Is there a deliberate effort by the government to dumb down the masses? The statement is hard to prove but there exists a great amount of data proving that the ruling elite not only tolerates, but effectively introduces policies that have a detrimental effect on the physical and mental health of the population. This series of articles looks at the many ways the modern man is being dumbed down. Part I looks at the poisons found in everyday foods, beverages and medications.
                                                                                                                                        

The theme of dumbing-down and dehumanizing the masses are often discussed in articles on The Vigilant Citizen. The presence of those concepts in popular culture are, however, only the outward and symbolic expression of the profound transformation happening in our society. Scientific data has been proving for years that governments around the world are tolerating the selling of many products which have a direct and negative effect on cognitive and physical health. As we will see in this article many everyday products cause brain damage, impaired judgment and even a lower IQ.

Is a dumber population something that is desired by the elite? Hitler once said “How fortunate for the leaders that men do not think.” An educated population knows its rights, understands the issues and takes action when it does not approve of what is going on. Judging by the incredible amount of data available on the subject, it seems that the elite want the exact opposite: an unhealthy, frightened, confused and sedated population. We will look at the effects of medication, pesticides, fluoride and aspartame on the human body and how those products are being pushed by people from inside the power structure.

                                                                                                                                            

READ WHOLE ARTICLE http://vigilantcitizen.com/?p=4051  

READ THE FLOURIDE DECEPTION

HOW FOOD QUALITY & FOOD FREEDOM RELATES TO LYME DISEASE

                                Homegrown peppers from heirloom seeds

Hello Friends.......the more I investigate into the Lyme disease situation and the problem of an increasing rate of chronic illness in general....I am discovering that what we choose to eat and the quality of our food supply, may play a very large role in our ability....or inability to resist chronic disease. The Agricultural Industry and Big Pharma....among other corporate entities, are deciding what we shall eat. We are not getting our dietary information passed down from our ancestors, which would be a much more reliable source of truly helpful information. Before the advent of our modern age.....the past hundred years or so.....families learned from each other. Knowledge was passed down to the children. This knowlege included spiritual truths,what foods built the strongest bodies, methods of food preparation and preservation, and other information that was necessary for survival. 

Instead of looking to what worked for our ancestors and researching into what gave them such robust health to be able to survive and thrive.... without our modern day refinements.... we now tell our elders to drop out of normal life at age 65 or younger. Older people are encouraged to retire, move to special settlements with all other older people....where they have much less contact with their children, grandchildren and normal life ....with all age groups present and interacting. Society is saying...in effect...that older people have nothing more to contribute once they have retired. I think it is a terrible waste of  a valuable resource. We are being separated from our heritage which includes vital knowledge for self sufficiency. Corporations would rather that we depend on them for our food ....and the drugs that we wind up needing due to their false nutritional advice and poor quality foods.This system only makes sense for those who run the corporations....but even they will suffer in the end, when our soil can no longer support life.

Think about it...have you ever learned how to make fermented drinks , vegetables, cheeses...etc...from your grandparents? What about the natural remedies and herbs that they used as a part of daily living?Were you shown how to keep the soil healthy so that we could be healthy? Our ancestors ate alot of fat and cholesterol but yet had much less degenerative disease than we do now. I have a feeling most of us consider ourselves and technology above this crude unscientific way of life. We think we have advanced from the old fashioned way of doing things.

Have we really advanced in the true meaning of the word.....or is our species actually deteriorating at an increasingly rapid rate? I have started another blog at http://www.foodfreedomrevolution.blogpot.com/  which will address these issues and more. If our soil and food is not properly nourished, then it cannot nourish us. It is as simple and as profound as that! If our species wants to survive and THRIVE...we need to make some changes now and those changes begin with us.

In the past I have talked about Lyme disease and or the ticks which carry it as possibly having been genetcially modified. I still feel this may be true but I am also seeing that not everyone gets chronic Lyme disease. Why is this? Is it solely due to inescapable inherited genetics or is it due to something we actually have control over. Much information is given to us to make us think that we have no control over our health when our diet and lifestyle may be the main factors in our failing health. We need to begin growing our own food and or buying local from small farms. The health of our food supply is much more reliable when we know the producers. It is much greener, with less resources being used to wrap and ship the food ,when we buy local. Please visit and follow my new blog and visit my bookstore where I will be recommending books about nutrition, Lyme disease, the politics of Food, healthy recipes and books which will help us to become healthier individuals and as a result become a healthier society. Then we can begin to  function in a much wiser and humane manner.

Two books that I feel are crucial for understanding much of what I am trying to get across...are Trick and Treat  
 


AND  Deep Nutrition: Why Your Genes Need Traditional Foods by Catherine and Luke Shanahan
Take the time to look at the reviews of these books on Amazon to see why I feel they are so crucial to read

For any comments or advice on what you feel should be included on my Food Freedom blog....or on my Lyme blog...drop me a line at daystar1952@yahoo.com

TICKED OFF AS LYME DISEASE SPREADS

Ticked off: As Lyme disease spreads, so does dispute on how to treat it


Shawn Doherty, The Capital Times, Madison, Wisconsin

June 30, 2010

The tension was evident during a public forum on June 17 in Wausau put
on by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the
state public health department. About 80 people attended, according to
those who went. CDC officials contended there that no proof exists to
indicate the kind of long-term antibiotic therapy that Haugen seeks will
cure her symptoms.

The messy debate left one observer, University of Wisconsin-Madison
entomologist and tick expert Susan Paskewitz, shaking her head. "It's
sad how adversarial this has become," she says. "The problem is there is
a difference between what people on the ground are experiencing, and the
evidence-based recommendations the government can make. These people are
suffering, and unfortunately, treatment is not keeping up with the
spread of the disease."

Full story: http://tinyurl.com/2bq47ec

COMPREHENSIVE LYME DISEASE OVERVIEW: GOOD BULLET POINTS

                          Lyme rashes can present in many different shapes, sizes and colors. See side bar for more rash pictures. The following summary from http://www.holtorfmed.com/lyme-disease.html  is a good overview of Lyme disease, its coinfections, the spirochete's characteristics , and how to test and treat. It is a bullet point presentation and may be good to print out and take to your doctor if he is not an expert in Lyme disease. Doctors have not been properly educated when it comes to Lyme disease and its coinfections. One word of advice from someone who has "been there". If you do bring Lyme info to your doc , try to be very tactful and know your stuff before you go. For some reason Lyme disease is a very touchy subject and doctors often react very oddly when confronted with a patient who thinks he may have Lyme disease. Testing is not accurate so diagnosis must be made based on patient history and symptoms.

(A Culmination of the Literature) Kent Holtorf, M.D.


CHARACTERISTICS of BORRELIA BURGDORFERI

Over 1500 gene sequences
At least 132 functioning genes (in contrast, T. pallidum has 22 functioning genes)
21 plasmids (three times more than any known bacteria)

IMMUNE EVASION (‘STEALTH’ PATHOLOGY)
Immune suppression
Phase & antigenic Variation
Physical seclusion
Secreted factors

TYPES OF LYME DISEASE
Early Lyme Disease (“Stage I”)
At or before the onset of symptoms
Can be cured if treated properly

Disseminated Lyme (“Stage II”)
Multiple major body systems affected
More difficult to treat

Chronic Lyme Disease (“Stage III”)
Ill for one or more years
Serologic tests less reliable (seronegative)
Treatment must be more aggressive and of longer duration

CHRONIC LYME
Disease changes character
Involves immune suppression
Less likely to be sero-positive for Lyme
Development of alternate forms of Borrelia
More likely to be co-infected
Immune suppression and evasion
More difficult to treat
Protective niches

ALTERNATE MORPHOLOGIC FORMS
Spirochete form- has a cell wall
L-form (spiroplast)- no cell wall
Cystic form

IMMUNE SUPPRESSION BY Borrelia burgdorferi
Bb demonstrated to invade, inhibit and kill cells of the immune system
The longer the infection is present, the greater the effect
The more spirochetes that are present, the greater the effect

PROTECTIVE NICHES
Within cells
Within ligaments and tendons
Central nervous system
Eye

DIAGNOSING LYME
It is a clinical diagnosis supported by appropriate testing (likelihood of a false negative must be understood)
Look for multi-system involvement
17% recall a bite; 36% recall a rash
55% with chronic Lyme are sero-negative
PCRs- 30% sensitivity at best- requires multiple samples, multiple sources

NATURAL KILLER CELL ACTIVITY AND NUMBER
Low counts seen in active Lyme
Reflects degree of infection
Can be used as a screening test
Can be used to track treatment response
Can predict relapse

ELISA ANTIBODY TESTING
Over 75% of patients with chronic Lyme are negative by ELISA

WESTERN BLOT
Reflects antibody response to specific Bb antigens
Different sensitivities and specificities of the bands
Some bands are potentially seen in different bacteria- “nonspecific bands”
Some bands are specific to spirochetes
Some bands are specific to Bb
Specific: 18, 23-25, 28, 31, 34, 37, 39, 58, 83 & 93
Spirochetes in general: 41 (flagellum)
First immune response if present is usually 41 and 23 KD bands
Response to the 31 KD proteins is not usually seen for a year after initial infection

CDC IGG WB CRITERIA
IGG WB 5 of the 10 bands (18, 23, 28, 30, 39, 41, 45, 58, 66)
Criteria based on Early Lyme
IGENEX adds 3 specific bands (31, 83 and 34) and 3 non-specific bands (22, 37, 73)

CDC IGM WB CRITERIA
IGM WB 2 of the 3 bands 23, 39, 41
IGENEX adds 3 specific bands (31, 34 and 83) and 3 non-specific bands (22, 37, 73)

REVISED CRITERIA WITH QUEST WB
IGG WB: 2 specific band criteria have demonstrated improved sensitivity and maintained specificity

Can diagnose Lyme if any one band (IgG or IgM) of 18, 23, 28, 39 or 58 kDa or if any 2 or more of the following bands are present: 30, 45, 41 and 93

If negative or require further confirmation, can obtain IGENEX WB (adds specific bands of 31, 34 an 83, which are typically seen in chronic disease)

Positive if any one band of 18, 23, 28, 31, 34, 39, 58 or 83

If positive for Borellia on any test, test for neurotoxins.

Consider testing for co-infections (discussed below)

Check for coagulation defect

LYME DISEASE TREATMENT
Use an integrative treatment for optimal results. Treating with just antibiotics has poor likelihood for success with chronic Lyme.

Extended duration often needed for chronic lyme.

Use clinical endpoints.

Watch for Herxheimer reactions (may occur in 3-4 week cycles)

Directed neutraceutical can be beneficial

Immune Modulators

Antibiotics

Oral

Intramuscular

Intravenous

Often need antibiotic combinations with lysomotropics in addition to integrative approach to address different forms (spirochete, L-form, cystic)

Intravenous Antimicrobial IV’s (Viral Plus, etc) or IV Immunoglobulin

Adjunctive medications (Lysosomotropics) to increase antibiotic effectiveness

NUTRACEUTICAL
Samento or improved version Keline

Cumanda improved version Eklipse

Consider combination of Eklipse, artemesinin I and Keline as a basis

Fibrinolytic enzymes and heparin if coagulation defect present (present in approximatley 80% of cases)

Give probiotics and natural antifungals when using prolonged antibiotics

IMMUNMODULATION
Essential to improve immune function

Leukostim

Proboost

Maitaki Mushroom

Transfer Factor-Lyme specific

Low Dose Naltrexone 3.5 mg qhs

Delta-Immune

Neupogen (filgrastim) (Enhanced eradication of Bb demonstrated in mice) 5 mcg/kg SQ

Benicar (Marshal Protocol)

ORAL ANTIBIOTICS
Tetracyclines-Doxycycline, Minocycline 100 mg II tabs bid or Tetracycline 500 mg II tabs tid-qid

Good Tissue penetration

Covers Borrelia and Ehrlichia

Anti-inflamatory properties

Photosensitivity, GI upset frequent

Penicillins such as Augmentin 875 mg PO bid-tid or Amoxicillin 875 II tabs bid-tid

Monitor LFT’s with Augmenti

Addition of Probenecid 500 mg/qd-tid

Cannot exceed 3 tabs Augmentin per day due to clavulanate, thus can give with Amoxicillin

Macrolides such as Zithromax 500-600 mg, Biaxin 1000-2000 mg/day or Ketek 800 mg/da

Combination therapy often needed (ie plus cephalosporin or Flagyl)

Well tolerated

Improved tissue penetration with hydroxycholoroquine or amantadine

Cephlosporins (3rd generation) Omnicef 300 mg one po tid or (2nd generation) Ceftin 500 mg II tabs bid

Flagyl 250-500 qd-tid or tinidizole (better tolerated) 500 mg bid for 2 weeks every 1-3 months

Kills spore forms of Borrelia

May decrease effect of tetracyclines

Antabuse reaction with alcohol

Potentially neurotoxic

Adults only

Rifampin 300 mg bid

IM ANTIBIOTICS
Benzathine Pennicillin 1.2-2.4 Million Units 1-2 times per week

Excellent foundation for combination treatment

No GI Side effects

Efficacy may be close to IV

IV ANTIBIOTICS
Consider if illness for greater than year

Failure or intolerance of oral therapy

Consider starting with IV antibiotics for 1- 3 months (until clearly improved) then oral/IM maintenance

May require extended duration with long term disease and immune supression

Ceftriaxone (Rocephin) most commonly used (dose 2 grams qd 4 x/week)

Risk of billiary slugging-use Actigall

Monitor LFT’s

Cefotaxime (Claforan)

Requires twice daily dosing 2 grams bid. Can give as continuous infusion of up to 8 grams/day

Monitor LFT’s

Doxycycline 400 mg qd (slow infusion)

Requires central line

Do not use in pregnancy or children

Azithromycin 500 mg qd

Requires central line

Limited experience

Unasyn (ampicillin-sulbactum) 3 grams IV tid

Timentim (4th generation penicillin and clavulanate) 3.1 grams IV q 6 hours

Primaxin 500-1000 mg IV bid-tid

CO-INFECTIONS IN LYME
Very common and nearly universal in chronic Lyme

Diagnostic tests even less reliable

Co-infected patients more ill

Co-infected patients more difficult to treat

POSSILBE CO-INFECTIONS
Babesia

Bartonella


Ehrlichia


Mycoplasma


Viruses such as EBV, CMV, HHV6, HHV7


Others

TESTING
Antibody testing has a high rate of false-negative

Consider treatment if poor response despite negative test results

BABESIA
Is a parasite (one study showed 66% of chronic Lyme have Babesia co-infection)

Many different species found in ticks (13+)

Not able to test for all varieties

Diagnostic tests insensitive

Chronic persistent infection documented

Infection is immunosuppressive

TREATING BABESIOSIS
Can be treated while on Lyme medications

Lariam 250 mg (5 caps loading dose) then 1 po week for 5 weeks with Artemisinin

Atovaquone (Mepron) 750 mg qd-bid plus azithromycin 500-600 mg for 4 to 6 months

Consider Flagyl or tinidiazole

Artemesinin demonstrated to be beneficial (2-3 tabs bid)

BARTONELLA                                                                                      BARTONELLA RASH
More ticks in NE contain Bartonella than contain Lyme

                                                                                 

Clinically seems to be a different species than “cat scratch disease”

Gastritis and rashes, CNS, seizures, tender skin nodules and sore soles

Tests are insensitive

TREATING BARTONELLA
Levaquin 750 mg qd

Cipro 750 bid

Doxy 100 mg II po bid

Zithromax 500-600 mg qd

EHRLICHIA
Flu-like symptoms of severe headaches, very painful muscles, low WBC counts or elevated liver enzymes

Testing insensitive

TREATMENT OF EHRLICHIA
Doxy 200 mg bid

Rifampin 300 mg bid

ADJUNCTIAL MEDICATIONS TO INCREASE ANTIBIOTIC EFFECTIVNESS
(Lysosomotropics) Will increase the effectiveness of antibiotics and improve success

Porbenecid 500 mg qd-tid. Decreases B-lactam excretion and used to achieve higher serum levels.

Will also decrease excretion on NSAIDS, benzodiazepines and other medications

Hydoxychloroquine (200 mg qd-bid)-decreases formation of cystic forms and increases penetration of antibiotics into cysts

Amantadine 100 mg qd-tid. Increases penetration into cells and cysts, immune boosting and is antiviral

For a recommended list of books on Lyme disease go to
http://astore.amazon.com/thelymdissenb-20?_encoding=UTF8&node=2

OUR BODIES NEED CHOLESTEROL.....ESPECIALLY THE BRAIN

Cholesterol Is Essential to Life

Every Cell Demands Cholesterol
Aug 31, 2008 R.L. Coffield

Americans have been terrorized into the belief that cholesterol will kill them. Recent studies indicate that a lack of cholesterol is what is destructive to one's health.

Cholesterol Does not Cause Heart Disease

According to Dr. Diana Schwarzbein, a leading endocrinologist and author of The Schwarzbein Principle, “Eating cholesterol and fat do not cause heart disease and accelerated death. In fact, you must eat them to avoid heart disease.” Schwarzbein is a strong advocate that “…high total cholesterol numbers are not the cause of heart attacks. A high-insulin lifestyle is the cause of heart attacks.”

This sentiment is also expressed by a growing number of scientists and nutrition experts, including Gary Taubes in Good Calories, Bad Calories, and Sally Fallon in Nourishing Traditions. Since the majority of heart-attack victims have normal to low cholesterol numbers, it appears now that many early studies linking cholesterol to heart disease were greatly flawed, or greatly misinterpreted.

Lack of Cholesterol Causes Cancer and accelerated Aging

For a long time, Schwarzbein was one of the lone voices in the cholesterol brouhaha who advocated that a lack of cholesterol was dietary disaster. This is a fundamental fact since the lack of cholesterol causes cell membrane structures to alter, thus disrupting cell growth. Cancer can arise because of ensuing abnormal cell division. Thus, every cell in the human body requires cholesterol and fat to help safeguard one’s health

According to Taubes, the link between low cholesterol and cancer was appearing as early as 1980. Indeed, according to the Framingham Study, “…men whose total cholesterol levels were below 190mg/dl were more than three times as likely to get colon cancer as those men with cholesterol greater than 220; they were almost twice as likely to contract any kind of cancer than those with cholesterol over 280 mg/dl.”

Cholesterol is essential for brain function, helps form cell membranes both on the inside and outside, contributes to a healthy immune system and makes hormones. When these systems are depleted or starved for cholesterol, there is an increase in the potential for diseases of all types, including cancer, multiple sclerosis, depression, agitation, hormonal imbalance, poor thyroid function and a host of other debilitating conditions.

Cholesterol and Fat Are not the Enemy

According to Schwarzbein, “Fat and cholesterol are so important to life that your body has backup systems for their production.” In fact, the body can make cholesterol from carbohydrates.

Fallon states that “High serum cholesterol levels often indicate that the body needs cholesterol to protect itself from high levels of altered, free radical-containing fats.” Consumption of hydrogenated and vegetable oils and a diet too high in sugar and white flour are the main dietary mistakes made. Fallon goes on to say that “…cholesterol is needed in a poorly nourished body to protect the individual from a tendency to heart disease and cancer.”

An increasing mound of evidence strongly indicates that it is the excessive consumption of carbohydrates that is the leading cause of debilitating disease, heart attack and metabolic aging.

Consumer Confusion

Never before have so many diverse theories emerged regarding the dietary causes of modern diseases. Consumers have been busily chasing one theory after another, looking for the panacea to perfect health. In the long run, the message may be very simple: eat a well rounded diet avoiding excess consumption of any one food group, especially shunning the emphasis on low-fat, high-carb eating. Cholesterol and natural oils and fats are not the culprits they have been made out to be.

Read more at Suite101: Cholesterol Is Essential to Life: Every Cell Demands Cholesterol http://proteins-carb-fats.suite101.com/article.cfm/cholesterol_is_essential_to_life#ixzz0scGyV8Fv


TRICK AND TREAT BY BARRY GROVES. Read how we are being served up harmful dietary guidelines by Big Agriculture and the Pharamceutical Industry for the purpose of profit...not health. Learn what we should be eating and why. Highly recommended