Nutrition is Everything!

My life is full and I wish that all of you could find the same healing from food that I have. It didn’t come easy. I am continuing to see leaps and bounds in my health. You can follow my progress at my new sites: The Home of Peaceful Acres and Simply Real Foods.

I am writing my book and I hope that it might be complete in the next year or so. Please continue following my progress, because I do not believe that this healing is mine alone!

My Latest Check-Up

You can read about my latest check-up on my Peaceful Acres blog.  I also go into detail for those who have asked for an update on my diet and protocol.

Spirochetes vs Antibiotics

This video shows the effect of a spirochete in the presence of an antibiotic. It goes into one of it’s defense forms.

Lyme Disease is pleomorphic. Meaning it has many forms.

The cyst form is just one of them and the cysts have no cell wall and from my understanding cannot be killed by ABX.

They will stay in cyst form until you stop the ABX. AND they will multiply while in cyst form.

Disclaimer: I am not a doctor. This information is intended to be viewed for informational, educational, and entertainment purposes only. The blog’s content should not be interpreted as medical advise under any circumstances. By reading this disclaimer and viewing the videos, you agree that you understand this disclaimer.

Food As Medicine Video

A visitor to my site left a link to his site where you can purchase the videos of Jerry Brunetti on Food as Medicine.

Photo Credit linked to artist on flickr.com

Understanding The CD 57 Test

EVERYTHING YOU ALWAYS WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT THE CD57 TEST

By: GINGER SAVELY, RN, FNP-C

From coast to coast, frustrations abound among patients and
clinicians regarding the diagnosis of chronic Lyme disease.
Misinformed health care providers in Texas and surrounding states
consider the infection rare and non-endemic. They are inclined to
rule out Lyme disease based on the negative result of a laboratory
test that, unbeknownst to them, is highly insensitive. In the absence
of a reliable laboratory test or adequate experience in the
recognition of the varied and complex presentations of the illness,
most clinicians are ill-equipped to diagnose chronic Lyme disease.
Many patients suffer needlessly for years, hopelessly lost in the
maze of the health care system, looking for answers and enduring the
skepticism of practitioners inexperienced with the disease’s signs
and symptoms.

What is needed is a better Lyme test or some other objective measure
to persuade the practitioner to consider the diagnosis of chronic
Lyme disease. Enter the CD57 test! You may have heard the term “CD57”
tossed around on chat groups, or your Lyme-literate health care
provider may have even explained the test to you in one of your
moments of brain-fogged stupor. What is this number that sounds more
like a type of Heinz steak sauce than a lab test, and what in the
world does it have to do with Lyme disease?

Let’s start by going back to basic high school biology. You may
remember that white blood cells (a.k.a. leukocytes) are the
components of blood that help the body fight infections and other
diseases. White blood cells can be categorized as either granulocytes
or mononuclear leukocytes. Mononuclear leukocytes are further sub-
grouped into monocytes and lymphocytes.

Lymphocytes, found in the blood, tissues and lymphoid organs, attack
antigens (foreign proteins) in different ways. The main lymphocyte
sub-types are B-cells, T-cells and natural killer (NK) cells. B-cells
make antibodies that are stimulated by infection or vaccination. T-
cells and NK cells, on the other hand, are the cellular aggressors in
the immune system and are our main focus in the discussion that
follows.

Let’s pause a moment and introduce something you probably never
learned about in high school biology class: CD markers. CD, which
stands for “cluster designation”, is a glycoprotein molecule on the
cell surface that acts as an identifying marker. Think of comparing
cells as comparing people. Humans are made up of innumerable
superficial identifying characteristics (such as hair color, eye
color, etc.) and so are cells. Cells probably have thousands of
different identifying markers, or CDs, expressed on their surfaces,
but 200 or so have been recognized and named so far.

Each different marker (or CD) on a cell is named with a number, which
signifies nothing more than the order in which the CD was discovered.
On any given cell there are many different cluster designation
markers (CDs), giving each cell its unique appearance and function
but also linking certain cells by their similarities (like grouping
all people with brown hair or all people with blue eyes). Cells that
have a certain kind of CD present on their surface are denoted as +
for that CD type (e.g., a cell with CD57 markers on its surface is
CD57+).

NK cells have their own specific surface markers. The predominant
marker is CD56. The percentage of CD56+ NK cells is often measured in
patients with chronic diseases as a marker of immune status: the
lower the CD56 level, the weaker the immune system. You may have
heard Chronic Fatigue Syndrome patients talk about their CD56 counts.
A smaller population of NK cells are CD57+.

A below-normal count has been associated with chronic Lyme disease by
the work of Drs. Raphael Stricker and Edward Winger. No one knows for
sure why CD57+ NK cells are low in Lyme disease patients, but it is
important to note that many disease states that are often confused
with chronic Lyme (MS, systemic lupus, rheumatoid arthritis) are not
associated with low CD57+ NK counts. The good news is that for most
Lyme patients the CD57+ NK level increases as treatment progresses
and health is regained.

CD57 markers can also be expressed on other kinds of cells, including
T-cells, so it is important to distinguish between CD57+ T-cells and
CD57+ NK cells. Clinicians need to be aware that many testing
laboratories claiming to perform the CD57 test are actually looking
at CD57+ T-cells rather than CD57+ NK cells, which are the cells of
interest in chronic Lyme disease.

In order for a testing laboratory to measure the CD57+ NK level, it
first measures the percentage of lymphocytes that are CD57+ NK cells.
Then an absolute count is calculated by multiplying that percentage
by the patient’s total lymphocyte count. The standard normal range
for the absolute CD57 NK count is 60 to 360 cells per microliter of
blood. This wide range was established based upon test results of
hundreds of healthy patients. By these laboratory standards, a test
result below 60 cells per microliter would be considered below normal
and therefore associated with chronic Lyme disease. However, a recent
study of my Austin patients has led me to believe that 100 cells per
microliter is a more reliable threshold separating Lyme patients and
healthy controls.

When Drs Stricker and Winger discovered that CD57+ NK cells are low
in chronic Lyme patients and tend to increase with patients’ clinical
improvement, an opportunity arose for Lyme-literate practitioners to
utilize a handy tool to aid in the diagnosis of chronic Lyme disease,
to follow treatment progress, and to determine treatment endpoint.
Just as AIDS patients have always held great store in their CD4 T-
cell count, Lyme patients now have a fairly reliable marker of the
status of their illness.

It is important to remember that the CD57 result is just a number;
far more important is the patient’s clinical status. An old professor
of mine used to say, “treat the patient, not the lab test!” There is
still much we do not know about the CD57 marker and what other
factors may lower or raise it. However, overall, the CD57+ NK count
is a useful tool in diagnosing and treating chronic Lyme disease in
most patients. As a measure of immune status, it provides an indirect
measure of bacterial load and severity of illness. Furthermore, in a
patient who has a negative or indeterminate Lyme test but is highly
suspect for the disease, the clinician may utilize the CD57+ NK count
as one more piece in the complex puzzle of a Lyme disease diagnosis.

Postscript: If you would like your health care provider to order the
CD57 NK test for you, your blood sample needs to be drawn into an
EDTA tube (lavender top) on Monday through Thursday and sent
immediately to either LabCorp in Burlington, NC, or Clinical
Pathology Laboratories (CPL) in Austin, TX. LabCorp and CPL are the
only two labs that perform this test properly. Quest does NOT. The
LabCorp test code is #505026 and is named HNK1 (CD57) Panel. The CPL
test code is #4886, CD57 for Lyme disease. The test is time-sensitive
and must be performed within 12 hours of collection, so blood should
not be drawn on a Friday or results may be inaccurate.

New Shoes

Aren’t they beautiful!

Sure enough on day 5 of my new come back plan, my feet started killing me again with a lot of intense bone pain shooting up my right ankle. So, yesterday I stopped by our local running store which really is the place to shop for running shoes. I told the guy that I have been healing from a chronic disease and the only thing holding me back now are my feet.

He smiled and said, “I’ve got just the thing for you.” He explained that they had a computerized machine that would show where my foot problems were and how to remedy them. I stepped onto a machine that showed the pressure points on both of my feet. Sure enough, my right foot has several impact areas.  Especially my heal and my arch.

He told me that they don’t even have this machine in Podiatrists offices. The data came up on the screen that I have flat feet (but my ortho told me I didn’t) and that I needed a size 8 shoe and what kind of shoe would work for my foot problems. They have seen miracles with this machine and Lynco Orthotics. People who had given up hope of ever running or walking again have been given a new lease on life.

That’s what I’m hoping for. I have two weeks to try them out and return them if they don’t work; shoes and orhtotics! The Nyco Orthotics are guaranteed for one year.  I tried them out this AM when I went for my walk/run. The one thing I’m noticing is that my lower back hurts. That would make sense since orthotics realign the spine and hips.  For now, the pain is limited and I’m hoping that it will improve as my feet get used to the Lynco Orthotics.

I was in and out of the store within 10 min’s. Not bad for finding just the right shoe in the perfect color!!!

The Come Back Kid

I’ve been on Dr Zhang’s protocol for 1 yr. His book recommends 6 months to 1 yr depending on how sick you are and how long you’ve been infected with Lyme and even longer if needed. Since I’ve had Lyme for over 36 yrs, I go the distance when advised. I feel 100% healed today. My recent bout with Hymoletic Anemia was corrected with food and supp’s. And I’m continuing with Dr Zhang’s Herbs for a few more months. Then I’ll have my blood work done again to see how my CD 57 is and how my liver enzymes are. I expect everything to look really good!

I’m still Rifing after 3 yrs and pursuing food as medicine and using Dr Zhang’s Chinese Herbal Medicine and other supp’s to stay where I am and even progress further where possible.

Since being diagnosed 4 yrs ago, I have been on an all out battle to defeat this hideous disease and it’s many co-infections. I have never once believed that it was not beatable! Not once!!!

Yes, I had many days of despair and pain, but I never gave up. I clung to My God and what He promised me. I took everything seriously and never cheated on my diet. I’ve been faithful to eating Traditional Nutrient Dense foods that Dr Weston A Price discovered to bring health and healing to those who ate them. I detox regularly. I go to bed before 10PM. And I try to live a stress free life that includes gardening, caring for farm animals and serving others through various charities, including my own; Butterflies and Bumble Bees. I have found that serving others is one of the most important things we can do to heal. When we focus on others and take our eyes off of ourselves we just feel better. I don’t and never have referred to myself as a “Lymie”. That in NO way defines me. I believe that those are negative words that only bring you down. I speak positive words of affirmation that not only lift me but lift others as well. Even in the worst of times I believe that it is important for you to do something outside of yourself.

My only real complaint right now are my feet. Nothing new to lots of Lyme patients. It’s been almost a yr since I tried to walk/run again. I made up my mind this week to try again. Since I feel 100% then I should be exercising! No excuses!!!

We have a really nice new Senior / Community Center just 2 miles from my home. The best part is an indoor track. Plus I found out on Monday that since I’m now 50, I am a Senior!!! YIKES!!! BUT being a Senior qualifies me to use the Fitness Room for FREE during certain hrs of the day.

I set out Monday to just try and walk. I revamped my running shoes with some cushioned inserts and headed out the door. I decided that if I was indeed nearly 100% healed than I should be exercising regularly to shed the 30 pounds that I’ve gained from sitting! No more excuses! If my feet hurt then I’ll have to find a remedy! One thing I’m using is Traumeel. It’s a homeopathic ointment for trauma or injuries. I’m rubbing into my feet 2-3 X and day.

I walked a couple laps to warm up and then the old me kicked in. I broke out in a run…I just couldn’t help myself. I love to run! I decided to run half a lap around and walk half a lap. I did this for 30 min’s which was estimated to be 2 miles. I was very happy. OK, I was just short of doing back flips!

My new plan is to workout 3 days a week. On Mondays and Fridays I’ll walk/run 30 min’s and use the fitness room for resistance training for 30 min’s. On Wednesday I’m going to take a Pilates class to help strengthen this old body. I really need it. I’m not going to tell my doc. I’m going to wait and surprise him with a HUGE weight loss by my next appointment in March. He’ll be ecstatic!

Today, I was able to run 1 lap and walk 1 lap for 30 min’s.  My muscles are encouraging me with pain. Good Pain! I have to keep reminding myself that I’m a Come Back Kid!

Photo credit linked to Flickr.com

Another Outbreak

Here we go again.  Another outbreak of Salmonella is reported to have affected 388 people in 42 states as of January 7, 2009.  Salmonella is food poisoning and from personal experience it can be extremely painful.  The affects of it affecting your gut health for months or even years.   This new outbreak hasn’t been identified yet.  The last outbreak was due to Jalapeno Peppers.  Prior to that spinach.  And to my recollection I can’t remember a case being linked to Raw Dairy!

In support of raw dairy, I offer you this letter by Dr Sears, MD found at Nourished Magazine.

Make sure you pay attention to the charts below.

It’s safer to drink raw dairy than it is to eat raw salad!

Unless of course you grow your own vegetables.  Nearly all of the food in America today is imported.   SICK!

Dear … ,

I get loads of e-mails about my take on things, some of them skeptical. But it’s not everyday I get an earful from a representative of an entire industry. This one really had me scratching my head…

If you’re one of my regular readers, you know I’ve raised some serious concerns about the health hazards of commercial milk. Specifically, I’ve talked about how pasteurizing and homogenizing strips milk of some natural nutritional content—not to mention the addition of artificial chemicals and hormones.

Well, the word got out—way out. One of my readers forwarded my House Call about milk to the Australian Dairy Industry Council (ADIC). The response was not friendly.

They accused me of being a hired gun whose ideas about health and wellness make me a biased commentator. The phrase was “Mr. Rent a Statement for money” and asked if I had anything better to do than write “false and misleading articles.”

First, off this is a strange accusation coming from a paid spokesperson of the dairy industry. Second, even the most skeptical reader would be hard-pressed to show how I profited from my statements about the dangers of commercial dairy products. I’m not in the business of selling milk. I don’t have organic or raw milk myself and I don’t have any connection to the industry. All I did was suggest that organic milk was a better alternative, and cited a new study proving it.

I was also talking about milk in this country, not in Australia. Cattle there enjoy real grasses as well as grains as part of their diet. They don’t get pumped full of antibiotics and hormones like here in the States. In fact, they screen milk down under for these and other dangerous additives and toxins. So if you’re drinking milk in Australia or New Zealand, you’re getting a better product than you would here.

Setting aside those issues, let’s take a look at some of their claims about commercial milk:

“Prior to pasteurization requirements, there were a number of deaths associated with milk-borne bacteria (e.g. Tuberculosis) causing fatal infections.”

The data doesn’t support this claim. There may have been tuberculosis outbreaks in the past. But with today’s modern storage and handling techniques, there’s little evidence that we’re better off with pasteurized milk.

Here’s a graph of some recent outbreaks of food–borne illnesses:

As you can see, milk—whether raw or pasteurized—is among the safest things you can buy when it comes to food–borne illnesses. You ought to be more worried about packaged mixed greens.

“. . . . there is little evidence to suggest that these changes in any way de-value milk as a nutritious food or make it a ‘lot less healthy product.’”

Again, scientific studies reported in Scientific American and The British Journal of Nutrition have shown the opposite to be true. Here are a few nutrients that get lost in commercial milk processing:

Are we to believe that these journals too are “Mr. rent a statement for money”?

As for their contention that:

“Milk is a very good medium for bacteria to grow and prior to pasteurization becoming compulsory, milk was implicated in many food poisoning incidents”

I’ll give them half credit here for getting it half right.

Milk is an excellent medium for all kinds of healthy microorganisms and enzymes to flourish, including

• Lactoferrin–an immune booster that kills off deadly bacteria
• Complement & Lyzosome–disrupts bacterial walls, prevents disease outbreaks
• Mucins–acts like a glue trap for bacteria and viruses, coating their surfaces and preventing them from binding to your gut
• Oligosaccharides–prevents your stomach acid from destroying beneficial enzymes and nutrients

Most of these naturally beneficial substances do not survive the pasteurization process, even though we know they’re good for you. So much so that the FDA approved lactoferrin as a spray to reduce E. coli outbreaks!1

Meanwhile, it’s not as if pasteurization makes milk completely safe. There have been a number of dangerous outbreaks over the years traced to commercial milk. One involved the bacterium Listeria.2 Another massive outbreak of salmonella infected over 16,000 people in Illinois in the late eighties.3

And the reality is that the antimicrobial properties of raw milk may make it safer. For example, one study found that the most dangerous strain of E. coli multiplied at a significantly lower rate in unpasteurized milk than in its commercial cousin.4

Lastly my “takes” on all your health advise are grounded in clinical research. I stand by what I write—and put those principles into practice with my patients.

So let me make sure I’m clear: raw milk is still illegal in 22 states. However, if it is legal where you live, it’s worth looking into.

If you can’t get it legally, try to find organic whole milk as a healthy alternative. There’s plenty of scientific evidence that it’s better for you than the typical commercial milk on the market.

To Your Good Health,

Al Sears, MD

The Link Between Vitamin D and Pain

“People who are vitamin D deficient are more likely to suffer from chronic pain and fatigue, and those with these conditions may improve or even recover entirely when treated…” (1)

On this journey of healing from Chronic Lyme Disease, I discovered the role of Vitamin D in my daily diet. Vitamin D is a fat soluable vitamin that is essential in cell regeneration, since every cell in the body has Vitamin D receptors. According to The National Institutes of Health, we’ve seen an increase in Cancer, Osteoporosis, Alzheimers, Chrones Disease and other maladies all due to the lack of Vitamin D in our diet. (2) In fact many are beginning to believe that the rise of Alzheimers is due to the low fat, fat free craze.

It’s being suggested that the RDA of 600 IU of Vitamin D is too low. In fact healthy adults should take at least 1,000 IU per day and those suffering should take 2,000 IU or more. (3) Personally I just swig my Cod Liver Oil bottle every morning. And when I’m struggling with symptoms of Lyme Disease or it’s co-infections, I take 2 swigs! I use Orange Flavored Blue Ice High Vitamin Cod Liver Oil from Dr Ron’s. In fact Dr Ron Schmid sees the best improvements in his Lyme patients when they use Raw Butter and Cod Liver Oil together and the more butter the better his office staff told me.

Of course from the perspective of eating nutrient dense foods, getting enough Vitamin D daily is easy. You can eat the foods listed here and of course in the summer or if you live in a warm climate year round you can obtain Vitamin D from the sun.

Here are some great foods to add to your diet that will boost your Vitamin D levels.

Raw Dairy

Lots of Raw Butter

Cod Liver Oil (Dr Weston A Price found that CLO is best taken with raw butter)

Eel has some of the highest amounts next to Sardines

Pastured Eggs, more specifically the yolks

Beef Liver

Tuna

Red Salmon

(1) Natural News

(2) Natural News

(3) Algaecal.com

Photo Credit Linked to Artist on Flickr.com

Food As Medicine

I posted a while ago about Jerry Brunetti and his incredible healing from cancer. This past week we nearly lost of Yellow Lab who is only 10 yrs old. He looked like death and the Vet wanted to put him down. We weren’t ready to do that and we began a recovery program for him. The Vet said he had a large tumor either on his spleen or liver. Neither very good. So we began an aggressive treatment for cancer using food and supp’s that reportedly will help him. He turned around in 3 days with the use of the Rife Machine. And then he began to eat again. We affectionately call him Lazarus! You can read about it on my personal blog.

In finding links for the post on my personal blog today I stumbled upon Jerry Brunetti’s notes from the video that I posted here called, “Watch This”. You really must look at these notes and study them carefully. They hold valuable information that just might save your life. I’ve known several lyme victims who have died from cancer. Why cancer and not Lyme? Because with Lyme Disease comes inflammation and inflammation leads to disease and more specifically cancer, heart disease, etc. Jerry Brunetti also had Lyme Disease! A coincidence??? I don’t think so.