A Natural Path to Treating Lyme Disease
Dissolve Borrelia Bacteria Biofilms Holistically
I remember when I spotted that dreaded bullseye rash. It appeared out of nowhere on my upper arm. My mind immediately began to race. What if I have Lyme disease? I didn’t even see a tick! What am I going to do to get rid of this? Should I get an antibiotic from the doctor or try to treat it on my own?
As my thoughts began to swirl, I remembered the people I have met who suffer with Lyme disease. I wouldn’t wish their struggle on anyone.
One lady in particular, Mary, suffered so severely with its effects on her brain that she struggled to articulate her words. She knew she had Lyme disease based on her symptoms. Yet, the tests from her doctor’s office were repeatedly negative. She came to me looking for a natural cure. Unfortunately at the time, I had little experience with Lyme disease and didn’t have much to offer.
Each year, more than 30,000 cases of Lyme disease are reported to the CDC! However, a new estimate suggests that the total number of people diagnosed with Lyme disease is around 10 times higher![1] Unfortunately, just those diagnosed with Lyme comprise these numbers. Thousands of people contract Lyme disease each year but go undiagnosed. This is because their Lyme disease symptoms so closely mimic other diseases, such as:
- MS
- Arthritis
- Fibromyalgia
- Chronic fatigue
Because of Lyme’s ability to “disguise” itself as other conditions, diagnosing Lyme disease based on symptoms can often be difficult. Symptoms that can help identify Lyme disease include:
- Chronically swollen lymph nodes
- Fever
- Joint pain and swelling
- Muscle weakness
- Difficulty thinking and concentrating
- Changes in heart rhythm
- Neurological impairment
The bacteria behind Lyme disease is called Borrelia burgdorferi. It is actually a cousin to the bacteria that causes syphilis. Borrelia’s corkscrew shape also allows it to hide in different body tissues. This makes testing for Lyme disease tricky! If the bacteria are hiding in the tissues, antibodies may not show up in the Western blot Lyme test!
Some alternative medical doctors recommend a lab called Igenex because they test for additional outer surface proteins. This form of testing better detects Lyme when standard blood tests cannot. Igenex labs also tests for co-infections such as Babesia and Erhlichia, which can often accompany Lyme disease.
It is also a misconception that Lyme is only spread by ticks and is identified by a bullseye rash. More than half of those with Lyme never had a bullseye rash! Lyme disease can also spread via fleas, mosquitoes, mites, and sexual contact![2] This is why identifying the symptoms as early as possible is crucial in treating Lyme.
If you suspect for any reason you may have Lyme disease, even if you never saw a tick or bullseye rash, then immediately get tested! Early treatment provides the best results and prevents severe damage to the body.
Preventing Lyme Disease
It is very important to take proper precautions to avoid contracting Lyme disease. This formerly “East coast” disease has now spread across the United States and affects those in the Midwest and the West coast.
Typical precautions include:
- Wearing clothes that cover the body.
- Using bug sprays containing DEET. However, DEET is extremely toxic. I urge you to handle DEET with caution. It is known to irritate the eyes and in intense doses may induce neurological damage.[3] People who use DEET daily have reported suffering symptoms including rashes, dizziness, difficulty concentrating and headaches.[4] It should only be sprayed on top of your clothing and never directly on your skin. It is also important that you do not inhale the fumes from the bug spray when using it
Before you get desperate and spray on commercial DEET bug spray, take some time to consider the better alternative; a natural bug repellent that smells wonderful, is effective, and takes only minutes to whip up. One natural alternative is rose geranium essential oil, which is 100% safe to use!
Ticks use their sense of smell to locate their next victim. This process of finding a host is called questing. They stick their front legs up in the air, which contain Haller’s organs. These organs can detect their future host by smell, temperature, movement and carbon dioxide. Ticks know when a person is approaching because it is essential to their survival. They don’t land on you by happenstance.
Luckily, ticks are turned off by the scent of rose geranium oil! Just dab a drop behind your kneecaps, on your wrists and behind your ears. You can also dilute it in a spray bottle and spray it on your clothes and body. Just follow the recipe below for a safe and effective tick repellent!
All Natural Tick Repellent Spray
Ingredients:
- 1 tbsp vodka
- 40 drops Rose Geranium essential oil
- ⅓ cup distilled water
Directions:
- Add all the ingredients into a small spray bottle.
- Shake well before using.
- Spray on skin. Note: Natural bug repellent will need to be reapplied every few hours for maximum effectiveness.
- This spray is also safe for pets.
Another fantastic natural tick repellent is food grade diatomaceous earth (DE). This all natural fossil shell powder is a mechanical insecticide. Mechanical insecticides kill insects by a physical action not a chemical one. Diatomaceous earth contains microscopic razor sharp edges that penetrate a tick’s exoskeleton. This causes the ticks to dry up and die. Don’t worry; the microscopic razor edges are of no harm to humans or animals. In fact, as I will discuss later, DE can be taken internally to treat Lyme disease!
Sprinkle food grade DE on your yard using a seed spreader on the lowest setting. Be sure to apply it when there is no rain in the forecast for several days. The rain will wash the diatomaceous earth away. By allowing it to sit on the grass for a couple days, DE gets a chance to make contact with the ticks and do its work.
I have personally witnessed the power of diatomaceous earth. A few summers ago the ticks were so bad that my dogs had several ticks on them each day. Once I sprinkled DE on the yard, they didn’t have another tick! It made me a believer and now I use it every year!
Natural Treatment of Lyme Disease
Those diagnosed with Lyme disease have probably been treated with long term antibiotic use. Short-term antibiotics work well when prescribed at the first sighting of a bullseye rash.
However, long-term antibiotic use comes with a list of side effects and promotes antibiotic resistance. Persistent antibiotic use may include the following side effects:
- C-diff infection
- Yeast infection
- Nausea/diarrhea
- Lowered immunity
Long term antibiotic use can also trigger an autoimmune response, which makes the disease even harder to reverse! Not only will you need to treat Lyme disease in these cases, but the accompanying autoimmune reactions!
The Achilles Heel of Borrelia Bacteria
Lyme has the innate ability to self protect by secreting exopolysaccharides and exoproteins. These create an armored shell called a biofilm (or cyst) that is difficult to penetrate.
Biofilms are made of a mucus like substance, fibrin and minerals such as calcium, magnesium and iron. This protective biofilm makes killing Borrelia bacteria very difficult. Several all natural supplements can break down these biofilms and help to eradicate Lyme bacteria. Dissolve biofilms holistically with the following protocols.
Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV)
The natural acidity of apple cider strips away important minerals from biofilm leaving it weak and easily broken apart.
Dosage: Take 2 teaspoons ACV a day mixed in a glass of water.
Milk Thistle and Dandelion
These two herbs increase bile production, as well as thin the bile. This is important because bile acids break up biofilm.
Dosage: 600-1000 mg a day of milk thistle
Dosage: 500-1000 mg of dandelion
Proteolytic Enzymes
Proteolytic enzymes essentially eat away at biofilm. However, they can only break apart biofilm when taken on an empty stomach. Proteolytic enzymes contain enzymes such as protease, papain, and pepsidase. If you take these enzymes with food, they will only help you digest your food and do nothing to break up the biofilm.
Dosage: Follow the directions on the bottle but take on an empty stomach!!
There are also several natural supplements which help kill the Lyme bacteria. Once the biofilms are broken, the Lyme is left vulnerable to the immune system and natural bacteria eradicating supplements.
Astragalus
Chinese medicine has used astragalus for bacteria similar to syphilis for centuries. Astragalus drives Lyme bacteria out of the lymph nodes, making the Lyme more susceptible to be destroyed.
Dosage: 1000 mg a day
Diatomaceous Earth
DE is quite hard. On the hardness scale where diamonds are a 9, diatomaceous earth is a 7. This is very important because these millions of tiny hard and sharp diatomaceous earth cylinders pass through the small and large intestines to “scrub” the walls.
DE also acts as a toxin/parasite/bacterial/endotoxins/viral/ magnet. It absorbs toxins such as Lyme as they are excreted along with bile into the digestive track. DE slashes the Lyme bacteria into pieces with their sharp edges to be eliminated form the intestines and prevents it from being absorbed back into the blood.
Dosage: Start out with 1 tbsp a day in a glass of water. Can increase two 2x/day.
Colloidal Silver
Silver holds the secret for its ability to kill bacteria. Colloidal silver makes the bacteria’s cell membrane permeable leaving it susceptible to be eradicated. The net result of silver’s onslaught is bacteria with severely damaged defenses.
Interestingly, studies have shown that…
Therefore, if you have been prescribed an antibiotic to treat Lyme disease, then it would greatly benefit you to add colloidal silver.
Mary’s doctor specifically recommended Mesosilver to treat her Lyme disease.
Dosage: 1-2 tbsp colloidal silver a day on an empty stomach
Vitamin C
Vitamin C, specifically given through IV form, has great benefits for those suffering from Lyme disease. Vitamin C radically enhances the immune system. It has the ability to increase white blood cell function allowing the body to attack Lyme disease more effectively. It also contains strong antioxidant components that help decrease Lyme disease symptoms such as pain and inflammation.
Many practitioners across the country now offer IV vitamin C therapy. If this is not an option, I recommend the fat soluble form of vitamin C called ascorbyl palmitate.
Dosage: 1000 mg ascorbyl palmitate 3x a day to start. Can be increased to 2000 mg 3 x a day.
As for my bullseye rash, I opted to take the antibiotic Doxycycline. It is very effective as a treatment for early Lyme disease and I did not want to take any chances. I encourage you not to take chances either! If you spot the bullseye rash, or have flu-like symptoms after seeing a tick on your body, please go to the doctor immediately. Natural cures are wonderful. However, antibiotics have their place and curing early Lyme disease is one of them!
However, if you have been battling Lyme for years, I recommend the supplements mentioned in this article. They helped Mary to begin to feel normal again and improve her symptoms. They can do the same for you as well!
Lastly, take steps to prevent Lyme in the first place by using geranium essential oil as a natural, effective repellent!
If you liked this article, then you’ll love these:
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Sources:
[1] http://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2013/p0819-lyme-disease.html
[2] https://www.lymedisease.org/lyme-sexual-transmission-2/
[3] Abdel-Rahman et al 2001, ATSDR 2004, Corbel et al. 2009
[4] ATSDR 2004
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