Hi all, would love to hear from you guys what would you recommend for fighting severe osteopenia/beginning of osteoporosis. It is a girl and she is 33 y/old.
I would appreciate any comments/advice. Thanks in advance.

Hi, Mry_PL,

Sorry this is happening to this young woman. Is there a diagnosed cause to her problem; it seems unusual? It would be good to know how well her body metabolizes minerals from food, and go from there. Certainly, any diet/lifestyle that is acidifying--high in foods that demineralize the tissues, like animal products, but also soda pop--would not help someone in this situation. Leafy greens and seeds can be excellent, easy-to-digest sources of calcium and other necessary binding minerals. So increasing the consumption of these should help. Also, doing light impact physical activity should keep the ligaments and tendons working well, and also encourage the bones to recalcify.

I hope you get more helpful responses, and that this young woman is willing to make some changes to help herself. Good luck.

You may want to consult an N.D. or some other naturalistic healer.

You could research the ratio of calcium to magnesium and more often than not you'll find adding magnesium to your diet will offset too much calcium the typical diet has. Also, research vitamin D3 (not D2). More or lots more greens in her diet..juicing would be an easy way to get more greens in. There are lots of recipes for green juices.

When you incorporate more whole foods, leave out the processed foods more vitamins, minerals, and nutrients are available for your body.

Love,
Prism

If stomach acid is low that would be the first area i would work on improving, so that they are absorbing nutrients needed for the bone matrix such as silica which are heavily acid dependant for absorption.

[www.vegankingdom.co.uk]

Hi all,
appreciate your time reading my post and replying to it.
To cut the story short, this is my wife who was diagnosed with Lupus around 10 years ago. Sadly according to the doctors the only way of treating this was to take cortisone *(steroids) and for a longer while 1 year or 2 she was on 15-30mg a day. Then the dose was reduced to around 10 for another year (as far as I can remember) and then she reduced it to a minimum like 1-3mg a day.
That was all over 4 years. Now for at least 3 years she is off that but the result is as stated above.
Doctors forgot to mention that side effects are really bad and the main one is that she may develop osteopenia.

She is vegeterian but we were raw veg for a period of about 8 months and it worked.
Now back to a cooked food but still lots of raw produce..

I see what u saying more and more greens into the diet.
Is there anything else we could do to stop the process from progressing ?
Probably not much we can do to fix this permanently ...
So what kind of produce would you consume and how would you approach that problem.
Visiting normal doctors does not make any sense as they will give her more tablets
Tamukha:how would we know on how her body metabolizes minerals from food?
Prism: what did you mean by ratio of calcium to magnesium ?
Powerlifer: how would you improve her level of stomach acid and how would we know its incorrect ?
Probably most of these question sound silly but we simply don`t know on how to approach this problem.


Looking forward to hear from you.

Hi, all the legit academic research that I've done points to exercise, rather than calcium supplementation as the only way to reduce bone loss. IMO, this together with less acid forming foods, such as Tam mentioned is the very best way to combat the disease.

jalan

Low stomach acid symptoms manifest in poor digestion, burping with meals, gas, bloating, undigested food, opportunistic overgrowths such as candida. Bitter herbs on the back of the tongue pre meal will increase stomach acid and pancreatic enzymes for digestion.

Exercise is very important without it, most of these nutrients will do very little. Silica is the most important nutrient when it comes to bone health, some good sources include green leafy vegetables, nettle leaf and seaweeds.

Also sounds like her adrenal gland function may be poor due to the prolonged steroid use which can atrophy and weaken the adrenal glands further.

[www.vegankingdom.co.uk]

Mry_PL,

Blood tests could indicate any deficiencies, but improving digestion would help prevent any future ones.

Again, a less acidifying diet, mineral rich plant foods, and exercise are the keys. With her disorder, it may be slow going on the last one at first, but if your wife keeps at it, it will help. The things that are being recommended, as you probably already know from your prior raw experience, are thought to help with the core disorder, as well.

I do wish your wife a full recovery; I believe that because the cortisone treatments were to blame for the bone deterioration and they are now ceased, and she is still young, the damage can be reversed with the right regimen. Good luck!

Hey Mry_PL,

Steroid-Induced Osteoporosis destroys bone density by impairing the cells that build bone - osteoblasts. These are the same cells that natural progesterone builds up.

Here are a couple old posts of mine that will discuss this in more detail and in my next post I will post my File Preview on Lupus.

[www.rawfoodsupport.com]
The Progesterone, Osteoblast & Osteoporosis Connection
John Rose (---.HSTN.splitrock.net)
Date: 11-04-01 22:40

Hi Annie,

Here's what Sherrill Sellman says about osteoblasts, "Several problems can result from this (progesterone) deficiency. One is the month-long presence of unopposed estrogen with all its attendant side-effects, as already mentioned. Another is the generally unrecognised problem of progesterone's role in osteoporosis.

Contemporary medicine is still unaware that progesterone stimulates osteoblast-mediated new bone formation. Actually, it is progesterone that stimulates new bone tissue and is capable of reversing osteoporosis at any age. Lack of progesterone means that new osteoblasts are not created and osteoporosis can arise.12 A third major problem results from the interrelationship between progesterone loss and stress. Stress combined with a bad diet can induce anovulatory cycles. The consequent lack of progesterone interferes with the production of the stress-combating hormones, exacerbating stress conditions that give rise to further anovulatory cycles. And so the vicious cycle continues."

Sellman continues, "By definition, excess estrogen implies a progesterone deficiency. This, in turn, leads to a decrease in the rate of new bone formation in a woman's body by the osteoblasts-the cells responsible for doing this job. Although most doctors are not yet aware of it, this is the prime cause of osteoporosis."

For more information go to: [www.nexusmagazine.com]

I hope that this helps......................John

PS A good book on progesterone deficiency is "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause" by John R. Lee, M.D.. Lee is not a raw foodist, but he does have a good grasp on hormones.

PPS Blake, unhulled sesame seeds have ~10 times the amount of calcium as hulled sesame seeds.

[www.rawfoodsupport.com]
Re: John have you worked with people with osteoporosis??
John Rose (---.HSTN.splitrock.net)
Date: 11-11-01 07:52

Hi Blake,

Yes, I have helped many women reverse osteoporosis through a raw plant based diet, weight bearing exercise and natural progesterone. Osteoporosis is not only due to excessive bone loss from eating an acid forming diet of meat, dairy, grains, coffee and alcohol, but it’s also from a lack of new bone formation due to a lack of progesterone and exercise.

According to Dr. John R. Lee, "Postmenopausal osteoporosis is a disease of excess bone loss caused by a progesterone deficiency and secondarily a poor diet and lack of exercise. Progesterone restores bone mass. Natural progesterone hormone is an essential factor in the prevention and proper treatment of osteoporosis."

Imo, postmenopausal osteoporosis is a disease of excess bone loss mainly caused by the SAD, which not only makes us lazy so we do not exercise, but also pollutes our bodies, which not only creates a progesterone deficiency, but this intercellular pollution also makes us so stupid that we pollute our environment (see xenobiotics below). Unfortunately, Dr. Lee has been trained as a medical doctor and does not know about raw foods, so he places his emphasis on prescribing progesterone and considers lifestyle factors as secondary. Dr. Lee also emphasizes the effects of xenobiotics, and here are my notes from Dr. Lee's book, "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause":

Chapter 5

HORMONE BALANCE, XENOBIOTICS, AND FUTURE GENERATIONS p. 50

“Throughout this book I will be referring repeatedly to xenobiotics or xenoestrogens, foreign substances originating outside the body that have hormone-like and estrogen-like activity in the body, and thus a profound impact on hormone balance. I will use the term "xenobiotics" as a generic reference to substances with a hormone-like effect on the body and "xenoestrogens" to specifically describe those with an estrogenic effect on the body." p. 50

"Nearly all xenobiotics (xenoestrogens) are petrochemical based, ..." p. 50

"Such chemicals are now referred to as ‘xenobiotics.’ The majority of xenobiotics mimic the action of estrogen, thus the common use of the term xenoestrogen." p. 51

"Some hormonal mimics (e.g., progestrins and xenoestrogens) activate the receptor to stimulate the hormone effect while others will occupy the receptor and block the natural hormone from doing its work." p. 53

[JR - Progestrins and xenoestrogens occupy the receptor and block the natural hormone from doing its work.]

"Xenoestrogens ...are fat-soluble and nonbiodegradeable." p. 56

"The major source of oral intake of xenoestrogens is by way of animal fats, particularly red meat and dairy fats. In addition to the fact that these animals are often given estrogenic substances to fatten them up for market, they are also exposed when they eat grains that have been sprayed with pesticides. The xenoestrogens accumulate in their fat. ...Anyone who eats meat and dairy products is eating these compounds and they are all potent estrogens. They accumulate in our fatty tissues (breast, brain, and liver) and cause estrogen dominance, with all of its attendant symptoms." p.56

"DDT, PCBs, or dioxins...are just three of the most potent xenobiotics that stay in the body for a lifetime." p. 56

"The majority of other xenobiotics come to us through petrochemical pollution, including some from rather bizarre sources." p. 57

"...synthetic estrogens are being dumped into waterways all over Europe and North America and have entered the food chain." p. 57

"...another ubiquitous source of xenoestrogens: nonylphenols, breakdown products of surfactants commonly used in detergents (including dishwashing liquids), cosmetics and other toiletries, and pesticides and herbicides." p. 57

"Ironically, nonylphenols are found in the spermicides used for birth control in diaphragm jellis, on condoms, and in vaginal gels to facilitate dispersal. This directly exposes the vagina and cervix to xenoestrogens." p. 57

"Another nearly universal source of xenoestrogens is plastics. Some types of plastic shed xenoestrogens when they are heated." p. 58

"I believe xenoestrogens are affecting our children in profound ways. Girls used to begin menstruation around age 16. Now they may start menstruating as early as 10 years old. p. 59

Peace and Love..........John

Here is my File Preview on Lupus…

...File Preview...
• I was very sick with Lupus about 8 years ago. I became a "natural hygiene vegan" and tapered off medication. I then did a 14 day water fast - the joint pain and inflammation just melted off! I eat predominantly raw foods now - and can recreate pain and symptoms by eating too much oil, salt, fried foods...
• The living foods-raw vegan lifestyle is critical to the treatment of this condition, however, it is even more important in treating auto immune disorders. 70+% of the bodies immune tissue surrounds the GI tract.
• ...nothing is so important in handling overactive immune problems as diet--- and the living foods diet is the best!
• He encouraged me to give up red meat plus the "four whites": salt, sugar, flour and dairy. He also introduced me to juicing and the principles of proper food combining. I made these changes and immediately my energy improved, headaches disappeared and other symptoms were lessened.
• The more my body unclogged and cleansed, the better I felt. This motivated me to eat a vegetarian diet and then a vegan diet. I found that if I wavered from eating only the good foods my existing symptoms would become worse and past symptoms would return. While I felt much better, the sun still exacerbated my symptoms and the lupus still dictated my activities.
• During the two weeks of following Ehret's transitional diet I gained more energy and became symptom- free except for the sun sensitivity. The less cooked food and more raw food I ate the better I felt and more energy I had to resume an active life. I no longer had any doubts that I would be able to conquer the lupus. I was much better, even though the sun sensitivity remained.
• They explained that lupus symptoms are nothing more than indications of the body's level of toxemia. I realized that I needed to eat 100% raw all of the time to allow my body to heal.
• Today I continue to eat 100% raw fruits and vegetables and work at balancing and simplifying my life. Learning of "the 100% raw food solution" not only helped give me my life back, it has also given me a natural mind-body-spirit connection that is beyond description. At age 51 I am healthier and more energetic than at any other time in my life!
• The article states the disease is incurable. This is an accurate reflection from a traditional medical perspective, however, nothing could be further from the truth.
• SLE, like RA, responds marvelously well to the protocol that I have revised from Dr. Brown's forty years of research with antibiotics. My initial major revision was to incorporate the use of my eating plan into the program. That has produced amazing results in many patients.
• ...patients consuming nearly every type of fish these days are showing high levels of mercury in their systems. This is because fish from most sources, including fresh water, farm-raised or ocean, are contaminated with mercury
• If caught in the early stages, fasting will completely reverse lupus. I have so many case histories. Most of them come to me on drugs like prednisone, and I wean them off them slowly. A fast allows the body to detoxify the toxins that cause many autoimmune diseases.
• Dr. Joel Fuhrman, of New Jersey, has reported the novel treatment of fasting for lupus patients. He has fasted them, even some with fairly severe kidney disease, for up to 21 days, with excellent improvement. He cautions that this must be done only with strict medical supervision.
• My experience has been similar to Joel's, fasting is the way to go with lupus and the results are especially good if the pathology is in the early phase.
• Like all autoimmune disease, SLE is a challenge but does seem to respond to fasting and a health promoting diet.
• Anemia, serum vitamin B12, and folic acid in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, and systemic lupus erythematosus. OBJECTIVE. ...The purpose of this study was to analyze the incidence and nature of B12 and folic acid (FA) deficiencies in a cohort of rheumatic patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), psoriatic arthritis (PsA), and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). RESULTS. The incidence of anemia was high: 49%, 46%, and 35%, in RA, SLE, and PsA, respectively. Low levels of serum B12 were also frequent (24%), with almost similar occurrence in the three disease groups. Deficiency in FA was rare (<5%). ...only 26% of the low-serum-B12 patients had true B12 deficiency. CONCLUSIONS. The incidences of anemia and decreased serum B12 levels were high in these three groups of rheumatic patients. However, true tissue deficiency seems to be much rarer.
• Serum cobalamin and transcobalamin levels in systemic lupus erythematosus.
PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to assay serum cobalamin levels in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) as there are few case reports on the association of pernicious anemia and SLE. RESULTS: Cobalamin levels were found to be significantly lower in the SLE group compared with a normal control group, ...None of the SLE patients had been found to have pernicious anemia. CONCLUSION: Our results may indicate a subtle cobalamin deficiency in SLE patients without pernicious anemia.
• We conclude that in patients with lupus nephritis, dietary supplementation with fish oil affects the mechanisms involved in inflammatory and atherosclerotic vascular disease.
• Vitamin D levels in women with systemic lupus erythematosus and fibromyalgia.
OBJECTIVE: Many patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and fibromyalgia (FM) may spend less time exposed to the sun than healthy individuals and thus might have low vitamin D levels. RESULTS: ...SLE patients not using vitamin D supplements had lower 25(OH)-vitamin D levels than those who did. CONCLUSION: Half the SLE and FM patients had 25(OH)-vitamin D levels < 50 nmol/l, a level at which PTH stimulation occurs. Our data suggest that in SLE patients HCQ might inhibit conversion of 25(OH)-vitamin D to 1,25(OH)2-vitamin D.
• The diet should be chosen with the expectation that whatever the cause, the diet would be capable of assisting the body's own defense and elimination systems. A generally well balanced diet, chosen from a strictly vegetarian menu with an emphasis on fresh vegetables and fruits, is believed to be the best. Salt should be kept to the minimum. The elimination of all animal products would rid the body of one possible source of toxins and viruses, and would avoid one potential source of abnormal stimulation to the immune system.
• Plaquenil Sulfate Prescription Drug Information and Side Effects. The active ingredient in Plaquenil sulfate, hydroxychloroquine, is used to treat malaria but has emerged as a treatment for various rheumatic diseases including lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.
• Side-effects of prednisone In the chapter "Treating Lupus With Medications", I talked about prednisone as being the single most important factor in improving the outlook for lupus patients. It is a very powerful tool in the treatment of lupus, it is usually effective in bringing lupus under control and it saves lives. However, there is a price to be paid for this success. If we observe what happens to patients taking high doses of prednisone, there is no doubt this drug can cause a wide variety of side-effects. In this section, I will be talking about three types of side-effects: short term, long term and those that can occur at any time in the treatment.
• Corticosteroids
Steroids produced by the outer part (cortex) of the adrenal gland are called corticosteroids.
• Prednisone
Prednisone is the synthetic corticosteroid preparation most often used in the treatment of lupus.
• In some people, stomach inflammation (gastritis) or gastric ulcers may occur with NSAID use. This can cause bleeding, either obvious and painful or hidden and painless. This loss of blood may lead to anemia.
• Abnormal sulphur oxidation in systemic lupus erythematosus ...in 35 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE); 25 (71%) showed impaired sulphoxidation and 21 (60%) produced virtually no sulphoxides, compared with 17 (36%) and 2 (4%), respectively, of 47 healthy controls.
• There is much one can read on the subject of aging, aching bones, and youth hormones. The Number #1 Researcher in the field is Dr. Ray Peat, PHD, a nutritional scientist who specializes in Auto Immune diseases. Dr. Peat is a regular contributor to America's best holistic bulletin for doctors, The Townsend Newsletter for Doctors and one of America's most respected medical researchers. He's written many books, thousands of articles for medical journals and has his own newsletter. His book on Progesterone treatment of Lupus and rheumatoid arthritis is seminal.
• Dr. Peat says diagnosed Lupus sufferers should take DHEA, Progesterone, Pregnenolone and DMSO.
• The criteria for diagnosis of Lupus is by its most common symptoms: photo sensitivity, low leukocytes in blood, anti-DNA antibodies in blood, renal disorder, oral ulcers, body rashes, skin lesions and aching bones and joints. It's easy to see why Lupus in early stages can be mistaken for rheumatoid arthritis. All aching joints are the same in the dark!
• According to another Lupus researcher, Dr. Stanley Jacob, MD Oregon Health Sciences University, (the author of 8 textbooks, 140 Medical Journal articles,) one should take DMSO with the anti-biotic Minocycline. As DMSO is a harmless mineral, we can use it orally, in venous transfusion or topically. Always dilute with distilled water. As DMSO is a carrying agent that moves toward the bones, it acts to transport the antibiotic into the affected areas, just as it will transport hormones applied topically.
• To the diet we added sulphur foods: asparagus, garlic and onions to help calcium absorption and to aid the repair and building of bone, cartilage and connective tissue.
• Canavanine has been reported to cause a worsening of symptoms in several cases of people who suffering from Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (S.L.E.).
• It is important to maintain the larger health perspective that sprouts and other live foods are incredible life- giving and healing foods. Raw legumes are an exception to this, except for mature alfalfa and clover sprouts, and small amounts of garbanzo and mung sprouts.
• Systemic lupus attacks multiple systems in the body which may include- the skin, joints, blood, lungs, kidneys, heart, brain & nervous system. Symptoms can include- Swelling and pain of the joints, muscle pain and weakness, fatigue, sun-sensitivity, hair loss, "Butterfly" or malar rash (a rash across the nose and cheeks), fever, anemia, headaches, recurrent miscarriages.
• All autoimmune diseases share much in common. Research on any particular one can often apply to the understanding of other autoimmune diseases. They all have similar underlying causes and conditions.
• One point. Some researchers feel that sometimes an autoimmune illness (and Parkinson’s disease) may be caused by consumption of aspartame (in diet drinks, Equal, Nutrasweet) and/or MSG.
• There are two general immune system issues in an autoimmune disease. Poor cellular communication because there is a lack of cell markers on the cell walls. And an over-activated, out of balance immune system that attacks those cells.
• Different types of long chain carbohydrates reside on the surface of cells. Communicating information about that cell, and allowing it to interact and exchange information with other cells. One thing they communicate is that they are a part of the body. When cells have these markers, they won’t be attacked. Any cell that doesn’t have these cell markers is treated as “non-self” by the immune system. And can be attacked.
• The essential heavy molecular weight carbohydrates that make cell markers aren’t commonly in our diet. With healthy individuals, this is not a problem because they can be made from ordinary carbohydrates. However, the process required to do this is enzyme intensive. And as an autoimmune disease develops, enzymes are destroyed throughout the body. (You’ll read more about this in a few minutes.) So you become enzyme deficient and unable to produce adequate amounts of long chain cell markers.
• This may be why some cells can’t communicate that they are part of the body. If the immune system is overactivated, it may attack those cells. Causing inflammatory damage, and ultimately organ and joint damage.
• Acta Anatomica, a European journal, states that long chain carbohydrate molecules have a coding capacity surpassing that of amino acids.
• To put it simply, your immune system has two different modes or sides. Th-1 or T helper-1 cells fight pathogens like viruses, mycoplasma and bacteria that are inside the cells. Th-2 or T helper-2 cells fight pathogens outside the cells. When the immune system is healthy, these two modes function together, supporting each other in keeping the body healthy. But if they get out of balance, if the Th-1 side becomes weak and the Th-2 side over-activated, or the reverse, serious problems develop.
• They found that patients 20 to 30 years old had a collection of immune cells that looked as though they belonged to 50 to 60 year olds.
• Worn out Th-1 cells can result in an elevated, overactive Th-2 immune response because they help control Th-2 cell activity.
• Exposure to toxins wears out the immune system, and thus may cause Th-2 cell overactivation. In addition to the vast number of toxins in our food, water and environment, toxins come from poor digestion, leaky gut syndrome (usually caused by candida), toxins in drugs and medicine like mercury in vaccines, and mycoplasma bacteria, fungi that produce mycotoxins, and other infectious pathogens that excrete toxins as a byproduct of their metabolism.
• The pathogens may differ, but the biotoxins they produce all do their damage by setting off an "exaggerated inflammatory response" in humans. While hiding out in fatty tissues where blood-borne disease-fighters can't get at them, they ‘trick’ the body's immune system for fighting germs into launching attacks of inflammation in many organ systems, including joints, muscles, nerves and brain.
• According to Dr. Paul Cheney, one of the top autoimmune doctors in the world, viruses, especially the herpes viruses, and some bacteria and mycoplasma, make proteins that mimic IL-10. This tricks the immune system into activating Th-2 cells instead of the Th-1 cells that are supposed to activate and kill these viruses. They trick the immune system into thinking that the threat is coming from the Th-2 side. So the immune system shifts from the Th-1 mode that would attack the viruses or mycoplasma, to the Th-2 mode that does not.
• Garth found that the mycoplasma do activate an immune response. They then hide from the immune system inside the immune system itself, in white blood cells. Making them very hard to get rid of. They can cause infections deep within any organ.
• The immune system ends up attacking cells which have mycoplasma in them, and can get “turned on” to attacking the host cells.
• Mycoplasma also damage the immune system when they invade Natural Killer cells. This destruction renders the body susceptible to viruses.
• What happens when Th-2 cells are activated and Th-1 cells are worn out, is this… Dr. Cheney explains that your body’s only defense against pathogens (like viruses and mycoplasma) ends up being Th-2 side RNase L activity. He explains that RNase L cannot kill pathogens. It can only stop them from reproducing. According to Cheney, "It's a line in the sand saying 'No more replication', and it waits for Th-1 to come and kill them. But Th-1 never comes. RNase L sits there and grinds away, possibly going up and down as the pathogens activate and reactivate. But they never get wiped out. RNase L holds the line, waiting for the cavalry that never arrives." This RNase L activity causes big problems because... While it is trying to hold the line, it is, according to Cheney, inhibiting all the enzymes in the body, disrupting protein synthesis, and generally making you miserable. Even worse, as RNase L grinds away, it eventually shifts into "afterburner" desperation mode - a more powerful and deadly low molecular weight form. Research indicates that this form of RNase L is up to six times more destructive to enzymes and protein synthesis than the typical form. What is supposed to happen when a healthy person encounters a virus or mycoplasma? The regular form of RNase L inhibits replication, then the immune system revs up and wipes them out. After that everything down-regulates, and they recover. In an autoimmune situation, the RNase L activity shifts to a more destructive lower weight form, and does not shut off. It stays activated much longer, resulting in pronounced cellular metabolic dysfunction. This overactivation of RNase L also effects the liver. Liver function declines because the enzymes used by the liver to detoxify toxins are being creamed by the activity of the aberrant RNase L. When this happens, a person become susceptible to toxins. This happens because RNase L has wiped out the enzymes the liver needs to detoxify the body. This leads to high levels of toxicity. Wrecking havoc in the body.
• Antibodies are produced by the Th-2 side to attack pathogens in the blood. Normally, excess antibodies are removed by the liver. However, when liver enzymes have been destroyed by RNase L activity, the liver may not be able to remove the excess antibodies. They then might attack cells in an autoimmune response.
• When a doctor gives a person suffering from an autoimmune disease prednisone or another steroid, which most do, they are trying to turn off the immune system. Unfortunately, the success rate is low because they are using a poor tool. Because steroids don’t just turn down the Th-2 side, but they also wipe out the Th-1 side. This side needs to be boosted, not depressed. For unless it can be brought up to normal, it will allow the Th-2 side to overactivate. Both sides are always in a balance. If one is too low, the other will naturally be too high. Like a teeter-totter.
• Clearly, putting the immune system back in balance, turning off the Th-2 activity and strengthening the Th-1 side is of primary importance. To do this you have to deal with the mycoplasma or viral or fungal or bacterial infections which may cause it. You have to deal with the depleted enzyme levels caused by excess RNase L activity. And with the toxicity that builds up in cells when the liver and the cells cells themselves can no longer get rid of toxins.
• When you eat cooked and processed foods, the enzymes in the food are destroyed. The digestive process needs those now dead enzymes to break down food in the upper stomach. It naturally produces only enough enzymes to finish breaking down the food in the lower stomach. So when you eat foods which no longer have live enzymes, the food doesn’t break down in the upper stomach. And the body has to produce extra enzymes to try and break down the food in the lower stomach. And if you have an autoimmune disease and don’t have many enzymes, how are you going to produce extra enzymes? You can’t easily do so and digestion may suffer.
• Dr. Cheney says that Immune System Activation of Coagulation, called hypercoagulation, needs to be dealt with early on or other treatments may not be effective. In hypercoagulation, pathogens and/or toxins activate the immune system to lay down fibrin in blood vessels. The fibrin coats the walls, blocking oxygen and nutrients from getting to nearby tissues. Researchers found that 80% of patients with an autoimmune illness had this coagulation. So this condition undoubtedly is common in chronic fatigue.
• Lack Of Oxygen Common in Autoimmune Conditions
• Candida Yeast Infections Major Issue In Autoimmune Diseases
• Glutathione deficiency has been found to be virtually universal in autoimmune diseases. This deficiency has two major implications: detox failure and viral/microbial activation. Glutathione plays a major role in detoxification. This deficiency impairs the body’s ability to get rid of toxins.
• To detoxify successfully, this glutathione deficiency must be addressed.
• Glutathione detoxifies many pollutants, carcinogens and poisons, including many in fuel exhaust and cigarette smoke.
• The liver is the main detoxification organ of the body. In the liver we find very high concentrations of glutathione, as it is a major factor in numerous biochemical detoxification pathways.
• Excessive levels of heavy metals may also be common in autoimmune diseases. One doctor who tested all his patients found that over 80% of them with an autoimmune disease had excessive mercury levels. They are difficult to get rid of, and are especially harmful as they disrupt cell metabolism. Heavy metals slowly collect in your body, irritate cells and literally can wipe out the immune system. For some people, this could be a major cause of their fatigue.
• Michael Biamonte, at his health clinic, tested the mercury levels in his patients with various illnesses. He found that 84% of his clients with candida had elevated mercury levels, and that they were 60% higher than normal. The exact same numbers held for clients with parasites. 86% of clients with Epstein Barr Virus had mercury levels elevated by 68%. For those with chemical sensitivities 85% were 70% elevated and found similar numbers for autoimmune diseasess. Most other conditions were much lower.
• Getting rid of mercury is confounded by the bile loop. The liver picks up mercury from the bloodstream where cells have put it to be detoxified. However, rather than getting eliminated something else happens. The liver puts it into the bile in the intestines. Unfortunately, this mercury is rapidly absorbed once again into the blood stream with other fluids. So instead of the liver being able to get rid of the mercury it detoxifies, the mercury gets routed back into the body.
• People with autoimmune illnesses are very deficient in growth hormones.
• Lack of growth hormones means serious trouble. GH and stage 4 sleep are interdependent. No growth hormone - no stage 4 sleep; no stage 4 sleep - no growth hormone. And no stage 4 sleep and you wake up in the morning tired and worn out.
• ...the more raw foods you eat the better.
• Cysteine is optimal for the intracellular production of Glutathione. If Cysteine undergoes any heating or processing, as all conventional dairy and dairy by-products do, it is denatured and converted to Cystine.
• “Intracellular Delivery of Cysteine and Glutathione Delivery Systems.” It concluded that when subjects were fed naturally occurring Cysteine, it gave them significantly more production of Glutathione than when fed Cystine.
• MSM (an organic sulfur) may be excellent for helping to make lung and skin tissue more flexible. For potentially softening and healing scar tissue over time.
• ...most forms of Noni produce a nitric oxide effect in vitro...
• “Once we have understood that abnormal molecules from denatured or unnatural foods do, in fact, accumulate in the body, we can see how, in some cases, the cells themselves (and not only the residues they contain) might become targets for destruction. If certain conditions are met, abnormal molecules deposit on the cell’s membrane. Every cell in the body carries some kind of I.D.: its membrane displays specific proteins for the immune system to recognize. If the proteins on the membrane mark the cell as being part of the body, it is not attacked. But if the proteins on the membrane are alien, the immune system attacks and destroys the cell. When abnormal, undigested proteins deposit on the cell’s membrane, they can overwrite the cell’s marker proteins, and the cell itself is viewed as being foreign, even if it is a perfectly healthy body cell. Such a cell is dealt with as someone would be if his identity tag were overwritten with the name of a dangerous terrorist.
• After awhile the body can no longer distinguish between the undigested food particles and the tissues in which they are lodged. It sends its army - the immune system - to attack the foreign area, no longer just the foreign cells. So whatever the organ, whatever the tissue where the rotting food accumulates - that part of the body will be attacked as foreign. And we'll call it an autoimmune response.
• Fasting and raw foods allow the body to detoxify the toxins that cause many autoimmune diseases. Dr. Joel Fuhrman has successfully fasted lupus patients for up to 21 days and some of them even had severe kidney disease.
...End of File Preview...

Peace and Love..........John

[www.drbookspan.com]

Scroll down to the topic of your choice. This is a new website to me and I'm exploring it. There is a lot to read thru on topics of interest to me. You may find something useful.

[www.enerex.ca]

Scroll down again to the subject you want. The calcium to magnesium ratio apparently have been updated since I learned it was at 2:1 with Calcium being 2x more than magnesium. So I'm going to go do some new research on this myself!

Love,
Prism

Hi all,
I really appreciate all your comments as it is very important to us.
We took all the recommendations on the board and they are very valuable for us.
We are trying to do some further reading based on your suggestions and if you don`t mind I may still ask some questions...
Our main concern at this stage in regards to osteoporosis is that we are planning to start a family and not sure how would the pregnancy affect my wifes bone density ?
Any comments much appreciated..
Thanks very much in advance and looking forward to hear from you.
Kind regards, Klaudia and Peter !