Chlorella allergy?

I have just come to the realisation that the fact I have been feeling like death for several months was caused by chlorella.
I forgot to take it for a day and by the evening I felt so much better that I actually took my little boy outside to play (instead of continuing my intimate relationship with the toilet.)

I realise it was causing:
diarrhoea (12 to 20 times a day)
nausea and sometimes vomiting
headaches
all-over body pain (flu-like)
VERY severe muscular weakness
a feeling that I was poisoned or "full of dirt" inside. (I don't know how to describe this feeling but it was truly horrible)

Now my dilemma is:

Is this definitely an allergy/intolerance, or could it be the effects of heavy metal detoxing? (my mercury levels were sky high when measured last November and so were many other metals)

If it's an allergy, what could I use to substitute it? As I understand it chlorella is both a chelator and a binder - is that correct?

If it's the detox effect, does stopping it mean I have totally stopped my metal detoxing? I am still taking all the other methylation supplements and a porduct called "Toxic metal detox" which is a herbal mix. If that is the case, could there be a less diabolical way of getting these metals out of me?

Any information and suggestions on this would be so welcome.

i got the following excerpt from this page...

"It may be that the chlorella was raised in a watery mercury environment. Another explanation may be that it was causing the body to ‘detox’ faster than it was able to excrete. Hal Huggins has noted a similar reaction to blue-green algae and spirulina in a few people."

it also discusse how b12 can convert mercury ions instantly to the highly toxic methyl mercury...it could be that the chlorella contains methyl mercury...as it may "grab" it from the immediate enviroment, being a binder, that it's grown in...could be de-tox too fast like you say...not sure...i'm not a great advocate of using oils like epa (i think its called), i.e. balanced omega 3, 6 and 9 but i thnink they're a good short term (2-3 months) detoxer of metals...

It could be die off. In my experience Chlorella has an antibacterial or viral effect. It ALMOST made me better. But then the effect diminished and whatever was reacting to it, got resistant.
But it could be something else for you, just my 2c.

Hi Athene

I get the same response with spirulina. The same symptoms also occur with excessive omega-6 fats. Chlorella is moderately high in some omega-6 fats, but I am not completely sure this is the answer. I think it is an indirect effect, the high RNA content may be triggering our immune system, and the symptoms may be due to that. Too many maybes, this is a hard thing to pin down - but you are not alone in this response.

Bye
Alex

Athene,

Good to hear that you made it outside with your son today. It feels great doing those MOM things ...

I can't handle chlorella either. I may have tried too much too fast though. I could relate to your description of feeling like you were full of dirt ... I only tried it a couple of times. IMHO, we have to stay away from strong detoxes. In my case, at least, my liver and kidneys are strained enough as it is.

I use cilantro since it's supposed to detox metals. It's very gentle providing you don't overdo it too. I add mine to avocado or a salad or just eat it straight sometimes.

http://www.naturalnews.com/027434_cilantro_detox_health.html

I haven't been tested for heavy metals yet though. I know that since I have leaky gut I probably have a problem with metals too. And I know I have a problem with aluminum because I can taste the aluminum when I cooked with an aluminum pan or tin foil. TC ... Marcia

Hi Athene...

So glad to read you made the connection. Just my two cents, but I would not worry about replacing it with anything for now...at least no need to be in a hurry to replace it, especially if you're feeling better.

The fact that it gave you severe diarrhea and nausea, and sometimes vomiting does not suggest an allergy to me. It suggests to me that your body was saying...GET THIS OUT OF ME NOW! Something either about the chlorella itself, or perhaps if it may have been contaminated with heavy metals...whatever it was...your body didn't want it and was trying hard to get rid of it.


Chlorella is very controversial. Some doctors recommend it, others do not. Dr. Andrew Cutler PhD, who has studied and written on heavy metal poisoning (and recovered from CFS by getting rid of heavy metals), is strongly against it -- he considers it a weak chelator, so there's the potential to mess up a heavy metal situation. Here's a quote from his website -- keep in mind he's talking about heavy metal chelation protocols:

"Therapeutic approaches currently offered by some practitioners but which should NEVER be used (to detox heavy metals) include: DMPS by injection except when oral administration is contraindicated and dosage is low, DMPS or DMSA on any schedule not involving frequent administration of equal doses for at least several days in a row, EDTA chelation, or penicillamine in any form. Supplementary cysteine, glutathione, or a "high sulfur" diet, or chlorella should NOT be used. All of these "therapies" will be VERY HARMFUL to you."

http://www.noamalgam.com/

Now he may not be correct -- he's very outspoken -- but do your own googling and you can find more information, and read how others have improved -- or not -- or how they feel about Cutler -- on the web.

From a TCM perspective (chinese medicine) chlorella is very cooling to the body, so if you're generally cold overall (have low body temp) then it might not be right for you. If you're hot, or have fevers, then it might be something worth considering. I have never taken it because of the varying feedback I've heard, but also because I tend to have low body temps, and have since I became ill w/CFS.

hope this is helpful...

take care,

Dan

Just to add my experience with chlorella, four and a half years ago I started to use it. Up until then my digestion had been pretty good--I tended towards constipation all the time, but, handling that, good. After a dose of chlorella one morning with breakfast, I got severe vomiting, the worst in my life, throwing up thirteen times in as many hours. I didn't suspect the chlorella then but threw out all the food I had eaten in case of salmonella. But the next time I used chlorella--the following week was when I ventured it--I had a simliarly bad day of extreme vomiting and dehydration. That time I got rid of the chlorella and all the other stuff I had eaten that day. But two weeks later the severe vomiting and dehydration happened again. After that I got an extreme form of diarrhea. This was followed by two different doctors trying every antibiotic, anti fungal ,etc to fix my severe diarrhea. Nothing helped until I gave up all dairy, because with this illness I had lost my tolerance. That improved things by half. The next half came about through eliminating legumes, cabbage family, eggs, chocolate and I don't remember what. But then I was just on probation, and the condition was ready to return. I also had a great deal of gas, for the first time. Awkward and embarrassing! Now my system has become A LITTLE more tolerant and able to digest stuff.

So, I don't know if the chlorella was all to blame. But perhaps there are vulnerabilities with ME/CFS which can be overtaxed by such a "cleanser". For whatever reason, my digestive system "capsized" then and moved me from a state of constipated-normal to IBS with various common intolerances. Chlorella was on the scene--the cause, a factor or an innocent bystander--I don't know.

Sing

It sounds like an allergy or intolerance to the chlorella itself to me. I've taken it lots of times and never had any adverse effect at all. It is hard to recommend alternatives without knowing the reason you wanted to take chlorella, but here are some ideas: nondenatured whey and/or a modest dose of n-acetyl-cysteine (no more than 1 tab/day), wheatgrass juice powder, chlorophyll tablets, grapeseed extract.

I have also noticed that chlorella doesn't seem to work for me. Even small doses tend to loosen my bowels. I guess it's generally difficult to distinguish between detox and an allergy, but the experience is somewhat harsh so i prefer to avoid it.

Thank you everyone for your really useful insight.

Dannybex, I'm going to buy the book and find out more about Cutler's protocol. I already know that my mercury level is over 80 times the normal maximum, so I think focusing on that probably needs to be the centre of my treatment. I hoped my doctor (Meirleir) could guide me the right way, but I am seriously disillusioned with his abilities.

I think I will have to start being my own doctor again. As always.

Athene, I hope you report back to us on your experiences with the Cutler protocol, if you try it.

Having to be our own doctor seems very common here. I have been too. I sure hope that science starts producing some answers soon, because when my cognitive abilities go down more, I won't be able to be a doctor for myself anymore and THEN WHAT?

Sing

I'm planning to give my body a rest for a few months and let it do whatever detoxing and healing it can manage by itself.
Then I'll get a repeat of the metals test I had last November, to find out what my levels are compared to then.
After that I'll embark on the Cutler protocol.

I will definitely keep you updated, Sing. The more we share info amongst ourselves, the better. ALL the most useful advice I have benefitted from has come from members of this site, not from doctors.

I share your fear of losing mental abilities. I've lived with that fear all my life. Sometimes I have lost my mental abilities very severely, but my brain came back eventually. That's all I can say. It comes back when it can.

I'm not an expert, but I've read that a certain percentage of people have bad reactions to chlorella. I was reading customer reviews on a chlorella product that was sold by the kilo. There were dozens of people saying they take massive doses each day with no problem.

I suppose if you have mercury toxicity that's another story entirely. It's really disappointing that so many people recommend chlorella for mercury removal, but now I'm finding out that Cutler says no and apparently he's the gold standard in mercury removal.

I tried to find the sites that had info about chlorella, but only able to get this one source:
www.diagnose-me.com/treatment/chlorella.html
I had previously read about a great percentage of people with ME who lack the enzyme to digest chlorella. The site listed above (not sure they're really credible), but they do state that 30% of people can't tolerate chlorella maybe due to a cellulase insufficiency. That is what I had found when I researched the issue a few years back. I couldn't tolerate it at all, and I didn't feel it was a detox response, so I stopped taking it. This site suggests taking chlorella with a digestive enzyme if you have problems.

I've heard that it's pretty difficult to get chlorella tha't free of mold.

I'd suspect the most likely culprit is a reaction to the mold in the chlorella.

Chlorella causes issues for me too.

Both very interesting.
I thought humans weren't supposed to be able to digest cellulose anyway?
Mould might be the explanation for me as I am very allergic to it.

BTW I read the entire Andy Cutler book and never did his therapy as I was not convinced it would be safe.
His book is structured in a very muddlesome way and he contradicts himself in places, gives explanations with vital pieces of information missing, doesn't cite sources properly - basically, the book is a mess. The way it comes across is an exceptionally intelligent man whose brain has been badly mucked up. It didn't come across as a tried and tested therapy provben to work safely, or work at all. Unfortunatly.
Also the book is self published. Since it hasn't gone through mainstream publishing that means it hasn't actually had any form of peer review - or any review - at all. Which was another possible cause of concern to me.

Hi Athene,
I have been taking Chlorella for the past two weeks and been really sick...vomiting/diahorrea, sore kidneys and horrible flu like symptoms. I was searching the net to see what I could find about my condition and came across your post...thank you so very much for your post because now I know the cause for my problems. No more Chlorella for me ...I stopped taking it and now I'm on the mend ..all symptoms gone. I took Chlorella in order to build up my very weak immune system...and detoxify..I'll be really cautious the next thing I try..for sure.

I've taken around 2g a day without any problems, but with my mercury situation now I'm not sure what to do. If chlorella is beneficial for mercury detoxification then it seems almost like not taking it could have almost as much risk as taking too much. I know that's an oversimplification of the process, but that's where I'm at now in my thinking. I don't really know who to believe. I have questions about Cutler, but I'm sort of scared about Alpha Lipoic Acid too after hearing from his followers about the risks of ALA. I guess maybe I'll just take one chlorella capsule with every meal until I figure out what's best for me.

Chlorella is supposed to cause problems if you have amalgam fillings. I have amalgams, but I didn't notice anything bad from the chlorella pills I took for a month. But maybe because of something else I was taking at the same time.

When I take chlorella my kidneys also hurt and my urine turns dark which I think is because of blood in my urine. I also noticed more nasal congestion after chlorella. I don't know if these are detox reactions or if chlorella is just toxic to me.