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PARASITES and Chronic Illness...

dannybex

Senior Member
Messages
3,561
Location
Seattle
After a 2 month long crash, with few "ups" and a lot of big "downs", I have an appt set up with a doc in 2 weeks. After describing my worsening symptoms, the nurse suggested that I could have a hidden, chronic, parasite infection, and/or multiple parasite issues.

My first pre-official CFS crash came after a trip to Mexico and a week of diarrhea (there's a word one learns to spell with this diagnosis!). That was way back in 1996, then it wasn't until 2002 that a stool test turned up parasites, and was treated, then came back clean in two subsequent tests. Plus, I've had heavy metal issues which seem to go hand in hand with chronic parasite infection, including lyme. (And wondering...could XMRV be considered a 'parasite'?)

But now am quite 'bloodless'...the acupuncture clinic I go to (non-profit, only $5!)...the acupuncturist diagnosed me as 'blood deficient', which fits in with my worsening symptoms: anemia, neutropenia (both of which my regular doc refuses to take seriously), plus, during this crash, overall much weaker, loosing muscle, skin problems, dermatitis, dry eyes, dry sinuses, weak vision, worsening tinnitus, collagen problems, blah, blah, blaaaaaaaah. Not enough blood to deliver the nutrients needed to hold this body together...hence the drying out, the falling apart, the catabolism, no matter how many nutrients I take in or digestive enzymes I take with meals.

Plus, I've read that stool testing can be unreliable due to the many stages of parasite infections...not to mention the fact that parasites can spread to other parts of the body...

Also, when I think back over the past 20 years, I've had shifting/loose teeth off and on, even when I had regular cleanings, checkups. I read years ago about the parasite connection, yet never took it seriously...until now. Just read a study last night that linked a parasite with intractable gingivitis / periodontal disease.

SO...am wondering if anyone else has explored this avenue, and what you're taking to address the buggers?

I'm looking into: Colloidal silver, diatomaceous earth (food grade, essentiallly the same as Klinghardt's silica formula I think), and would appreciate any feedback. Right now I can't take any herbs that are too 'heating' or too bitter, as they just dry me up even further.

Many thanks in advance,

Dan
 

Hysterical Woman

Senior Member
Messages
857
Location
East Coast
Hi Dan,

I believe olive leaf extract is a parasitic.

Sorry to hear that you are struggling so much right now. Please keep us updated on how you are doing.

Take care,

HW
 

anne_likes_red

Senior Member
Messages
1,103
Hey Dan,
How about coconut oil? It needs to be unrefined and cold pressed to be healing. The lauric acid it contains is supposed to be antiprotozoal...anti parasitic too (I think?). And capryllic acid is antifungal. You get nutrition from it too which is a bonus. :)

This site does a good sell on it. http://www.mnwelldir.org/docs/nutrition/coconut.htm (after you read past the nasty oil part).

I remember reading the Weston Price observations on dental deterioration in Pacific cultures that stopped eating their traditional diet (that presumably would have included coconut for many) in favour of a western style diet.
I follow a W.Price type diet anyway, minus the grains...so I'm already sold on coconut oil, but if you do a search you might come up with some info to convince you to give it a try. I think at least it would meet your criteria to be not too heating or bitter (as many of the traditional anti parasitic herbs are).

Best,
Anne.
 

Sushi

Moderation Resource Albuquerque
Messages
19,935
Location
Albuquerque
After describing my worsening symptoms, the nurse suggested that I could have a hidden, chronic, parasite infection, and/or multiple parasite issues.

Plus, I've read that stool testing can be unreliable due to the many stages of parasite infections...not to mention the fact that parasites can spread to other parts of the body...

SO...am wondering if anyone else has explored this avenue, and what you're taking to address the buggers?

I'm looking into: Colloidal silver, diatomaceous earth (food grade, essentiallly the same as Klinghardt's silica formula I think), and would appreciate any feedback. Right now I can't take any herbs that are too 'heating' or too bitter, as they just dry me up even further.

Many thanks in advance,

Dan

Hi Dan,

I've gone many rounds with parasites as I have traveled extensively in 3rd world countries. I have also tried many, many ways to get rid of them. As far as testing, I went to probably the best parasitologist in the US--in NYC--and he scraped the inside of the bowel and also took blood to test. He said that stool tests miss parasites about 90% of the time and blood tests were also necessary to confirm diagnosis. Parasites are wiley little critters (just like so many of the things we deal with). :worried: He also tested 3 times to catch all the stages of development.

I had tried different natural treatments (which I much prefer) but the parasites were still there. I have also taken Paragone, but not at a time when I "knew" I had parasites, so I don't know whether it was effective or not.

The parasitologist prescribed pharmaceuticals. I refused flagyl (cause it had gone so badly before) but he did give me some stuff that did work.

And parasites, yeah, for sure they can be players in this mess. Just ask the doc to do a bowel scrape instead of stool test.

My thoughts, my experience! :eek:
Sushi
 

Sunday

Senior Member
Messages
733
Dreambirdie, I'm glad you're up and posting, and glad to hear you're getting some help. I have friends with parasite problems and they can indeed be very difficult to unravel. If you don't alredy know this, possible useful piece of info is that parasites have life cycles that affect your state of being. One friend was able to work out that her parasites had a 6-week cycle. That can be useful to know in terms of planning your activities and medications, and also it's possible it might help to identify the parasites. She did this by tracking how she felt each day, writing it down, and starting to see a pattern.

It's unfortunate that the U.S. seems to be behind other countries on the parasite thing - I think it is that we don't believe we have them. Since you're in the Bay Area, you might have better resources than most in this country. Michele Longo O'Donnell, in her book "Of Monkeys and Dragons" (2000), says, "I remember on several occasions, personally carrying a jar full of parasites to labs here in this city [San Antonion, TX], only to be told that it was something the patients ate!...In frustration, I then would take the same jar to labs across the Mexican border to be tested for parasites. The doctors and technicians would quickly produce books with pictures of the same creatures I carried down to them. Parasites are a known, serious problem in every other country. And they are also known to be the direct cause of many symptoms and diseases, particulary digestive/intestinal and neurological." pg. 133

Her ideas may be controversial, but she's a nurse and spiritual healer, and has clearly dealt with a lot of parasites, usually by non-AMA means which she feels are superior. I don't wish to be discouraging, but just in case you get another round of "nothing there" or "we're not sure" you might want to look for a doctor from another country for a second opinion.

One of my friends feels that the Rife machine helps her with the parasites (although you get those nasty dieoff effects, but maybe that's just unavoidable with any therapy). Do they prescribe/advise herbs at your wonderful non-profit acupuncture center? Or did you mean that these wouldn't work for you? I personally have used walnut hulls for intestinal parasites, but that was when I was healthy. They might be too drastic for you, I don't know.

I'll be interested to hear what you find out in your journey. I suspect a lot of us have parasites.
 

susan

Senior Member
Messages
269
Location
Gold Coast Australia
Dan,
I had a worsening of symptoms too and did the Metametrix stool test...exepensive I know. The upshot is I have 35million grams of salmonella, unknown type of parasites plus all the other ususal nasty bugs and a big dose of candida. My Doc says the stool test is so thorough they can tell the DNA of a parasite.

My treatment for Salmonella is a product from Germany an ecoli called Mutaflor. I take one tab a week. I could not believe what that has done to me. 2 days after I take it I am up all night in the bathroom BIG TIME....no sleep and completely exhausted but it feels good to be getting rid of the little b......s 4 times now ...getting less each time.

For the parasites and candida I buy an Australian product called Intestaclar...around $26.....has lots of herbs in it. Doc says it gets right down to the villi in the bowel to kill off candida....slower but more effective than Diflucan drugs and kills the parasites too.. Then I have to have coconut oil with it.
Then I take a general strong Probiotic to kill all those other nasty bugs

I would sell my mothers silver to get this test done. Had it doen her ein OZ and a complete waste of time as it did not show the great depth of the problem.

One is supposed to have a measurement of 200 good bacteria and I have just 15....imagine how my body must have been be working. CAndida did not show in my stool test but in my Organic Urine acid test. Doc says it can be missed at stool testing but they excrete their toxins into the urine where it showed a high level.

I am methylating under my Doc at the moment.
 

Wayne

Senior Member
Messages
4,298
Location
Ashland, Oregon
Ground Zero for Lyme is the Mouth

Also, when I think back over the past 20 years, I've had shifting/loose teeth off and on, even when I had regular cleanings, checkups. I read years ago about the parasite connection, yet never took it seriously...until now. Just read a study last night that linked a parasite with intractable gingivitis / periodontal disease.

SO...am wondering if anyone else has explored this avenue, and what you're taking to address the buggers?

Hi Dan,

Boy, it sounds like you're really going through the wringer these days. So sorry to hear about your difficulties. I'm going to just post a link here tonight and perhaps come back tomorrow and re-read this thread before I post more. The link you might find interesting:

Ground Zero for Lyme is the Mouth

I'll paste the first three paragraphs of this article below.

Take care, Wayne
.................................

Ground Zero for Lyme is the Mouth

The mouth is the most important factor in the breakdown of health; there is no close second. All the antibiotics, and all the holistic approaches to healing, are likely to fail if the mouth has been overlooked.

The mouth is a reservoir of bacterial infections that become entrenched within the structure of teeth and trigger the high number of chronic degenerative diseases now epidemic in America, including Lyme.

Lyme has the ability to embed itself in tooth structure, where it goes undetected and remains unreachable by antibiotics. Each tooth has some three miles of tubules that emanate from the main canal. Bacteria hide out in all that footage. Lyme is a spirochete similar to spirochetes that cause syphilis. Spirochetes by nature burrow into tissue, such as teeth, bones, and soft tissue like the brain. These areas are the toughest to get to, impenetrable by drugs and herbs.
 
Messages
86
Has anyone tried to get rid of parasites with a Humaworm cleanse? It's pretty popular over at curezone and with alternative people and i have talked to at least 2 other people that it has helped a lot. One guy said it cured his SIBO that was off the charts and he was only eating vegetables for a year. I have a lot of digestion issues and even before when i was "healthy", I was ALWAYS hungry.
 

dannybex

Senior Member
Messages
3,561
Location
Seattle
Hello all,

Just wanted to post a quick thank you for all the replies...and the variety of suggestions and kind words. VERY MUCH APPRECIATED.

My eyes are shot for the day however, so I'll have to come back tomorrow...hopefully, and post a more detailed reply.

It's clear that parasites are definitely difficult to detect and probably also to treat...but they may just be a key underlying and/or overlooked contribution to CFS/ME/Fibro...cancer...etc..???

d.
 
S

Suzy

Guest
I know who you're referring to powertool4. He did a lot in addition to the Humaworm. He also fasted each month and did bowel cleansing. It was more than Humaworm that helped rid his SIBO.
 

Min

Guest
Messages
1,387
Location
UK
It's a different problem I know, but I was diagnosed with cryptostrongylus pulmoni (microscopic nematode lung worms) as a co-infection of Lyme by live blood microscopy. The (successful) treatment was a course of Ivermectin.

The tooth problems you mention could be caused by Lyme disease, the spirochaetes love hiding in gum margins - I've had no end of dental problems. (I take a herbal regime for Lyme as I could not tolerate the oral antibiotics nor afford the intravenous ones.)
 

susan

Senior Member
Messages
269
Location
Gold Coast Australia
It is a guessing game until you get a stool test done. My CFS friend has been so ill and down to lesss than 8stone. She has had every MRI cat scan biopsy and tells me she is dying.. On ND told her husband she was dying......lots of DR. shopping. She went to my holistic DR and ordered her stool test thru Metametrix and it came back as her having helicobacter pylori...even tho she had a negative biopsy for it.??? She has blastocystis hominous...nasty bug, hookworms, candida and unknown parasites. Doc says we should have a ratio of 9:1 good to bad bacteria in the gut and she has 3:1 bad to good. So when your neurotransmitters and immune system are made largely in the gut no wonder we are sick No wonder she was losing weight.
 
S

Suzy

Guest
Is she better now Susan ? You didn't mention if she feels better, is putting on weight.
 
Messages
66
It is a guessing game until you get a stool test done. My CFS friend has been so ill and down to lesss than 8stone. She has had every MRI cat scan biopsy and tells me she is dying.. On ND told her husband she was dying......lots of DR. shopping. She went to my holistic DR and ordered her stool test thru Metametrix and it came back as her having helicobacter pylori...even tho she had a negative biopsy for it.??? She has blastocystis hominous...nasty bug, hookworms, candida and unknown parasites. Doc says we should have a ratio of 9:1 good to bad bacteria in the gut and she has 3:1 bad to good. So when your neurotransmitters and immune system are made largely in the gut no wonder we are sick No wonder she was losing weight.

I'd like to know also. My weight is creeping down and it is related to some digestive issue, though unclear. What happened to your friend, how is she treating or did she treat her digestion?
Thanks,
Velha
 

guest

Guest
Messages
320
Hello all,

Just wanted to post a quick thank you for all the replies...and the variety of suggestions and kind words. VERY MUCH APPRECIATED.

My eyes are shot for the day however, so I'll have to come back tomorrow...hopefully, and post a more detailed reply.

It's clear that parasites are definitely difficult to detect and probably also to treat...but they may just be a key underlying and/or overlooked contribution to CFS/ME/Fibro...cancer...etc..???

d.

Danny, you're not alone, I got the same symptoms as you. Seems I'm falling apart while dermatitis etc are killing me. The only thing that has helped me so far, was stopping ALL supplements and implementing a no sugar, no gluten, no diary diet. Good luck and keep me updated if you have found sth. that helped. Btw the sun helps me a little, probably through Vit D.
 

Sunday

Senior Member
Messages
733
Velha, I also had the weight loss thing, for over a year, whatever I ate I would still lose weight. Pretty sure I wasn't absorbing food, whether due to leaky gut or other digestive issues I don't know.

About 3 or 3 1/2 months into Freddd's active b12 protocol, my nausea level and frequency dropped noticeably, and it started feeling as if I were digesting my food and getting the value out of it more. RichvanK has posted elsewhere about the link between methylation and the digestive system.

This is not to say parasites couldn't be a problem here, just that there are many possibilities.

Dan, sorry in my brain fog I seem to have thought this was Dreambirdie's original question. I still think it might be worth going to a parasitologist who wasn't trained in this country. My friends with confirmed parasites have gotten very little joy out of AMA doctors from this country, though there may be some good ones out there who really know what they're doing. Don't know if walnut hulls are too drastic for you at this point but they do seem to be considered effective.
 

susan

Senior Member
Messages
269
Location
Gold Coast Australia
My friend only got the results 2 days ago....met her a the Drs yesterday looking like a scare crow. The Doc laughingly jokded .."I dont know if I want you in my surgery, you are so contaminated" She is to start many worming kinds of stuff, pharmacy kind and herabl plus probiotics......this is a woman who has had every MRI cat scan ate a radioactive sandwich for a gastric test for pain in the gut and yet the medical profession cant diagnose this accuratly......Her bugs are different to mine, I have the salmonella. Those old fashined ideas of our g/parents day of taking castor oil and magnesium salts regularly has some merit I think.

I think he will start methylating her when she is stronger.
 

froufox

Senior Member
Messages
440
I have had continuous problems with gut parasites/worms and who knows what else ever since Ive been ill. I was diagnosed with the crypto worm like Min about 2 yrs ago and have treated it with Ivermectin and tried various herbs too eg wormwood, cloves etc. I also tried treating my gut with something called Pripsen recently which you can just order online...its used mainly for pinworms in children. I used it a few months ago and it seemed to be very effective and I have just treated again with Pripsen over the past 2 weeks and again I am feeling a big difference in my gut....I feel less full and I am absorbing my food a lot better, and as a result I have more energy.

Although I do think that the problem goes much deeper than that, in fact I'm sure I read some research that showed that low glutathione predisposes to parasites/worms getting a hold in the gut, but I'm not 100% sure now.. will try and find that paper again. Anyway it would fit in with Rich's theory. I ALWAYS feel significantly better when I treat my gut though it is never a cure, just feels like a band-aid although it is nice while it lasts!!