- I have read Definitions of Hepatitis C by Patricia Doyle,
PhD. I agree whole-heartedly with her assessment of this problem. I want
to thank her for her personal frankness and for bringing hepatitis C to
the forefront as a big problem for our society's future.
-
- It is truly unfortunate in this day and age of technology
and scientific magnificence that we continue to be dependent on a medical
system that can only give palliative therapy for our afflictions. Although
I was trained in our conventional system my heart kept me on the path of
truth. Today I am what I call a Real Doctor working with Alternatives to
Conventional Medicine.
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- When we are told that we have a horrible affliction such
as Hepatitis C it is a truly helpless moment. We are told that it is incurable
and contagious with limited therapies available to us. These therapies
are expensive and they will make most people very sick to the point of
destroying one's livelihood. Maybe, at the most, 18% of those individuals
accepting these therapies, such as Interferon, will be able to appreciate
a benefit.
-
- What happens to the rest? They get sicker and eventually
die.
-
- What other choices does one have? Usually we are fast-tracked
by the medical "experts' to the latest "experimental protocols."
These protocols are expounded upon while any alternatives are at best merely
mentioned. So there you are, take it or leave it. They, or I guess I, should
say, we are the experts in mind control. The doctors frighten us to death
to get us to sign on the dotted line.
-
- Have you ever actually read and understood a consent
form? The form is designed so that we consent to forsaking our God-given
rights as individuals. Sign the form and you become a guinea pig, or even
worse a statistic.
-
- Because of my own personal interest in our innate abilities
to heal I found alternatives that not only work but that will heal. Several
entities are needed to succeed. We have to believe in ourselves, rather
than "the experts." We do have choices. In addition, you and
I know about ourselves better than anyone else does. Next, we must acknowledge
our affliction and what it means to us. Then, a support team is required
to help us when we are weak in body, spirit and/or mind. The team can be
as large or as small as you make it but what is important is that your
team supports you in your decisions. They are not there to make your decisions
for you. And lastly we must have the integrity to do what we committed
ourselves to even if it seems impossible. We must make a contract with
ourselves!
-
- If I were told today that I had Hepatitis C, I have to
admit I would be scared. Just hearing it scares me. I try to get rid of
labels as quickly as humanly possible. Before jumping into any treatment
I would have to educate myself on the how, when and where I got myself
into this affliction. It is the result of something I did.
-
- I must take on the responsibility and not blame. If I
blame I will not be healed!
-
- To be healed is an art of communication. There has to
be an understanding of where we have been and where we want to go from
where we are today. The answers are there. We just have to look hard. One
of my patients told me, "Every thing is an illusion." Boy, was
she right. So we must search for the truth.
-
- I live in Arizona where there is access to Alternative
Medicine. But even here it is not the mainstream practice. It continues
to be shunned by the conventional medical system. So I would look to the
Naturopathic School for guidance and options. Most of the time your insurance
company will not readily accept this kind of treatment. Keep the pressure
up. Eventually they will because it is ethically right. I worked with and
studied with the Naturopaths, the Homeopaths and some Chiropractors. There
are the good, the bad and the ugly among us all.
-
- Combined offices may share their knowledge and expertise.
So I would chose one with an Internal medicine doctor, a D.O. or M.D and
with a Naturopath/ Homeopathic doctor. I am probably biased since this
is how I found my own way towards the infinite possibilities to healing.
-
- Alternative Medicine to me is actually an ancient art
that was lost to the Western world. Let us take a look at how a person
with Hepatitis C would be approached and treated.
-
- Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver. This is a
cascade of reactions to a foreign substance. In this instance we are dealing
with a virus, a very tiny package of DNA that multiplies inside of our
cells. In the process of our body trying to rid our body of the virus the
delicate liver structure is gradually destroyed. If enough tissue is destroyed
we begin to see its effects. This is chronic cirrhosis. Chronic hepatitis
C may develop into cirrhosis in about 20% of chronic hepatitis C. Hepatitis
C can turn chronic in up to 50% to 69% of the cases. Hepatitis C antibodies,
which are used in testing, may take up to 12 months to become positive
following exposure.
-
- Hepatitis C is transmitted usually through contaminated
blood, usually through transfusions, IV drug needle sharing, and I suspect
it may be transferred sexually. It can also be transferred from mother
to fetus. It is important to find out how we have contracted the infection.
Once it is known that we have the infection we have to take care to not
expose others to it. So we need to educate ourselves on the causes of hepatitis
C. It is still a relatively new disease; therefore just when we think that
we know everything there is to know we must update our knowledge base.
-
- Again hepatitis is an infection and a state of inflammation
that may become chronic. In medical terms this means that we do not know
how adequately to treat this disease. There are experimental protocols
out there, some more popular that others, but at best around 18% of cases
benefit. This is a poor response.
-
- So what can we do?
-
- First of all, we do not want to cause further damage
to an inflamed liver. We need to take a look at the toxins we are consuming
on a daily basis. The liver is an organ without which we cannot live. It
is the detoxification center of our body. All our body fluids are filtered
through the liver, which cleans our fluids the way a car's oil filter does.
Like an oil filter, it can get dirty and clogged up.
-
- Let us start by taking a look at our daily diet and our
medications, both over-the-counter and prescription. Even the most innocent
types of remedies may be sources of stress for your liver because this
is where they are assimilated. The most common types are pain relievers
such as Tylenol, Aspirin, Ibuprophen, Acetaminophen, and Naproxen. To make
it easier, stop taking all over the counter remedies for now. They will
only inhibit your recovery.
-
- That was easy!
-
- Now what in the diet could cause stress to the liver?
What do I mean by stress? Anything that will keep your liver enzyme tests
elevated. Avoiding alcohol, caffeine, coffee, black tea, cola, and chocolate,
and sugar are important to decrease the stress load on the liver.
-
- Beneficial foods are concentrated with fruits and vegetables
because of their flavonoid compounds. Especially useful are soups with
various green leafy vegetables.
-
- Now that we have started to eliminate stress-causing
substances, let us concentrate on the things that we can do to regenerate
or heal the liver. Above I mentioned that the liver can become clogged
up with mucous and debris or dead cells. We need to find ways to clean
up the pathways or ducts. Our liver has two major pathways of assimilation
known as Phase I and Phase II pathways. We can clean up Phase I but if
Phase II is not also cleared we will not see the benefits of our efforts.
-
- You may have heard of Milk Thistle or Silymarin. It works
on the Phase I pathway. Use standardized extract (70-80%) 400mg twice per
day (1/4 teaspoon 2x//day Omnivite nutrition Inc.). Can also use intravenously.
-
- For the Phase II pathway we need a supplement with a
sulfur group. The best molecular compound would be glutathione 300 mg in
the a.m. and p.m. Other compounds are methionine 250 mg 2-4x/day and MSM
or methylsulfonylmethane 1000mg 2-4/day.
-
- You will need to supplement with a high potency multivitamin
and minerals without iron. The fat-soluble vitamins are the most critical
especially if cirrhosis is present (50% of patients have fat malabsorption).
-
- Multiple antioxidants are needed. Quercetin 500mg in
a.m. and p.m. CoenzQ10 250-500mg in a.m. and p.m.
-
- Green tea - couple cups per day. DHEA if levels are low
in chronic hepatitis. Glycerrhiza - solid extract 1/2 teaspoon 2x per day.
N-acetyl cysteine 500mg 2x per day. Tumaric or curcumin - have shown hepatoprotective
effects against inflammatory conditions of the liver found in toxic exposure.
It increases the flow and solubility of bile. For our immune system I recommend
Flax seed oil with borage for the omega 3,6,9 free fatty acids 3 TBSP per
day. You need to keep it refrigerated immediately after using to prevent
it from going rancid. It is great for our mind, heart, gut, and immune
system.
-
- Selenium is a mineral tested specifically with hepatitis
B in China. We have to be careful not to take too much but 200mg per day
is fine. It is also good for congestive heart failure, dementia, and metabolic
problems like diabetes.
-
- Our gut needs care, too. This is where we absorb all
our nutrients. Some of the other supplements mentioned above also work
to benefit the gut though we need some kind of probiotics to support nice
fluffy small intestinal villi. I like Primal Defense "HSO" -
Beyond Probiotics. As it turns out our gut has a very important role that
is indirectly and at times directly related to our immune system. In other
words if our gut is not healthy are immune system is not healthy.
-
- There are other supplements to boost your immune system
like ImmPower AHCC, MGN3, and various Maitake antiviral preparations.
-
- This last supplementation is vital: It is an infusion
of high doses of vitamin C, from 50 to 75 gm per infusion. What is an infusion?
An infusion is made by taking a liter of salt solution that matches our
body fluids acidity - such as 9% normal saline solution - then adding other
compounds to it. Once we have our final solution made at a slow rate we
drip it into the veins. Why do I like infusions? With an infusion we can
have an effect over the whole body very quickly. The infusion is circulated
through our body with each beat of the heart!
-
- Why is vitamin C used? Dr.Linus Pauling studied the compound
ascorbic acid, or vitamin C, for much of his life. He found that vitamin
C is an effective antiviral agent that is non-toxic to our bodies. This
is an important concept. Those of you who have already been treated with
Interferon understand that this treatment itself can make us very ill.
With the vitamin C infusion there are minimal side effects.
-
- The intravenous infusion should also have doses of calcium,
magnesium, B complex. While this is infusing you should get an IM injection
of methylcobalamine. The vitamin C in high doses kills the virus. It is
best to keep the vitamin C level in the blood at a continuous level therefore
we will have to receive an infusion up to two to three times per week at
first and maybe for many months up to a year. Before you start with these
high levels of vitamin C you must be tested for an enzyme in the red blood
cells, G-6-PD. If your red blood cells do not have the normal level of
G-6-PD you risk hemolysis of your red blood cells with high doses of vitamin
C. If your level does come back at a lower than normal level you can still
receive between 50-75gm of vitamin C with each IV - just not the higher
doses.
-
- To beat this thing it takes diligence, to say the least.
We don't have to be perfect but we have to keep the therapy and management
program in the "on" position for at least a year to beat it.
Even when the liver tests are normal and the hepatitis C titers (viral
load) are coming down we have to continue the program. I think the virus
may hibernate in the little crevices in the body, only to leech out a little
at a time. This is why it is important that we keep the therapy going over
the course of a year.
-
- As you can see, to beat hepatitis C one must look at
the whole body - not just at the virus. This is why it is called holistic
medicine. In holistic medicine it is the whole body that is brought back
into a balance. When we are balanced we are whole and at our optimum state.
We speak of the whole as being parts of the mind, body and spirit. So far,
we have been working with the body. What about the mind and the spirit?
-
- Well, in Chinese medicine the liver is part of a triad,
the liver, the spleen and the lungs. These three things are connected;
they communicate with one another or maybe they don't. If they do not communicate
well we have dis-ease. When we are seeing this dysfunctional triad, I think
of sadness. This means we must take a look at our lives to acknowledge
a sadness that we have not addressed. We generally do not connect our emotions
with our illnesses. We generally adapt unconsciously and fail to notice
this relationship.
-
- So, now is the time to take notice and do something about
it!
-
- As our mind starts to acknowledge these things in our
lives and starts to act on a different level our body and organs will begin
to communicate as they are meant to. I call this kind of communication
"being in the flow." If we tell our mind how we want to live
our life then our body will follow the directives it is given. It is actually
very simple so don't try to make it more complicated than it is. I know
it is hard at first. All the experts in the world do not know how you feel.
Do they? So why look up to them? Look at yourself and believe in yourself.
Do not second-guess yourself! Start by knowing who you are!
-
- A way I have found to reach this kind of understanding
is through some old methods. All one has to do is do it! Tai Chi and Yoga
to achieve knowledge and understanding. By using these movements we can
get in touch with ourselves. So I definitely recommend starting either
one of these disciplines.
-
- This gives us a starting point for healing ourselves
of hepatitis C. I hope that I have given some knowledge and information
that will help you in your journey to wellness.
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- Dr. Robbi
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- Robbi Borjeson, M.D. practices Intensive Preventive Care.
Her undergraduate degree, from Northwestern University, is in Medical Technology
and Microbiology. She obtained her MD from Rush Medical College. She finished
one year of General Surgery at Illinois Masonic Medical Center in Chicago
before changing to Internal Medicine at Good Samaritan Regional Medical
Center in Phoenix. As a postgraduate she has worked extensively with nutrition
and holistic forms of medicine.
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