Big Bird

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" HSI - Jenny Thompson " <hsiresearch

HSI e-Alert - Big Bird

Mon, 31 Oct 2005 08:00:34 -0400

 

 

 

 

 

HSI e-Alert - Big Bird

 

Health Sciences Institute e-Alert

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October 31, 2005

 

 

 

Dear Reader,

 

The death of a bird in Britain wouldn't normally be covered by local

news outlets in London, much less TV network outlets in the U.S. But

if that bird dies from the H5N1 " bird flu, " that's international news.

 

When H5N1 was found to be the flu that killed a UK parrot last week,

it was a relief to find out that the bird had died while in

quarantine, and had apparently picked up the flu from a quarantined

Taiwanese bird.

 

But that's fairly small comfort in a world already on edge about the

potential for an H5N1 pandemic.

 

Since the beginning of October, traces of H5N1 have been detected in

birds in Turkey, Romania and Greece. No humans have been infected in

these countries, but Bill Bonner (whose name many of you know from the

Daily Reckoning e-letter) offered this assessment of the European mood

in a recent DR: " Europe is watching the movement of Avian Flu bugs as

if they were a Mongol army. The whole continent is on the verge of

hysteria, with newspapers predicting 50,000 deaths in Britain alone. "

 

No hysteria yet on this side of the Atlantic, but plenty of

nervousness. So I'm not surprised that we've received many e-mails

like this one from a member named Leslie: " Can I please have info on

how to protect myself from this avian flu? "

 

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The good with the bad

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The best way to avoid seasonal colds and influenza is to strengthen

your immune system with regular exercise, a balanced diet of

nutritious whole foods, an adequate amount of sleep, and a minimum of

stress. Unfortunately, H5N1 is like a double agent spy who tricks the

immune system into defeating itself.

 

In a recent issue of his Baseline of Health e-letter, HSI Panelist Jon

Barron explained that H5N1 appears to trigger acute respiratory

distress syndrome (ARDS), just as the Spanish Flu of 1918 did. When

the immune system recognizes a virus unlike any that's been previously

detected, it launches into overdrive, producing a surge of immune

system chemicals that damage lung tissue when the surge becomes

extreme. Severe cases of ARDS lead to suffocation.

 

Obviously, it's not logical to defend yourself by weakening your

immune system. But there are ways to give your immune system a boost

when the enemy is as formidable as H5N1. Jon recently sent me an

e-mail with this note: " Building up the immune system without using

antiviral agents to lessen the viral load is likely to increase your

chances of dying with avian flu. On the other hand, building the

immune system AND using antivirals gives you the best of both worlds. "

 

In the e-Alert " Fantastic Four " (10/3/05), I told you about four

pathogen destroyers that Jon recommends as a sort of security force

for the immune system. (Just use the keyword " pathogen " to search the

e-Alert archives on our web site at hsibaltimore.com.)

 

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The Big Kahuna

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In addition to those four key pathogen destroyers, there's another

powerful antiviral nutrient that's well known, but still doesn't get

the recognition it deserves: vitamin C.

 

HSI Panelist Allan Spreen, M.D., believes that vitamin C can knock out

any virus - including H5N1 - if enough is taken. In an e-mail, Dr.

Spreen noted that the key word is " enough. " He writes: " The required

dose can, indeed, be huge...even upwards of 100,000 milligrams/day.

 

" During flu season, a person wanting some 'health insurance' would be

well advised to take 2,000 mg of C (orally) 3x/day, along with alpha

lipoic acid (ALA), 400-600 mg 1-2x/day. If you get flu-like symptoms,

then the vitamin C should be increased to 2,000-3,000 mg per HOUR, up

to bowel tolerance. "

 

In other words, the first signs of diarrhea indicate that you've

reached the upper dosage limit. But once a flu sets in, Dr. Spreen

says getting to bowel tolerance is " nearly impossible, " even with as

much as 100 1-gram capsules of vitamin C in eight hours. " Often, until

a certain threshold is reached (variable with both the victim, and the

extent of the infection), there are no changes at all - then wham, the

patient is (very) rapidly much improved. Once the virus is

overwhelmed, then a far lower dose will cause diarrhea. "

 

Intravenous mega doses of C (IVC) might be necessary to defeat a virus

as daunting as H5N1. To find a naturopathic doctor in your area who

can administer IVC, check the web site for the American College for

the Advancement of Medicine (acam.org).

 

As always, it's a good idea to consult with your doctor before

beginning any high-dose supplement regimen.

 

 

 

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....and another thing

 

And while we're on the topic of vitamin C...

 

There's been a remarkable breakthrough in the Katie Wernecke case.

 

Katie is the 13-year-old cancer patient who was taken from her parents

by Texas Child Protection Services (TCPS) in order to force her to

accept a cancer treatment that neither she nor her parents wanted her

to have.

 

Last month, in the e-Alert " Heart of Texas " (10/17/05), I told you how

the Texas Supreme Court had overturned an absurd lower court ruling

that prohibited Katie's father from visiting her. Now a district judge

has said he'll allow the Wernecke's to take their daughter to Kansas

to investigate an intravenous vitamin C cancer therapy.

 

This victory is a partial vindication for the Wernecke's. Last June,

after Katie had undergone several successful rounds of chemotherapy,

her doctor said Katie should have radiation treatment as a precaution.

The Wernecke's - naively believing they had a say in the matter - told

the doctor they would forgo the radiation because of the severe side

effects. They wanted to look into alternative therapies.

 

Little did they know they'd be treated like abusive parents for their

efforts to enhance their daughter's health.

 

The doctor informed TCPS that the Wernecke's were endangering their

daughter, and TCPS officials removed Katie to a foster home where she

spent the summer and early fall with very limited contact with her

parents.

 

Now - months later - Katie and her parents will resume the course they

wanted to take all along.

 

In the e-Alert " Cold Case " (9/22/05), I told you about a vitamin C

study from scientists at the National Institute of Diabetes &

Digestive & Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). When 10 types of cancer cells and

four types of normal cells were exposed to a vitamin C dose of less

than four millimoles (easily obtainable intravenously), in five of the

cancer cell types, about half of the cells were either killed or

apoptosis (cell suicide) occurred. Also, C exposure almost completely

halted the growth of surviving cells, but normal cells were unaffected.

 

To Your Good Health,

 

Jenny Thompson

 

 

 

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Sources:

 

" UK Parrot had Deadly Flu Strain " BBC News, 10/24/05, news.bbc.co.uk

" Katie May Try Other Therapy " Jamie Powell, Corpus Christi

Caller-Times, 10/22/05, caller.com

 

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