Article from pharmacist Suzy Cohen

[Guest guest]

http://www.dearpharmacist.com/AutoImmune.html

Dear Pharmacist,

I have MS and I’ve taken the medicine Copaxone. Last year, you said not

to rev up my immune system with vitamins. Can you explain why and tell me

what kinds of supplements are safe?

R.T., Decatur, Illinois

A: Imagine looking into the mirror, but instead of seeing your sweet

self, you see a creepy robber and then start punching yourself, and it

hurts. That’s autoimmune disease ­ your immune system perceives its own

tissue as an invader, then seeks to destroy it, little by little. With

rheumatoid arthritis, the joints are primarily affected; with

Hashimoto’s, it’s the thyroid; with MS, it’s the brain and spinal cord

nerves and so on.

Avoid high doses of vitamin C, beta carotene, cat’s claw, echinacea,

ginseng, among others. Why add fuel to the fire? Doing so may cause you

to slip out of remission and into more misery. I think I heard someone

just say, “Ah ha!”

Copaxone has become a popular prescription drug choice for MS sufferers

because it seems to spark some relief in patients, plus its side effects

are reportedly less disabling. There are several other medications and

your physician will know what’s right for you.

I’ll share some tips in the space provided, but there are so many other

nutrients. Readers can to my weekly health newsletter for free

(

www.DearPharmacist.com) and I’ll send you more information and

dosages on every column I write. For now, consider a gluten-free diet and

any of these nutrients:

DHA: A type of essential fatty acid found in

fish oils that helps nourish nerve cells and balance angry inflammatory

chemicals. You often find this substance in fish oils that contain both

DHA and EPA together. This is fine, however, it's the DHA that is

most important. You can find how amounts of pure DHA in cod liver

oil supplements.

Since the brain is about 60 percent fat, it's clear why a healthy fatty

supplement like DHA is so important. Deficiencies of this fatty

acid may increase your risk of depression, multiple sclerosis,

inflammation, memory loss and even alcoholism. We also need healthy fats

to combat the effects of all the bad fats we get in our diet. The DHA

helps make all the neurons and cells communicate with one another

better. It also reduces inflammation and cools the body off.

 

Vitamin D: The sunlight vitamin seems to

help with MS; it's because the sunlight helps your skin create vitamin D

which ultimately forms a hormone in your body. When it becomes a

hormone, it is called calcitriol and affects 200 genes, some of those

genes are in charge of your immune system. This is why vitamin D

helps balance the immune system and protect you from cancer according to

some studies. People with MS, should take 5 - 10,000 IU

cholecalciferol (or D3) if it's okay with their doctor. The sun is

fine too, you can't overdo vitamin D when it comes from the sun.

The problem is that heat, and hot temperatures make some people with MS

much worse, so supplementation may be the best way to get vitamin

D. One more thing, prescribed forms of vitamin D are not natural forms

that the body easily recognizes. I may be going against the grain

on this (conventionally-speaking) but I prefer natural vitamin D

(cholecalciferol or D3), rather than prescribed forms which are usually

D2 or some other unnatural form of D.

Melatonin: It’s your sleep hormone, and

people with MS seem to lack it. In this case, I prefer synthetic

versions of melatonin because the natural sources come from cow

brains. I don't recommend cow brain-derived melatonin because it

could have contaminants in it. Melatonin is the sleep hormone that

you naturally make when the lights go out and you fall asleep. When

the sun shines in the morning, that's the signal for your brain to stop

making melatonin (and for you to wake up). In people with

autoimmune disorders, especially MS, this circadian rhythm is off.

Melatonin dosages of about 1 or 2 mg taken each night can help with

sleep, and reduce inflammatory chemicals in the body.

Methylcobalamin: It’s a form of vitamin B12

that helps you remyelinate and it's the remyelination process that helps

people with MS the most. All it means is that you are recoating the

sensitive nerve fibers. Most people know B12 as

" cyanocobalamin " and they take it for energy. I don't recommend

that form because it is harder for your body to use and eliminate since

it has a little 'cyanide' molecule on it. Don't freak out, it's not

enough to hurt you, but it's enough for me to recommend that you take the

proper form of B12, the methylcobalamin. It's easy to find in

health food stores, you just have to get used to reading labels.

Sublingual forms are just fine, or chewable tablets.

 

Padma Basic: This centuries-old formula was

handed down from Tibet. It’s sold without a prescription in the United

States, but overseas, this is a drug called “Padma 28.” It’s all natural,

with 20 herbs and spices that balance your immune system and squash

inflammation. The nerd in me examined this one-of-a-kind blend of herbs

which includes ginger, valerian, clove flower, resurrection lily,

heartleaf and others.

It helps autoimmune sufferers because it’s “cooling” to an immune system

that’s on fire. It’s also great for the blood circulation and heart and

has well-designed clinical trials to back its use in atherosclerosis,

angina and heart failure. There are very few products that actually help

put people back into remission with MS, this is one of them in my

opinion.

Diseases that have names ending in “itis” are all inflammation states.

Padma can help with any kind of “itis” like hepatitis, arthritis,

thyroiditis, bronchitis ­ and get this, it might stave off a root canal

(pulpitis)! Yes, there’s a study to prove it. Padma Basic is sold online

at the Web site,

 

www.econugenics.com or by phone at 800-308-5518. They even post their

research for other scientific junkies like me.

N.A.C.: This stands for N-acetylcysteine and

this turns into glutathione in the body. That's important for

people with autoimmune problems because glutathione cleans up the liver,

and it sweeps away free radical damage in the body. People with MS

are usually deficient in glutathione. One way to get this is by

supplementing with N.A.C. (sold widely at health food stores) or to drink

whey protein shakes.

Inosine: Inosine is usually associated with

body builders. It increases muscle strength and performance, as well as

energy and stamina. When inosine is taken in combination with

D-ribose (Corvalen or Morningstar Minerals sells this), you really see

improvements in people with MS who are dealing with poor muscle strength,

lack of coordination, atrophy, leg pain and weakness. Fitness experts

recommend inosine to help with strength training.

Now, this may be a bit technical, but I realize some of you are going to

print this and show it to your physician, so here goes: People with

MS produce a lot of a substance called " peroxynitrates. "

Peroxynitrates are damaging to the the myelin. Uric acid is a

scavenger and hunts down these bad " peroxynitrates " thereby

inactivating them. Inosine MAKES the uric acid so you can see now,

how inosine serves two purposes, one to improve muscle health and two,

helps you reduce inflammatory chemicals which worsen MS.

Inosine is sold online, and in some health food stores. It helps

your body make " uric acid " and people with MS are actually

deficient in uric acid. You may have heard of uric acid before, in

fact, people who have too much get a condition called gout and they have

to avoid foods and supplements that raise uric acid. But people

with MS have the opposite situation, they have very LOW levels of uric

acid. Inosine is a supplement that is a precursor to uric acid and

in a small study of 11 people, everyone who took the inosine supplements

saw a halt in disease progression (remission). Three people

actually improved. This may not be enough to recommend it to

everyone with MS, but I think it's worth a try. Not too much,

remember, it can cause gout.

Dosages vary to a great extent ranging from 1,000 - 5,000 mg per

day.