Hepatitis C infection

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By Dr. Howenstine, MD.July 14, 2005NewsWithViews.com

Having healthy bacteria in the intestinal tract has long been regarded as a prerequisite for good health. Older civilizations promoted this with fermented substances such as sauerkraut, unpasteurized yogurt, kombucha (fermented tea, mushroom, sugar) and raw milk. The lining surface of the intestines constitutes the largest immune structure in the human body. More than 50% of the body’s vital immune cells reside in the intestinal lining. Bacteria in the intestines improve the function of the whole intestinal tract, protect our body against pathogenic bacteria by blocking their entrance into the body,, create needed vitamins and hormones and maintain the chemical balance of the intestinal tract.

Healthy intestinal bacteria stimulate the immunologic function of the spleen, create a protective barrier against harmful organisms by coating the intestinal lining, compete with harmful bacteria for nutrients which curtails growth of bad bacteria, produce the beneficial natural antibiotic substances (acidophillin, bifidin, hydrogen peroxide), increases the bio-availability of calcium aid by fermenting soluble fiber are able to supply 5 to 10% of the body’s energy needs.

The normal balance of healthy bacteria is 85% good and 15% bad. This ratio is now reversed for most Americans.

Death of many healthy intestinal bacteria damages the function of the lining membrane of the intestine. When this membrane has been injured partially digested proteins, toxins, undigested food particles and infectious substances can penetrate the normally protective intestinal lining.. These “foreign” substances can initiate allergic responses to food , start infectious problems and lead to autoimmune reactions against the “foreign substances”.. Unfortunately healthy intestinal bacteria can be killed by many commonly experienced exposures:

Courses of antibiotics kill healthy intestinal bacteria leaving dangerous anerobic bacteria, yeast, fungi and mycoplasma to proliferate replacing the desirable intestinal bacteria. This may result in deterioration in immune defenses permitting new infectious diseases to occur easily and frequently.

Chlorine used to sterilize drinking water kills healthy bacteria

Non steroidal anti-inflammatory bacteria kill healthy intestinal bacteria. These drugs are widely used in inflammatory diseases.

Fluoride used in water for its supposed ability to prevent cavities is toxic to the good intestinal bacteria.

Because of the beneficial effects of having healthy intestinal bacteria many persons take probiotics. Probiotic substances contain living bacteria supplied in capsules and other novel forms of administration, that are thought to supply the intestinal tract with a large quantity of desirable living bacteria. All these probiotic products suffer from the same problem. It is impossible to know whether these products are actually delivering any living good bacteria to the intestines. Careful research studies have revealed that probiotic products often contain no living bacteria or so few that they could not be expected to bring about any meaningful benefit to health. Obviously the consumer may be wasting his money.

Some probiotics contain bacteria not normally found in the intestines. When these products are stopped these foreign bacteria are rapidly replaced by the common intestinal flora thus stopping any further benefits from the added bacteria.

A retired U.S. pharmacist, Dr. Sichel, had a daughter with a serious Hepatitis C infection. Dr. Sichel’s search for something that might help her led him to a Russian product derived from lactobacillus Bulgarica. When his daughter took this Russian preparation her blood viral load fell from 200,000 to zero and blood chemistries became normal allowing a complete recovery to occur.

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