Since the beginning of this year, COVID-19, also known as the coronavirus, has spread across the world at a rapid rate. As of November of 23, 2020, there have been approximately 59 million reported cases and 1.4 million deaths worldwide.

There have been over 10 million reported cases and 230,000 deaths in the United States alone, and these numbers are rising every day. These are harrowing statistics, and it’s important at this time that everyone continues to do everything they can to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

While there is still a lot we don't know about this virus, scientists and doctors have learned much in the past 10 months, and there are proven actions that individuals and communities can take to help slow the spread of coronavirus.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has released a list of recommendations to help keep yourself and others from contracting COVID-19. Here is a summary of those safety guidelines:

• Maintain at least 6 feet of distance between yourself and others to reduce risk of COVID-19 transmission. Maintain an even greater distance when indoors.
• Always wear a mask when you are around people who are not a part of your household, and make sure the people you are around are wearing a mask too! Masks have been shown to be very effective at preventing the spread of coronavirus, especially when combined with social distancing.
• Avoid the 3 C's: spaces that are closed (limited ventilation), crowded, and/or involve close contact. These include public spaces such as restaurants, gyms, offices, stores, places of worship, etc.
• If you do have to be in indoor spaces, try to keep your distance from others and always wear a mask, and make sure those around you are wearing masks. The WHO also recommends increasing the amount of ventilation when indoors with others (by opening windows, for example).
• Regularly and thoroughly wash and/or sanitize your hands.
• Meet people outside as much as possible. Limit the number of people you interact with indoors as much as you can (ideally, just your household).
• Make getting tested a regular part of your life, if it is accessible to you. In many cities right now, free COVID-19 testing is being offered. If it is easily accessible to you, getting tested weekly can stop COVID-19 outbreaks before they spread too far. This is especially important since so many people with coronavirus are asymptomatic, but still able to spread the virus.
• If you have any known contact with someone who has tested positive for coronavirus, or if you yourself have tested positive or have symptoms, stay home and self-isolate for two weeks.

The most common coronavirus symptoms are: fever, dry cough, and tiredness, but other symptoms include loss of taste or smell, aches and pains, headache, sore throat, nasal congestion, red eyes, diarrhea, or a skin rash.

There's a lot of misinformation out there about COVID-19, but we know that the virus spreads by respiratory droplets or aerosols, and there is clear data and evidence that shows that these WHO guidelines work. Limiting your time in close contact with others indoors, and always wearing a mask when you are around others, are very simple ways to have a huge impact on reducing coronavirus transmission.

Data gathered from states with and without mask mandates has shown that widespread mask usage led to a significant slowdown in a state's daily COVID-19 growth rate over time. This study estimated that by implementing mask mandates between April 8 and May 15, 2020, fifteen states plus Washington DC averted more than 200,000 COVID-19 cases by May 22, 2020.

Another study from June of 2020 looked at COVID-19 death rates across 198 countries, and found that those with cultural norms and/or government policies that encouraged people to wear masks had lower death rates than those without.

New studies from the CDC have demonstrated that cloth masks protect wearers by filtering out small infectious droplets. Masks with multiple layers of high thread count cloth are most effective at this. Multiple contact tracing studies conducted in the past few months have also found that mask wearing during the studied high-risk exposure situations (such as an outbreak that occurred on the USS Theodore Roosevelt, and flights that contained infected passengers) reduced infection risk by at least 70%.

In addition to the WHO guidelines, ensuring that your immune system is as strong as possible is another important step to take to keep yourself safe. Some vitamins and supplements that I recommend taking to strengthen your immune system include Researched Nutritionals Transfer Factor Multi-Immune, 10,000 IU of vitamin D daily, and 4,000 mg of vitamin C daily.

For more information on how to support your immune health with herbs, supplements, diet, colon cleansing, and essential oils, check out this article.

Even when it's not fatal, coronavirus can be devastating to a person's body, and many previously healthy people have reported long-term health issues after contracting the virus. It's time for us all to be thinking about our friends, family members, and community members, and do everything possible to stop the spread of coronavirus. This is not an individual virus or problem, and it will only be solved by communities taking care of and looking out for each other, by following the WHO guidelines and staying home, social distancing, getting tested frequently, and wearing masks as much as possible. These actions will also help protect you from the virus.

Labels: coronavirus, COVID-19, immunity support, mask usage, social distancing

Melatonin is a hormone, commonly known as the sleep hormone, which is released primarily by the pineal gland (a small, pea-shaped gland in the brain) in dark conditions. Your body's production of melatonin increases at night and decreases during the day, which helps regulate your sleep/wake cycle.

Many people take melatonin supplements to help them sleep, especially those who are suffering from insomnia or jet lag or have irregular sleep patterns.

Blue light has been shown to shut down melatonin production and disrupt the circadian rhythm. Sources of blue light include the sun, digital screens (TVs, computers, laptops, smartphones, and tablets), electronic devices, and fluorescent and LED lighting.

Many people who spend a lot of time on their phones or computers can have trouble sleeping, in part because their body is unable to produce enough melatonin due to excessive blue light exposure.

Solutions for blue-light-induced sleep irregularities include:

• avoiding blue light for at least 2 hours before bedtime
• wearing blue-light-blocking glasses when using electronic devices
• taking a melatonin supplement before bedtime

In addition to helping to regulate your sleep/wake cycle, melatonin provides lesser known health benefits to your immune system and overall health.

What Does Melatonin Do?

Melatonin regulates your circadian rhythm, which can be thought of as your internal clock, and plays a key role in how much sleep you get. Having a well-functioning circadian rhythm has significant positive effects on your mood, energy levels, and mental health.

Melatonin is also a powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agent which supports immune function (helping cells combat bacterial, viral, and parasitic activity), liver and gallbladder function, and the process of regular cell death (apoptosis).

Melatonin increases production of glutathione, another important antioxidant that supports mitochondrial function.

Melatonin and the Immune System

Getting enough sleep is a key component of a strong immune system. Thus the ability of melatonin to regulate your sleep cycle is the most obvious way in which it can promote a healthy immune system.

However, research also indicates that there are other ways that melatonin acts to support the immune system.

Firstly, melatonin can help restore your body's white blood cell count. White blood cells are responsible for protecting your body against diseases and foreign invaders, so a higher white blood cell count naturally results in a stronger immune system.

Research also shows that melatonin promotes cytokine balance and can help stimulate the release of cytokines and other proteins that can then attack invading infections and viruses. [1,2]

Melatonin and Aging

Our body’s melatonin levels are at their highest during childhood and decline gradually as we age, which can lead to difficulty in achieving quality sleep and also a weakened immune system. Thus many people become more susceptible to contracting viruses and other diseases as they grow older.

For these reasons, a melatonin supplement can be beneficial to take regularly as you advance in years, especially if you are having trouble sleeping or are experiencing a disrupted circadian rhythm.

Conclusion

According to research published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences, "Currently the role of melatonin as an effector that can modulate the immune system is undeniable… Overall, melatonin might act as an immunostimulant… for a more effective early immune response against external stressors, such as viruses and parasites."

In these difficult pandemic times, it's more important than ever to prioritize a strong immune system if possible and to support your body's health in every way you can.

Melatonin supports your body in multiple ways, including helping to regulate your circadian rhythm and sleep cycle, reducing inflammation, increasing glutathione production, protecting cells from free radicals and oxidative stress, and helping to boost your immune system.

▶︎ Learn More about Ortho Melatonin


Sources:
¹ Melatonin: Buffering the Immune System
² Effects of Melatonin Administration on Cytokine Production in Patients with Advanced Solid Tumors

Labels: antioxidants, circadian rhythm, immunity support, jet lag, melatonin, pineal gland, sleep/wake cycle

Leaky gut syndrome, also known as increased intestinal permeability or intestinal hyperpermeability, is a phenomenon that occurs when microscopic pores (called tight junctions) in the wall of the small intestine widen enough to allow harmful substances such as microorganisms, toxins, and foreign antigens to enter the bloodstream. Because such items are not meant to leave the digestive tract and enter the blood, they may cause a significant immune and inflammatory response, which can lead to debilitating allergies and other health complications.

Many of my clients have found relief from suspected leaky gut syndrome (increased intestinal permeability) and potentially associated health challenges by optimizing their gut health through 1) home colon cleansing and 2) a targeted supplement regimen, including probiotics.

READ FULL ARTICLE

Labels: auto-immune disease, immunity support, inflammation, intestinal permeability, leaky gut syndrome, microbiome, probiotics

"The problem of Lyme disease knows no borders. It knows no nationalities, no races, and no political systems. As a virulent bacterial infection, Lyme disease simply spreads, and spreads, and spreads, and if something isn’t done, the worldwide cases of Lyme disease will do nothing but continue to increase."

— Rosner B, et al. 2008 Lyme disease annual report. South Lake Tahoe (CA): BioMed Publishing Group; 2008

Lyme disease, or tick-borne diseases, have been documented for millennia around the world. Yet, this new variety has been spreading at an uncanny rate. Lyme disease is not confined to the United States; it is a major epidemic worldwide. Research confirms the presence of Lyme disease in all corners of the globe. Major outbreaks have been reported in England, Sweden, Germany, and Russia, and there may be an epidemic in Africa as well.

Lyme disease could also be called the "The Great Imitator" because its symptoms are often misdiagnosed as something else such as fibromyalgia, arthritis, abnormal heart conditions, attention deficit disorder (ADD), chronic fatigue syndrome, Alzheimer's disease, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), depression, multiple sclerosis (MS), schizophrenia, and more.

The symptoms of Lyme disease include fatigue, fever, chills, headache, muscle and joint pain, swelling of the lymph nodes, nerve pain, skin rashes, back pain, mental confusion, and brain fog. If allowed to run its course, Lyme can cause arthritis, cardiac dysrhythmias, nervous system abnormalities, and other bodily or mental damage. It has been estimated that only 10% of Lyme patients have been accurately diagnosed.

According to recent research, there are at least 5 subspecies of the Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria (the predominant causative agent of Lyme disease), over 100 strains in the U.S., and over 300 strains worldwide. This diversity is thought to contribute to the antigenic variability of the spirochete class of the bacteria and its ability to evade the immune system, leading to chronic infection.

Optimal Health Network can help!

The primary herb for Lyme prevention and for new tick bites is astragalus. Astragalus acts as an immune enhancer, modulator, and/or stimulant, depending on what the body needs it to be. It can act as an antiviral, antibacterial, and tonic, and it also has diuretic functions in the lungs, spleen, and GI tract. It is also a heart protector.

Astragalus acts to enhance immune function during early-stage Lyme disease. It works by enhancing the type 1 helper cell (Th1) immune response, producing higher levels of Th1 cells, which lessens the chance that an infection will occur, or results in milder symptoms as a result of an infection.

(Please note: Late-stage Lyme disease is Th1 dominant, thus the use of astragalus in the later stages of this disease has the potential to exacerbate this Th1 response and worsen the symptoms of the disease.)

At Optimal Health Network, we recommend the following protocol for using astragalus for avoiding Lyme infection or for a current Lyme infection:

Suggested dosage of astragalus for new tick bites, for 30 days:

• 150-lb adult: 1 teaspoon 3x daily
• 100-lb adult: 1 teaspoon 3x daily
• 60-lb child: 1/2 teaspoon 3x daily
• 30-lb child: 1/3 teaspoon 3x daily

Suggested dosage of astragalus for preventing Lyme disease if you live in a Lyme-endemic area. This small dosage of astragalus assists the body to keep the immune markers high:

• 150-lb adult: 1 teaspoon 1x daily
• 100-lb adult: 1 teaspoon 1x daily
• 60-lb child: 1/2 teaspoon 1x daily
• 30-lb child: 1/3 teaspoon 1x daily

Another supplement to consider is Transfer Factor Multi-Immune™. Many Lyme doctors are prescribing this supplement to help jumpstart the immune system. The maker of the product, Research Nutritionals, is up-to-date on Lyme disease and has even geared many of its products to Lyme treatments. Research Nutritionals claims that this product works on the cellular (Th1) immunity level, as opposed to humoral (Th2) immunity, and thus modulates, as opposed to stimulates, making it supportive for chronic Lyme, unlike astragalus.

If you need general support, please call or email us. If you need individualized support, we can support you to fully heal through personalized consultation.

References:
The Center for Aromatherapy Research and Education
Buhner Healing
FoundHealth, Inc.
2008 Lyme Disease Annual Report
Five Element Healing

Labels: astragalus, bacteria, Borrelia burgdorferi, immunity support, Lyme disease, tick-borne diseases, ticks

Most of us are surrounded by an intense negativity toward colon cleansing. Unfortunately, enemas are where most of this negative attitude toward the colon cleanse lies due to a greater familiarity.

However, there is a long history of the use of enemas:

• Ancient Mayan art shows us that the Mayans believed that there was benefit and wisdom to be found in taking enemas. (The Mayan civilization dates back to at least 1800 BC.)
• The Ebers Papyrus, an Egyptian medical document dating back more than 3,500 years, includes written evidence that enemas were widely used in other ancient cultures. The Greek physician Hippocrates, referred to as "the father of Western medicine," also advanced the use of enema therapy.
• Since the Age of Enlightenment in Western Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries, Western culture has commonly used enemas to support health.
• Dr. Max Gerson (German physician, 1881-1959) applied coffee and castor oil enemas to his cancer treatments.
• Ayurvedic practitioners support the use of enemas (basti).
• There is hardly a region of the world where people have not discovered or adapted the enema. Enemas are found in world literature from Aristophanes to Shakespeare, Gulliver's Travels to Peyton Place.
• In Russia, there are many spas that give enemas. In the Caucasus Mountains, there are dozens of spas where enemas are routinely administered to treat digestive problems and other ailments.
• Chemical enemas, such as the Fleet Enema, generally using monosodium phosphate in their solutions. The Fleet Enema does not optimize your health as the Optimal Health Network enema series does, because the latter is designed to boost immunity, clear the entire colon, optimize for healthy bacteria, and support the liver. Additionally, the Fleet Enema comes in a disposable squeeze bottle that is thrown away after use, contributing to a toxic world. Finally, the FDA has become aware of reports of severe dehydration and changes in the levels of serum electrolytes from taking more than the recommended dose of OTC sodium phosphate products, resulting in serious adverse effects on organs, including the kidneys and heart, and in some cases resulting in death. Serum electrolytes include calcium, sodium, and phosphate. According to the reports, most cases of serious harm occurred with a single dose of sodium phosphate that was larger than recommended or with more than one dose in a day. This is not the case with our therapeutic enema series, which does not use serum electrolytes to cleanse the colon like the Fleet Enema products.
• Nowadays many OHN clients are successfully using enemas to support their health!

Over these past 17 years working with thousands of clients, we at the Optimal Health Network and the Optimal Health Center can confidently say that you will almost always improve your overall state of wellness by taking a regular enema series to cleanse the colon.

Many people need more health support than they are receiving. According to the American Cancer Society, in 2010 American had slightly less than a 1 in 2 lifetime risk of developing cancer; for women, the risk is a little more than 1 in 3.

Click here to learn how to take an enema

For support, please call or e-mail us any time. A clinical or in-home colon cleanse is easy, safe and affordable medicine.

Labels: cancer, colon cleanse, enema series, enema solutions, immunity support, liver support

If you were to find a fountain of youth, what would it look like? It would naturally have something to do with maintaining health, right? Yes, today we understand that a properly functioning immune system is a key part of maintaining good health... but what about really staying young? Finding a way to slow down the decay of our bodies?

According to researchers, viable anti-aging strategies may include:

• consuming antioxidants, especially from fruits and veggies
• caloric restriction to quench cell-damaging free radicals
• a balanced diet of proteins, good fats, and complex carbohydrates
• stress reduction or meditation (to avoid the poison of the hormone cortisol)
• good sleep
• regular exercise (and if you're exercising a lot, be sure to intercept those extra free radicals produced with antioxidants)
• avoidance of environmental and food-borne toxins
• supplementation of nutrients that decline with aging (such as CoQ10)
• drinking lots of water
• reducing inflammation

INFLAMMATION

Without inflammation present in the body, there is no way that cholesterol could accumulate in the walls of our blood vessels and cause heart disease and strokes. Without inflammation, cholesterol would move freely throughout the body as nature intended. It is inflammation that causes cholesterol to become trapped.

Reputable scientists worldwide are finding that inflammation may be the root cause of almost every major disease out there, from arteriosclerosis to autoimmune diseases to ulcerative colitis to allergies to cancers of all kinds.

When one looks deeper and deeper through an abundance of scientific research into the nature of many debilitating and killer diseases, the search for anti-aging strategies almost invariably points to the importance of reducing inflammation, which in turn commonly points to frankincense as an important tool in inhibiting inflammation.

FRANKINCENSE: COULD IT REALLY BE A "FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH"?

Science now recognizes that frankincense, an aromatic resin obtained from trees of the genus Boswellia, possesses therapeutic anti-inflammatory properties. (Boswellia is called Salai guggul in ancient Ayurvedic medicine, where guggul means "one that protects against diseases.")

Science specifically points to acetyl-11-keto-beta-boswellic acid, a constituent of Boswellia resin, as a key anti-inflammatory agent.

Along with the anti-aging strategies listed above, below are numerous scientific research articles validating the profound effects of Boswellia on your body, helping to keep it young by nipping inflammation in the bud. It's this simple: add Frankincense Essential Oil to your sacred medicine bag.

Couple this with ample scientific evidence that the colon is a superior delivery system for therapeutic agents, and I suggest we have a powerful anti-aging essential oil to use.

Use 4-20 drops of frankincense in the colon as often as once a day. Deliver it via a suppository, colon implant, or coffee enema.

• Buy Frankincense and Myrrh Made-for-Enema Goat Milk Soap
• Buy Kristina's book, Ten Days to Optimal Health,
  for support with an anti-inflammatory diet

FRANKINCENSE RESEARCH TO EXPLORE:

• RESIN OF BOSWELLIA HAS ANTI-INFLAMMATORY, ANTI-ARTHRITIC AND ANALGESIC PROPERTIES
  
  Natural anti-inflammatory agents for pain relief.
  
  READ MORE
• FRANKINCENSE INHIBITS ATHEROSCLEROSIS
  
  Anti-inflammatory and anti-atherogenic effects of the NF-kappaB inhibitor acetyl-11-keto-beta-boswellic acid in LPS-challenged ApoE-/- mice.
  
  "The inhibition of NF-kappaB activity by plant resins from species of the Boswellia family might represent an alternative for classical medicine treatments for chronic inflammatory diseases such as atherosclerosis."
  
  READ MORE
• FRANKINCENSE INHIBITS COLORECTAL CANCER
  
  Boswellic acid inhibits growth and metastasis of human colorectal cancer in orthotopic mouse model by downregulating inflammatory, proliferative, invasive and angiogenic biomarkers.
  
  "Our findings suggest that this boswellic acid analog can inhibit the growth and metastasis of human CRC in vivo through downregulation of cancer-associated biomarkers."
  
  READ MORE
• FRANKINCENSE INHIBITS INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASE
  
  Acetyl-11-keto-beta-boswellic acid, a constituent of an herbal medicine from Boswellia serrata resin, attenuates experimental ileitis**.
  
  "Oral therapy with the Boswellia extract or AKBA significantly reduces macroscopic and microcirculatory inflammatory features normally associated with indomethacin administration, indicating that the anti-inflammatory actions of the Boswellia extract in IBD [inflammatory bowl disease] may be due in part to boswellic acids such as AKBA."
  
  READ MORE
  
  ** Ileitis, or inflammation of the ileum (a portion of the small intestine), is often caused by Crohn's disease. However, ileitis may be caused by a wide variety of other diseases.
• BOSWELLIC ACIDS SHOW ANTI-INFLAMMATORY AND ANTI-TUMORIC PROPERTIES
  
  Inhibition of microsomal prostaglandin E2 synthase-1 as a molecular basis for the anti-inflammatory actions of boswellic acids from frankincense.
  
  "Frankincense, the gum resin derived from Boswellia species, showed anti-inflammatory efficacy in animal models and in pilot clinical studies... There is [also] accumulating evidence for... anti-tumorigenic effects of BAs. Pilot clinical studies have suggested some efficacy of frankincense preparations in the treatment of osteoarthritis (OA), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), inflammatory bowel diseases, asthma and cancer."
  
  READ MORE
• FRANKINCENSE INHIBITS VARIOUS CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY DISEASES AND CANCER
  
  Boswellic acids: biological actions and molecular targets/
  
  "Gum resin extracts of Boswellia species have been traditionally applied in folk medicine for centuries to treat various chronic inflammatory diseases, and experimental data from animal models and studies with human subjects confirmed the potential of these extracts for the treatment of not only inflammation but also of cancer."
  
  READ MORE
• FRANKINCENSE IS POWERFUL ANTI-INFLAMMATORY AND ANTI-ARTHRITIC AGENT; AIDS RECOVERING ARTICULAR CARTILAGE DAMAGE
  
  Cellular and molecular mechanisms of anti-inflammatory effect of Aflapin: a novel Boswellia serrata extract.
  
  "BE-30 (5-Loxin) and Aflapin [which contains B. serrata extract enriched in AKBA and non-volatile oil portion of B. serrata gum resin], exhibit powerful anti-inflammatory efficacy and anti-arthritic potential. In particular, in comparison with BE-30, Aflapin provides more potential benefits in recovering articular cartilage damage or protection from proteolytic degradation due to inflammatory insult in arthritis such as osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis."
  
  READ MORE
• FRANKINCENSE INHIBITS RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS, CHRONIC COLITIS, ULCERATIVE COLITIS, CROHN'S DISEASE, BRONCHIAL ASTHMA, AND PERITUMORAL BRAIN EDEMAS
  
  Boswellic acids (components of frankincense) as the active principle in treatment of chronic inflammatory diseases.
  
  "Preparations from the gum resin of Boswellia serrata have been used as a traditional remedy in Ayurvedic medicine in India for the treatment of inflammatory diseases. Compounds from the gum with genuine anti-inflammatory effects are pentacyclic triterpenes of the boswellic acid type. Boswellic acids inhibit the leukotriene biosynthesis in neutrophilic granulocytes by a non-redox, noncompetitive inhibition of 5-lipoxygenase. The effect is triggered by boswellic acids binding to the enzyme. Moreover certain boswellic acids have been described to inhibit elastase in leukocytes, to inhibit proliferation, induce apoptosis and to inhibit topoisomerases of leukoma and glioma cell lines. A series of chronic inflammatory diseases are thought to be perpetuated by leukotrienes. In clinical trials promising results were observed in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, chronic colitis, ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease, bronchial asthma, and peritumoral brain edemas."
  
  READ MORE
• FRANKINCENSE INHIBITS ASTHMA, CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASE, EMPHYSEMA, REPERFUSION INJURY, PSORIASIS, RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS, CROHN'S DISEASE
  
  Identification of human cathepsin G as a functional target of Boswellic acids from the anti-inflammatory remedy frankincense.
  
  "[Cathepsin G] catG is a functional and pharmacologically relevant target of BAs, and interference with catG could explain some of the anti-inflammatory properties of frankincense...CatG, a neutral serine protease, is mainly expressed in neutrophils, stored in azurophilic granules, and released upon degranulation. After release into the plasma, it cleaves extracellular matrix proteins, including laminin, proteoglycans, collagen, fibronectin, and elastin, implying a role in local destruction of connective tissue at sites of injury. CatG also processes chemokines, functioning as chemoattractant for T cells and other leukocytes, and modulates integrin clustering on neutrophils. Moreover, catG stimulates platelets via the protease-activated receptor-4 for aggregation and secretion and acts as chemotactic agonist for the formyl peptide receptor on phagocytic leukocytes. Accordingly, catG inhibitors have been proposed to exhibit potential in treating certain inflammatory disorders such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, emphysema, reperfusion injury, psoriasis, and rheumatoid arthritis."
  
  READ MORE

Labels: antioxidants, balanced diet, boswellia, caloric restriction, cholesterol, coffee enema, colon implant, essential oils, frankincense, immunity support, inflammation, suppository

The medicinal herb hyssop (Hyssop officinalis) has been used therapeutically for thousands of years. Hyssop is a blood nourisher, an immune system strengthener, and possesses potent antiviral, antifungal, and antibacterial activity. Today, researchers think that hyssop may be useful in the treatment of patients with AIDS.

Hyssop can be absorbed into the colon via enema or suppository as a single essential oil. Hyssop is also found in the essential oil blend ImmuPower, which gives the body the added healing benefits of mountain savory, cistus, ravensara, frankincense, oregano, clove, cumin and Idaho tansy.
1) In one study, extracts of dried leaves of Hyssop officinalis showed strong anti-HIV properties.

• Hyssop officinalis inhibits syncytia formation (the abnormal clustering of cells), HIV reverse transcriptase (RT, or how HIV viruses reproduce), and p17 and p24 antigen expression (an antigen is anything, like a protein foreign to the immune system, that stimulates the production of an antibody, so 'antigen expression' is the triggering of antibody release, an indicator of the presence of a foreign invader; antigens p17 and p24 are proteins found in human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV).
• Hyssop officinalis was non-toxic to the uninfected (Molt-3) cells.
• Caffeic acid was identified in the extracts. As a confirmation, commercial caffeic acid also showed good antiviral activity in i) the RT assay and ii) high to moderate antiviral activity in the syncytia assay and iii) high to moderate antiviral activity in p17 and p24 antigen expression.
• Tannic acid and gallic acid, commonly found in teas, was not identified in the extracts. But when these two acids from commercial products were tested, they showed high to moderate activity against HIV-1.
• Overall, Hyssop officinalis contains caffeic acid, unidentified tannins (a class of phytochemicals), and other compounds that show strong anti-HIV activity. Therefore Hyssop officinalis may be useful in treating AIDS patients.

2) In another study, a polysaccharide isolated from Hyssop officinalis also showed strong anti-HIV activity.

• The polysaccharide MAR-10 (polysaccharides are chains of sugars) isolated from Hyssop officinalis was found to inhibit HIV-1 replication by inhibiting HIV-1 p24 antigen and syncytia formation.
• MAR-10 had no toxicity or effect on lymphocyte functions or CD4+ and CD8+ T cell counts.
• MAR-10 also has broad spectrum anti-glycosidase activity (inhibits HIV from replicating and inhibits HIV-mediated syncytium formation, ref: http://glycob.oxfordjournals.org/content/13/10/93R.long).
• This study shows that the polysaccharide MAR-10 has strong anti-HIV-1 activity and can be considered potent in treating people living with HIV or having AIDS (difference between the two here: www.healthcommunities.com/hiv-aids/hiv-aids-difference.shtml)

The scientific research on hyssop coupled with the ample scientific evidence that exists that the colon is an effective delivery system for therapeutic agents suggests that the hyssop enema and the hyssop suppository are powerful additions to the therapeutic tools in assisting people with AIDS.

SOURCES:

Inhibition of HIV replication by Hyssop officinalis extracts.
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1708226

Isolation of a previously unidentified polysaccharide (MAR-10) from Hyssop officinalis that exhibits strong activity against human immunodeficiency virus type 1.
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7741735

***************************

FURTHER READING:

Screening of selected plant extracts for in vitro inhibitory activity on human immunodeficiency virus.
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12237813

A Story Of AIDS & Essential Oils (You'll love this.)

• www.youtube.com//watch?v=hVnbVHdW5nc
• http://devkhalsa.com/essential-oils/
• www.youtube.com/user/devkhalsa
• http://spectrumhealing.net/

Hyssop (an Herb) Inhibits HIV per Federal Government
www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4tHPfdMtOc

38 Natural Alternatives for HIV
www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/38-natural-alternatives-hiv

How Bananas and Herbs May Prevent the Transmission of HIV
www.foxnews.com/health/2011/01/11/bananas-herbs-prevent-transmission-hiv/

Hyssop (Hyssopus officinalis)

• www.med.nyu.edu/content?ChunkIID=111697
• www.sigmaaldrich.com/life-science/nutrition-research/learning-center/plant-profiler/hyssopus-officinalis.html

Here is a sampling of scientific studies looking at the application of therapeutic agents directly into the colon:

• Colonic antigen administration induces significantly higher humoral levels of colonic and vaginal IgA, and serum IgG compared to oral administration
• Pathological influences on colonic motility: implications for drug delivery
• Butyrate-induced transcriptional changes in human colonic mucosa

Again, hyssop can be absorbed into the colon via enema or suppository as a single essential oil. Hyssop is also found in ImmuPower essential oil blend, which gives the body the added healing benefits (see below) of mountain savory, cistus, ravensara, frankincense, oregano, clove, cumin and Idaho tansy.

• Mountain savory (Satureja montana) has immune stimulant, antiviral, antifungal, anti-infectious, and anti-parasitic properties.
• Cistus (Cistus ladanifer) has antibacterial, anti-infectious, and antiviral properties. It is also an immune stimulant.
• Ravensara (Ravensara aromatica) has antibacterial, antifungal, anti-infectious, antiseptic, antiviral, and expectorant properties. It is a cross between the nutmeg and clove plants so it may support the adrenals.
• Frankincense (Boswellia carteri) has antidepressant, anti-infectious, and immune stimulating properties. The high sesquiterpenes level stimulates and oxygenates the limbic system of the brain which elevates our mood and helps us relax (overcome stress).
• Oregano (Origanum vulgare) has antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory properties. It is also an immune stimulant.
• Clove (Syzygium aromaticum) has antiseptic, antiviral, anti-infectious, and antifungal properties. It is COX inhibitor (anti-inflammatory) and has one of the highest ORAC values of any plant in the world!
• Cumin (Cuminum cyminum) has antiseptic and immune stimulant properties.
• Idaho Tansy (Tanacetum vulgare) has antiviral, antibacterial, anti-infectious, and anti-inflammatory properties. It is also an immune stimulant.

Labels: AIDS, antibacterial, antifungal, colon, essential oils, HIV, hyssop, immunity support, suppository