Guillain-Barre: An Unknown Taking Down the Healthy Or A Worsening Chronic Infection?

A recent story on ex-quarterback Danny Wuerffel getting Guillain-Barre Sydrome has been in the news recently.

In looking at his symptoms, he came down with a stomach virus, and now is at 50% muscle strength.  Not only is this terrifying, it leads to the thought that none of us is safe. 

For anyone living in a box, Guillain-Barre has historically been associated with vaccinations.  More recent re-analysis of previous studies poo-poo any possible association, but have a look at the 1978 original study:  "that the risk of Guillain-Barré syndrome among individuals receiving immunization against influenza A/New Jersey is 7.3 times the risk among the nonvaccinated."  (Adv Neurol. 1978;19:249-60.)


It is a miniscule risk, and shouldn't deter anyone from vaccination for that reason alone, but the association makes sense if one thinks about the fact that the virus is often simply weakened, not entirely dead.  In a very few susceptible individuals it may spark an autoimmune cascade. 


The truth is that we've got a pretty good idea of what is causing this cascade.  It may vary from individual to individual, but the majority have antibodies that correspond to both an infectious agent and their own neural tissue.  A recent study (J Neurol. 2011 Apr 24. ) found that a quarter of all patients had been infected by Campylobacter jejuni.  Another recent study in China concludes:  "Our results suggest that the antecedent C. jejuni infection triggered this GBS outbreak in China." (Foodborne Pathog Dis. 2010 Aug;7(8):913-9.)  So at least 25% of patients might benefit from antibiotic treatment.  Minocycline has been used to successfully treat an animal model of Guillain-Barre.  (J Cell Mol Med. 2009 Feb;13(2):341-51. )


Currently the standard of care for Guillain-Barre involves intense rehabilitation, IV antibodies, and exchanging plasma for patients.  All of these may be effective only if the body does not continue to generate antibodies from an ongoing infection.


For individuals without medical resources (and that is more and more people here in the U.S.) there are preliminary studies on the effect of ginger, licorice, calendula, and fenugreek.  (Phytother Res. 2010 May;24(5):649-56.)


It shouldn't take a celebrity case to bring the standard of care of this illness in line with the most recent research. 


 

What I Eat: How to Blow Your Mind and Reframe How You Think About Diet.

I love this book!  It's a coffee table picture book, full of exotic meals and strange locales.  But it's arranged by daily calorie intake from 800 to 12000 calories a day.  If you ever wanted visual proof that caloric intake does not correlate to weight, here's your evidence.  We've got people starving themselves and staying fat, while thin people eat twice the calories (and no, they aren't all bike messengers). 

It was $40 at Barnes and Noble, but I paid full price because I wanted it to look over and because I couldn't remember the title before.  It's a fairly stunning rejection of the west's sacred cow of calorie counting. 

What Do We Know About Nutrition? Are Eggs Bad for You?

So Elaine Magee, who has written thirty five books on nutrition, posted: Nobody Needs a Six Egg Omelet.  Several readers pointed out that the cholesterol in eggs was the good, HDL, kind.  How did someone who posts on WebMD and has written that many books on nutrition miss this obvious fact?

The truth is, we can't even agree if eggs are good or bad.  I've posted the latest medline battle below.  Looks like both sides are determined they are right.  The take home message for the layman?  The experts don't know what they're doing.  Even the ones that WebMD has anointed as our nutrition gurus. 

Are Eggs Bad For You?




Can J Cardiol. 2010 Nov;26(9):e336-9.

Dietary cholesterol and egg yolks: not for patients at risk of vascular disease.

Spence JD, Jenkins DJ, Davignon J.

Stroke Prevention & Atheroschlerosis Research Centre, Robarts Research Institute, London, Ontario. dspence@robarts.ca

Abstract

A widespread misconception has been developing among the Canadian public and among physicians. It is increasingly believed that consumption of dietary cholesterol and egg yolks is harmless. There are good reasons for long- standing recommendations that dietary cholesterol should be limited to less than 200 mg/day; a single large egg yolk contains approximately 275 mg of cholesterol (more than a day's worth of cholesterol). Although some studies showed no harm from consumption of eggs in healthy people, this outcome may have been due to lack of power to detect clinically relevant increases in a low-risk population. Moreover, the same studies showed that among participants who became diabetic during observation, consumption of one egg a day doubled their risk compared with less than one egg a week. Diet is not just about fasting cholesterol; it is mainly about the postprandial effects of cholesterol, saturated fats, oxidative stress and inflammation. A misplaced focus on fasting lipids obscures three key issues. Dietary cholesterol increases the susceptibility of low-density lipoprotein to oxidation, increases postprandial lipemia and potentiates the adverse effects of dietary saturated fat. Dietary cholesterol, including egg yolks, is harmful to the arteries. Patients at risk of cardiovascular disease should limit their intake of cholesterol. Stopping the consumption of egg yolks after a stroke or myocardial infarction would be like quitting smoking after a diagnosis of lung cancer: a necessary action, but late. The evidence presented in the current review suggests that the widespread perception among the public and health care professionals that dietary cholesterol is benign is misplaced, and that improved education is needed to correct this misconception.

PMID: 21076725

Arch Latinoam Nutr. 2006 Dec;56(4):315-20.

[Egg: concepts, analyses and controversies in the human health].

[Article in Spanish]

Novello D, Franceschini P, Quintiliano DA, Ost PR.

Universidade Estadual do Centro-Oeste-PR, Brasil.

Abstract

Cholesterol rich-foods consumption has been related as a causing factor for heart ischemic disease. Because the high cholesterol content of the yolk, the egg consumption has been decreased in spite of it, egg is a complete food, rich in many nutrients, and economically accessible. The cholesterol content in egg yolk has also important properties for the human organism. The present work had the objective to review the scientific literature about egg's cholesterol, describing the possible consequences on the human health and wellbeing, its effect when they are enriched, and the chemical composition in relation to its lipidic profile. Information for this review was collected through national and international inquiries. According to this information, most of the studies on egg consumption are not related to the risk of cardiopathies in healthy people. Also, in people with diabetes mellitus, there is scarce evidence to drawn any conclusion about egg consumption and cardiopathies. Omega-3 egg enrichment presumably possesses a protective effect against cancer, despite its cholesterol content remains unaltered. Many of the Food Chemical Composition Tables contain different values on egg's fat composition, so it should be continuously update to reduce these discrepancies. Also, more studies on omega-3 enriched eggs are necessary for deeper conclusions on their cardio-protective effect.

PMID: 17425175

J Med Assoc Thai. 2008 Mar;91(3):400-7.

High-density lipoprotein cholesterol changes after continuous egg consumption in healthy adults.

Mayurasakorn K, Srisura W, Sitphahul P, Hongto PO.

Department of Social Medicine, Samutsakhon General Hospital, Samutsakhon 74000, Thailand. drkorapat@hotmail.com

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To determine the relationship between continuous egg consumption with Thai life-style dietary and serum lipids of healthy young people.

MATERIAL AND METHOD: Fifty-six participants with an average age of 35 were enrolled. In an experimental method of cholesterol intake, all participants were fed an additional egg per day to their basic diet. This project ran for 12 weeks.

RESULTS: The 12-week egg consumption significantly increased serum total cholesterol by 0.27 +/- 0.15 mmol/L (10.43 +/- 5.80 mg/dL) (p < 0.05). The HDL-cholesterol (HDL-c) increased significant by 0.55 +/- 0.06 mmol/L (21.80 +/- 2.25 mg/dL) (p < 0.001) while the total cholesterol (TC) decreased as the HDL-c ratio was 0.94 +/- 1.1 (p < 0.001). No significant changes were found in LDL-cholesterol (LDL-c) and triglyceride levels. The present study showed that small serum LDL-c changed in response to change of egg consumption. Additionally, 12-week egg consumption also resulted in an increasing HDL-c level.

CONCLUSION: In the majority of healthy adults, an addition of one egg per day to a normal fat diet could raise HDL-c levels and decreased the ratio of TC toHDL-c. Therefore, egg consumption might benefit blood cholesterol.

PMID: 18575296

Catchy Title, Lots of Wisdom from a Saint, a Surfer, and a CEO.

I found this book moving, insightful, pat, a little repetitive, confusing, etc.  There are insights that I really like and other insights that I question.  Some have proven true in my own life, and others feel like too much positive and not enough:  "Some things just suck." 

I'll give you an example.  The surfer lives alone on the beach.  He loves everything, but you have the distinct impression that his ongoing joy is in part because he really limits his exposure to other people.  Most of us live in a world of people, and it would be nice to have him discuss a bit more how to deal with difficult people while in complete joy. 

Our saint is a member of the church.  He himself is saintly, but his employer...well, let's just say there are issues. 

The CEO is a Wall Street banker, and one wonders if she would have been featured now that we've gone thorugh the "Great Recession." 

But that does not detract from the many, many insights in the book about how we should all be living our lives.  If we spend all our time judging the messengers we'll never get the message. 

Treating Bipolar and Schizophrenia: A Starting Guide

I've found this book very helpful in breaking down different body constitutions for mental illness.  The treatment protocols tend to be lengthy and based in the functional medical model rather than Naturopathic.  But is is a good reference to help those starting out with alternative medical doctors to get a sense of the ideas, the testing, and the likely treatments.

The Alchemist

I went to the camp where I first saw this book for a cookout yesterday.  When I discovered it I read it through in an afternoon.  Coelho is good in translation and makes me want to learn Portugese to read him in the original. 

The Alchemist is still my favorite work, although I also like Veronika and The Road.  Truly a gifted writer, although I didn't like his more recent work as much. 

New article on liver fibrosis

New article out on liver fibrosis reversal.  Read it for free online at Liver Health Today (p.28).

Christopher Maloney, Naturopathic Doctor

We're linked up on my alternative health page!  For those who want the complete set of links, go to:  http://www.maloneymedical.com/ under other websites.