A-Z infection treatment Articles

Did you know, antibiotics strip your gut of not only the 'bad bacteria', but the healthy, normal and essential gut flora, as well? This leaves opportunistic bacteria ('bad') with a breeding ground for infection, unopposed by your natural defences in the form of healthy bacteria. All that being said, if C. Difficile is one of these opportunistic bugs, why not discover treatment options, including probiotics, to replace and rebalance the gut flora so C. Difficile can't thrive? Sounds like a fairly simple solution to me!

What is C Difficile?

Clostridium Difficile is a gram-positive bacterium. C. Difficile and its spores are found in feces. People can become infected when they come into contact with surfaces contaminated by infected feces. Healthcare workers can spread C. difficile through contaminated hands or clothing. C. difficile rarely affects healthy people. However, it can become life-threatening for infancts, older adults, immunocompromised individuals, and antibiotic users. Most infections occur in hospitals or nursing homes. Community outbreaks are becoming more common. The rate of C. Difficile acquisition is 50% in individuals with hospital stays equal to or greater than 4 weeks. Studies link fluoroquinolones antibiotics to an increased risk of C. difficile infection. Antibiotics increase the risk of C.difficile infection. They disrupt healthy gut bacteria and allow C. difficile to multiply. High-dose and long-term antibiotic use increase this risk. It then produces toxins, which ultimately damage the bowel.

What Are Symptoms of C Difficile?

C. Difficile causes a number of severe gastrointestinal symptoms, the most prominent and common being severe diarrhea. There will often be an especially foul odour attributed to the diarrhea that affects patients of C. Difficile. Other symptoms include abdominal pain and cramping, fever and some gastrointestinal side effects, like inflammation of the colon (pseudomembranous colitis). There are many antibiotics available for this superbug; however, they are rarely effective enough to treat it adequately. Even the most effective antibiotics for C. difficile - bacitracin, metronidazole and vancomycin – will still leave the patient with a 20% recurrence rate. Once an individual has had a recurrence of C. difficile, they will have an even greater chance of recurrence each time they fall ill with it.

C Difficile Treatment Options

The Mighty Saccharomyces

Saccharomyces boulardii is one specific strain of PROBIOTIC that has been linked to effective treatment and prevention of C. Difficile infection, as well as more general antibiotic induced diarrhea. One theory is that this non-colonizing species of yeast actually competes with pathogens for receptor sites on the cells of the intestinal wall, preventing them from binding and causing infection. Many Lactobacillus species help prevent antibiotic-associated diarrhea. Lactobacillus rhamnosus is one of the most studied strains. Research suggests Saccharomyces boulardii specifically helps prevent C. difficile infection. It may reduce initial growth and recurrence. Studies often combine it with vancomycin. This combination reduces recurring diarrhea more than vancomycin alone.Saccharomyces boulardii can be purchased as a supplement, both on its own or in combination with other probiotics. In terms of treatment and prevention of C. Difficile, Saccharomyces boulardii is recommended in dosages of anywhere from 5 – 20 billion cells/day. Probiotics, in general, have a great safety profile with few to no side effects reported by those who use them.

Parasitic infections in the gastrointestinal tract are common. Eighty percent of North Americans harbour one or more parasites. It is so widespread because of international travel, immigration, contamination of the water and food supply, use of daycare centres, household pets, antibiotic use and chemical contamination. Giardia and pinworms are the two most common intestinal parasites. Let's explore how parasites impact your health and the best natural ways to perform a parasite cleanse safely and effectively.

Understanding Parasitic Infections

Intestinal parasites cause illness by competing with the host for nutrients and secreting waste products that cause allergic and autoimmune reactions.

Parasitic infections in the digestive tract can be difficult to diagnose because the symptoms look similar to other abdominal illnesses. Common symptoms include appetite changes, abdominal pain and cramping, diarrhea and stool changes. Dehydration may occur due to diarrhea. If the infection is long-term, weight loss, malnourishment and chronic digestive problems manifest.

Tips For Completing A Parasite Cleanse

Conventional treatment involves the use of anti-parasitic medication. This usually takes care of the current infection. However, the body becomes susceptible to subsequent infections if friendly bacteria are not replaced.

The best way to prevent parasites from entering your body is to practice good hygiene. Before eating and during food preparation, it’s important to wash your hands with soap. Always wash your hands following a trip to the bathroom. When cooking meat, use a meat thermometer to be sure your meat has reached the appropriate temperature. Commercial pork is the most contaminated meat, followed by beef, chicken, lamb and fish. One way to ensure adequate cleansing of produce is to soak it for 15 minutes in diluted apple cider vinegar at a ratio of 1tbsp of vinegar to one gallon of water.

Eat foods that are high in antioxidants and vitamin C like citrus fruits, broccoli, strawberries, melons and brussel sprouts. Rice products and blueberries help to stop diarrhea.

Well-cooked lamb, poultry and fish are high in protein and help to heal the intestine. Foods that kill parasites are garlic, raw pumpkin seeds, fresh coconut, papaya and papaya seeds.

Parasites undergo larval and adult phases that coordinate with the moon cycle. The most effective time to start treatment is a few days before the full moon. Ensure that the treatment continues through several cycles in order to make sure all of the organisms are destroyed.

Tips For Preventing Parasites

The best way to prevent parasitic infections is to have a healthy immune system and good digestive environment. Take extra precautions while travelling and camping. Ensure that the water supply is safe, or use water bottles with built-in filtration systems.

Foods To Avoid When Completing A Parasite Cleanse

Avoid foods that stimulate parasite growth, such as gluten-containing grains, dairy products, eggs, artificial sweeteners, food additives, alcohol, caffeine, sugar, soft drinks, peanuts and cashews. Eat foods that are high in carotenes like sweet potatoes, carrots, spinach, squash, kale and cantaloupe.