Lyme Disease

Essential Oils are amazing when it comes to Lyme disease because there are essential oils to help prevent Lyme as well as essential oils to help with the symptoms of the disease.  In this blog we will talk about both.

Lyme Disease is becoming more prevalent each year.   30,000 cases were reported to the CDC this past year.  This number likely does not reflect every case of this disease.  This number represents a 25-fold increase in reported cases.

More troubling than the number of cases is that the disease is spreading.  Lyme was once confined mostly to the northeast.   Now, Lyme Disease is also prevalent in the mid-Atlantic states, from northeastern Virginia to Maine.  It is prevalent in the central states, mostly in Wisconsin and Minnesota.   Lyme Disease has also become widespread on the West Coast, particularly northern California.   Almost every state reports cases of Lyme Disease.  However, it was likely contracted elsewhere when traveling.

The Lyme Causing Bacteria

The Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria is the cause of Lyme Disease and is transmitted to humans through the bite of infected ticks.  This bacteria has a corkscrew shape.  The shape allows it to burrow into the tissues of the body.  Once burrowed it, this bacteria effectively “hides” itself.  This makes both diagnosis and treatment difficult.   Once burrowed in, this bacteria hides even from antibiotic treatments.

These elusive and very penetrating bacteria are capable of infecting white blood cells.   Infected white blood cells respond inappropriately to infections.  Lyme Disease creates autoimmune disorders.  These disorders include arthritis, neurological issues, and a host of other chronic symptoms.   Blood tests for bacteria rely on the immune response for detection.  Lack of response by white blood cells makes Lyme very difficult to detect with a blood sample.  In fact, the worse the infection the less it shows up on a blood test.  As a result, patients with the most severe infection have difficulty finding a reason for their symptoms.

There are, of course, other tick-borne rashes and lesions.  Unlike Lyme Disease, these other tick-borne ailments are not linked to arthritis, neurological problems, or the chronic symptoms associated with Lyme Disease.  They are both easier to detect and easier to treat.

Carriers of Lyme Disease

Lyme disease spreads through the bite of specific ticks, the Ixodes scapularis or the Ixodes pacificus.  To spread this disease, the ticks must be infected with the Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria.  Ticks are not born with these bacteria.  They pick them up while attaching to and feeding on infected hosts.

Unlike some other ticks, one variety of Lyme disease-carrying ticks sometimes bite rather than burrow in.  Once they have bitten their victim, they simply fall off.  Many people are not even aware of being bitten.  Because the initial symptoms of infection are mild and mimic so many other conditions, it is not uncommon for a person to be unaware of having been infected.  

Deer are usually blamed for harboring and spreading this bacteria.  However, recent research shows that it is actually rodents, particularly mice, that account for the bulk of the infections.  Ticks feeding on mice are 75% to 95% likely to become infected.  Ticks feeding on deer have only a 1% chance of infection.

“An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure

Ticks cannot fly or even jump.  They crawl up vegetation, lying in wait for something to come by to attach themselves to.

Proper Clothing

Proper clothing is the best defense.  If you are in a tick-infested area, long pants, tucked into socks, is a great preventative measure.  I realize that this is not fashionable.  However, it can save you from tick-borne diseases.

Be Vigilant at Home

People most commonly encounter ticks in their own yards and gardens.  Parents should make it a habit to check their children for ticks when they come in from play.  They should also check themselves after gardening.  Take a shower and inspect all over if you suspect you have been in a tick-infested area.

Landscape to Avoid Ticks

To keep the yard tick-free, use landscaping that deters mice, deer, and other rodents that carry ticks.  People should also remove tick habitats such as leaf piles, shrubs, and ground cover near the house.  Ticks live in the low brush;  this type of location allows them contact with potential hosts.

Ticks won’t cross a barrier of wood chips placed around a yard or play yards perimeter.   Perhaps, this is because the dry material makes them dry out too much.

Avoid Damp, Humid Spaces

Ticks cannot survive in hot, dry environments.  They tend to cluster in shady, humid places.  As a result, sticking to sunny areas decreases exposure to ticks.  When hiking, sitting on a log in dense vegetation is very unwise.  In the yard, play-sets should be in the sun at least part of every day.

Essential Oils

Butterfly has two essential oil blends that are effective bug and tick repellents.  They are ^LeAway and ^LeBeGone.  These essential oil blends should be diluted in water or Miracle II Neutralizer and applied to the body.  They may be rubbed on or sprayed on.  If you live or plan to visit tick country, I would recommend spraying the clothing also.  Spray to bottoms of pant legs, sleeves, even hats.  Please be careful to avoid contact with the eyes.

^LeAway contains: Catnip, Cedarwood, Cinnamon Berry, Citronella, Clove, and Eucalyptus Peppermint.

^LeBeGone contains: Cedarwood, Lavender, Lemongrass, and Rose Geranium.

Remove Ticks Immediately

Scientific tests, with mice, have shown that the risk of infection rises the longer that tick is left on the body and allowed to feed.  The importance of checking yourself and your children every day during the summer season cannot be over-emphasized!

There is a host of effective methods for removing ticks on the web.  Most families have their own tried-and-true methods.   Save the tick?  It can be important to have the tick tested by a state health department if flu-like symptoms or a suspicious rash appears.

Many common tick removal methods—such as a hot match head, painting the tick with nail polish, petroleum jelly, or motor oil, resulting in increased chances of infection.  These methods stimulate the tick to spit out small amounts of their blood meal.   This passes infected saliva or pathogen-containing secretions into the site of the bite.

All parts of the tick must be removed. Because the tick is attached firmly by barbed appendages, rough or improper handling may result in portions of the head remaining embedded in the skin.

Use a small pair of curved tweezers to carefully flip the tick over onto its back.  Grasp the tick firmly as close to the skin as possible. Pull gently until the tick, head and all, comes free. Patience is vital! Twisting or turning the tick does not help because a tick’s mouth is barbed.  In fact, twisting and turning may break off these barbs, increasing the risk of infection.  Once removed, there should be a small crater in the skin where the head had embedded. If portions of the tick’s head or mouth parts remain, they should be removed—perhaps by a doctor.

Apply an essential oil such as Tea Tree, MelaPlus or my favorite choice would be ^LeDeliverance neat (straight).

 

Symptoms of Lyme Disease

A Rash

Typically, a Lyme rash looks like a solid red oval or like a bull’s eye with a central red spot and is flat.  Usually, it does not even itch.  The rash expands a bit and then disappears over time, even without treatment.  As the bacteria spread through the tissues, similar but smaller rashes may appear.  These rashes can appear three to five weeks after the encounter with the tick.

Many people who contract Lyme Disease do not remember having had a rash.  They also do not remember having had a tick bite.  The young bacteria carrying tick may be only the size of a poppy seed.  Their presence and their bites are easy to miss.  Sadly, the rash may appear when you least expect it and it may not show up until as much as 30 days after the tick bite.

Flu-like Symptoms

Fever, headaches, muscle pain, and lethargy are common early symptoms.  Symptoms often wax and wane, coming and going every few weeks with only some of the symptoms present at any one time.   Consequently, distinguishing Lyme Disease symptoms from bouts of the flu can be difficult.  The best clue is the repetitive nature of the flu-like symptoms.

Fatigue

Extreme fatigue is a very common symptom of Lyme Disease and can be described as total exhaustion.  Sleep requirements increase.  Daytime naps feel like an absolute necessity.   As the disease progress fatigue can be disabling.

Joint Pain and Stiffness

Joint pain and stiffness, intermittent in nature and duration, are early symptoms of Lyme Disease.  Pain that comes and goes or moves from place to place could be Lyme Disease.  As the disease progresses, joint issues are sometimes mistaken for arthritis.  Further information about the joint issues of Lyme Disease is presented later in this article.  Comparisons between rheumatoid arthritis and Lyme disease will be made later as well.

Sleep Disturbances

Joint pain may wake you up and keep you awake during the night.  Fluctuations in body temperature often occur with Lyme.  Night sweats or chills wake up the individual suffering.

A Decline in Mental Acuity

The possible range of these types of symptoms is frightening.  A person may experience difficulty concentrating.  Memory lapses may occur, especially with things like remembering names that should be familiar.  A person may even forget the route to familiar places or become confused about why they wanted to go there in the first place.  Symptoms such as these can be stress related or brought on by age.  In conjunction with other symptoms, they may indicate Lyme Disease as well.

Additional Neurological Issues

The Lyme-causing bacteria may invade one or more cranial nerves.  If the bacteria invade the seventh cranial nerve (the facial nerve) numbness, tingling, weakness or paralysis of the face occurs.  This palsy is sometimes mistaken for Bell’s palsy.  If the palsy affects both sides of the face, Lyme disease can almost be assumed.

As the Lyme bacteria spread through the nervous system, the tissues when the brain and spinal cord meet and a form of meningitis ensues.

If Lyme invades the nervous system, almost any neurological problem is possible.  These symptoms may range from simple stiffness in the neck to balances issues, to facial paralysis and palsy, or more serious issues.

Vision Changes

Not every person with Lyme experiences problems with their vision.  However, it is common enough to be added to a composite list of symptoms.  Sensitivity to light, both indoors and outdoors, and blurry vision are the most common vision disturbances.

Heart Problems

The nasty Lyme bacteria can invade the heart muscle.  Fortunately, this is quite rare.  Inflammation caused by the bacteria disrupts the electrical signals that control the synchronous beating of the heart chambers which creates an irregular heartbeat.  The result will be chest pains, light-headedness, shortness of breath, and heart palpitations.  Although rare, this is serious.

Lyme Disease should be taken seriously and treated vigorously.  Since it is difficult to diagnose, treatment is often not undertaken soon enough or seriously enough.  One of the advantages of alternative treatments is that they work over such a wide range of issues.  Being alternative and responding to every situation, every day with alternative remedies.

Mood Changes

Many persons with Lyme Disease report that they feel increased irritability and anxiety.  Perhaps these mood changes are the result of nerve damage.  Just as likely, they are the natural result of feeling so tired and being in so much pain, often with no cause found and therefore no workable solutions offered.

Regression in Children

Young people between the ages of 5 to 14 years old account for about one-quarter of reported Lyme cases in the United States.   Children may, of course, suffer all of the same symptoms as adults.  In addition, children’s social, speech, or motor coordination skills may regress.  They may lose their appetites.  Children are more likely than adults to experience severe joint stiffness, even in the initial stages of the disease.

Medical Solutions

Antibiotics

The claim is made that antibiotics are effective against Lyme Disease.  As much as 20% of people treated for Lyme Disease will continue to experience symptoms for months or, in some cases, years.  Treatment for Lyme disease often results in months – or years – of antibiotic treatment.  Medical professionals recognize that this bacteria, like many other bacteria can enter a dormant stage.  In this state, the bacteria multiply very slowly or not at all.  These dormant, but still there, bacteria are referred to as persister cells.  They are very resistant to antibiotics.

One prominent doctor who works with Lyme disease patients explains that the Borrelia burgdorferi is complex in ways that affect the effectiveness of antibiotic treatment, however.  Rather than having only a few proteins as do Strep or Staph bacteria, the Lyme disease-causing bacteria has several hundred proteins.   When these proteins meet up with prescribed anti-biotics, some of the proteins will re-design themselves.  In other words, the bacteria will mutate, becoming resistant to the antibiotic that was prescribed.  For this reason, it is essential for treatment to include a range of anti-biotics with changes in the antibiotic used occurring at least every few weeks.  Treatment should also continue long after symptoms have begun to clear.  

Chronic Lyme – Resistant to Antibiotics

Dr. Bill Rawls, who eventually recovered from a chronic bout with Lyme’s disease shares the following information about Lyme’s disease and it’s resistance to antibiotic treatment.  

1.  Borrelia burgorferia is a very evasive and stealthy microbe.

This bacteria leaves the blood quickly.  Its corkscrew shape allows it to penetrate deeply into tissues of all sorts – joints, nerves, and even into the brain.  When confronted with an antibiotic assault, this bacteria simply rolls up into a dormant cyst that is impenetrable to the antibiotic.  

2.  Borrelia grows very slowly.  

In addition to growing very slowly, borrelia need only be present in small doses to cause a host of serious symptoms.  Antibiotics work best on extremely threatening microbes that grow rapidly and congregate rapidly in specific localized areas of the body.  Pneumonia and the lungs provide us with a good example of such a microbe.

3.  Borrelia is capable of hiding itself among the trillions of other necessary and unnecessary bacteria that make up the human microbiome.  

4.  The continual use of antibiotics, which is required to eradicate Borrelia, disrupts the microbiome of the intestinal tract and weakens the immune system.   

This disruption allows for a host of secondary infections, reduced ability to uptake nutrients and,  as mentioned above, antibiotic-resistant strains of this nasty bacteria.  Additionally, because 70% or more of immune system functions originate in the gut, the immune system is compromised.  

I do not believe that alternative – natural – treatments create the same sort of bacteria re-designing when administered as do anti-biotics.  Nevertheless, I would certainly recommend using a variety of herbal remedies and essential oils during the treatment period – rotating them just as this doctor does when administering antibiotics to combat Lyme disease.  

  Alternative Solutions

Herbals

Dr. Rawls mentions Stephen Buhner’s book, Healing Lyme, as providing the turning point in his recovery from chronic Lyme disease.  This book, according to Dr. Rawls, provides compelling evidence for treating Lyme disease using herbs with antimicrobial properties.  This evidence, says Dr. Rawls, is based on sound scientific evidence.   I am going to sum up – mostly directly quote – Dr. Rawl’s (and Stephen Buhner’s) conclusions for a moment here.  I will use quotation marks (“) to set Dr. Rawls comments apart from my own.

1.  “Herbs provide a wide spectrum of antimicrobial properties.”

Dr. Rawls explains the microbial properties of herbs by saying, “Plants have to deal with a wide range of microbes, including bacteria, viruses, protozoa, and fungi, just like any other living creature.  Not having an immune system, plants deal with the problem by producing a sophisticated spectrum of biochemical substances.  Instead of one chemical, like an antibiotic, a medicinal herb contains hundreds of chemicals that suppress microbes in different ways: therefore resistance is almost unheard of, even with very long term use.”

2.  “Using multiple herbs together is synergistic.”

“Different herbs offer a slightly different range of benefits, therefore multiple herbs can be used together to cover for all possible stealth microbes involved. In fact, this is the preferred way of doing herbal therapy (a concept called “synergy”). This provides for a wide spectrum of activity against a wide range of microbial threats. You can think of it as an orchestra of healing — the sum of multiple herbs is more powerful than each herb individually.”

3.  “Herbal remedies are inherently safe.”

Dr. Rawls continues by saying, “Over the millennia, humans naturally selected certain plant substances for use as medicines. These plants, now known as medicinal herbs, have a chemistry that meshes well with human biochemistry. Not surprisingly, medicinal herbs are well tolerated by most people and can be safely used for extended periods of time.”

4.  “Herbs enhance immune functions”

“Herbs reduce inflammatory messengers (called cytokines) generated by the microbes, shift the balance of the immune system away from inflammatory processes, and restore the ability of the immune system to function normally. These balanced elements are some of the essential keys to getting (and remaining) well.”

5. “Herbs support a balanced microbiome.”

“Plants have to deal with the same friend-versus-foe microbe problem that we do. The sophisticated spectrum of biochemical substances present in herbs support the normal balance of microbes of the body (microbiome), while offering resistance to potential threats at the same time. This unique feature of plant medicines works quite differently than synthetic antibiotics.”

 6.  “Herbs provide a wide spectrum of other benefits.”

Dr. Rawls explains, “Herbs protect organ systems in the body, including cardiovascular, liver, and nerve functions. Herbs balance hormone systems, especially adrenal hormones, and protect cellular function.”  Dr. Rawls continues by saying, “Herbs are anti-fatigue and improve stress tolerance. No drug on earth can provide the range of benefits present in medicinal herbs!”

Some Herbal Suggestions

Garlic

Garlic is often referred to as “nature’s best antibiotic.”  However, being natural, it does not have the various downsides too often associated with antibiotic use.  There is nothing stronger than garlic for killing microbes!

Herbal Combinations

Just as Dr. Rawl’s discovered, multiple herbs when used together in herbal formulations, strengthen and enhance each other’s abilities.  Some of my favorites from the Butterfly line are listed below.

APL   This formula contains garlic as well as a host of anti-microbial herbs and herbs the provide essential nutrients.

BAC    This is a very strong antibacterial formula.

IF  This is a very effective all-purpose infection and microbial fighting formula.  One of the best of the Butterfly line.

MULC  This formula contains a great many very effective anti-infectious herbs.  It also contains two of my favorite soothing and emollient herbs, Mullein and Marshmallow.  These herbs aid in the rebuilding of any tissues that illness might have damaged.  As a result, this formula is a particular favorite of mine!

RC  This is one of the most effective infection fighter formulas that I have ever seen.  It is my personal favorite, even a little bit more than MULC!

YARROW/USNEA  While this formula is particularly effective against Strep and Staph infections, I would certainly add it to any regimen that I was applying to a bacterial infection.

NS, NV, NT, NVC  These are herbal nervine remedies.  Since the Borrelia bacteria tend to burrow into nerves, these remedies may prove very helpful indeed!

AP   AP is a blend created to bring relief from the inflammation and pain of arthritis.

IB  This glycerite tincture is designed to be taken every day as a means of strengthening the immune system.

Essential Oils

A professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, Maryland, led a study that produced unexpected and encouraging results.  Dr. Ying Zhang and his team had previously found some “highly active essential oils” (as they termed them) that were effective against the dormant phase of Borrelia burgdorferi infections.  Building on the results of this previous study, 35 additional essential oils were screened for antibacterial properties.

These tests were lab-dish tests.  Of the 35 plants/essential oils tested, 10 were shown to have “strong activity” against the latent persister forms of Lyme bacteria.   Nine of these are commonly used essential oils, at least at Butterfly Express.  They are: garlic, myrrh, thyme, cinnamon bark, allspice, cumin, eucalyptus, litsea cubeba (may chang), and palmarosa.  Spiked ginger lily (Hedychium spicatum) seeds also showed strong activity.  Spiked ginger lily, garlic, allspice, myrrh, and litsea cubeba completely eradicated all Lyme Disease bacteria within 7 days.  No regrowth occurred over the next 21 days.  Pretty impressive findings!

Dr. Zhang reminds us that tests in rodents need to be conducted.  If these prove successful, properly designed human clinical trials will follow.  Nevertheless, the initial lab-dish findings are very hopeful!

Homeopathics/Blessed Waters

Arsenicum album

Arsenicum album is a great polychrest remedy.  This means that it has proven effective for many people under many circumstances.  This is the first remedy I would reach for if I was even considering the possibility of Lyme Disease.

Arsenicum is useful for such a wide range of symptoms that those of us who use homeopathy regularly often reach for this remedy for one thing or another.  That fact, in my opinion, gives us a “head start” in dealing with such things as Lyme Disease.  For example, I might reach for Arsenicum for bouts of the flu, food poisoning, allergic reactions, asthma, anemia, fevers, and even pneumonia, to name just a few.  Even though I am always leery of “cure-all” remedies, but Arsenicum has proven itself many times in my life.  There might be a remedy that more closely fits whatever I am doing, but if time is short or the situation requires an immediate response, Arsenicum will get us on our way for now!  That is the blessing of a true polychrest remedy like Arsenicum album.

Mercurius solubilis (vivus)

The skin and joint symptoms of Lyme Disease are addressed quite fully by this remedy.  However, the mental symptoms of this remedy resemble the characteristics of the quicksilver from which it is made.  The “mind” characteristics of irresolution, precocious, restlessness, constantly changing ones’ mind, hurried speech, forgetfulness, apprehensive, and anxiousness (among others) must be present for this remedy to work effectively.

Thuja occidentalis

Many of the physical symptoms of Lyme Disease are addressed by this remedy, especially those involving the skin and the joints.  The strength of this remedy is found, in the symptoms of the mind.  Dullness of mind.  Cannot concentrate.  Speech slow, hunts for words.  Makes mistakes, particularly in writing and talking.  Confusion, especially in the morning.  Loses his way in well-known streets.  Feels isolated and alone.  Anxiety about health.  Over-excited, angry or anxious about trifles.  Despair of recovery.  

Persistent Joint Pain

If Lyme Disease is not diagnosed and treated promptly, there is a high likelihood of residual persistent joint pain.  Statistically, about 60% of those who have suffered from Lyme Disease will develop what is referred to as Lyme Arthritis.  The inflamed and painful joints characteristic of this condition may persist for months and even for years.  One of my favorite oils for joint pain is ^LeIntensity.  Many people also love ^LeDeeper.

Fascinating Research

Professor Allen Steere, one of the doctors who discovered and named Lyme Disease and Brandon Jutras from Virginia Tech, has spent the last few years studying the possible drivers of Lyme Arthritis.  They have published their findings in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.  There are two major findings that I would like to report here.

Protective Coating of Bacteria

Bacteria have a distinctive layer that surrounds and protects it.  This layer includes a peptidoglycan (PG).  While most bacteria produce PG, the Lyme bacteria produce a version that has unusual chemical features.  The Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria lack the enzymes necessary to breakdown and reuse this portion of their protective coating.  As a result, fragments break off.  They then remain floating about, eventually lodging in joints, creating persistent and painful inflammation.  This explains why inflammation and pain persist long after antibiotics, or other treatments and have eradicated the bacteria itself.

Excessive Immune Response

Writing of this study, the authors state, “Excessive, dysregulated host immune responses are thought to play an important role in this outcome (Lyme Arthritis). ”  The research showed that the immune system mounts a serious and widespread response to the PG fragments.  The research clearly showed that markers of immune activity were higher in the synovial fluid in joints than they were in the blood serum of patients with joint pain and inflammation.  To further confirm their findings, the scientists purified the PG from the Lyme-causing bacteria, making sure they had only fragments left.  These fragments were injected into mice.  Within just 24 hours, the animal’s joints became inflamed.

What does this mean?

In my understanding, this means that the lymph system of the pain-ridden former Lyme patients was failing to pick up these fragments of dead bacteria and dispose of them properly.  Rather, they were lodging in various joints throughout their bodies instead.  Is this just a lymphatic issue or are the kidneys failing to do their job as well? If this is the case, Lyme Arthritis should respond to essential oils and herbs that have been shown effective for lymphatic congestion.  I would certainly work to strengthen the kidneys as well.  I would do this for any type of arthritis.

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