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Mar 20, 2024 · Some of the most popular natural remedies for Lyme disease include essential oils, herbs, and chelation therapy. Here’s what science says about their efficacy.
- Overview
- Quinine and knotweed show promise
- 1-week treatment eradicates bacteria
Lyme disease — transmitted via tick bite — affects thousands of people in the United States and around the world. Currently, doctors use antibiotics to treat it, but could plant-based remedies be more effective?
Lyme disease is an infectious disease caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi (B. burgdorferi).
The disease spreads to humans through the bite of a tick that carries the bacterium, and it affects an estimated 300,000 people each year in the U.S. alone.
Currently, healthcare professionals choose between three antibiotics in the treatment of Lyme disease. These are doxycycline, cefuroxime, and amoxicillin.
Sometimes, however, antibiotics are not effective in eradicating all traces of B. burgdorferi from the system, which means that the disease can persist.
When this happens, bacterial cells that have developed antibiotic resistance can continue to proliferate. These are known as persister cells.
In their study — whose findings appear in the journal Frontiers in Medicine — the investigators analyzed the potential of 14 different plant extracts in killing B. burgdorferi.
They compared the results with those of two of the traditional drugs used against Lyme disease: doxycycline and cefuroxime.
The researchers pitted each of these plant extracts against free-swimming (planktonic) B. burgdorferi and microcolonies of this bacterium — aggregates of bacterial cells.
The in vitro tests suggested that extracts from seven different plants were more effective against the Lyme disease bacteria than doxycycline and cefuroxime.
The plants in question were black walnut (Juglans nigra), cat’s claw (Uncaria tomentosa), sweet wormwood (Artemisia annua), Mediterranean rockrose (Cistus incanus), Chinese skullcap (Scutellaria baicalensis), Ghanaian quinine (Cryptolepis sanguinolenta), and Japanese knotweed (Polygonum cuspidatum).
The researchers note that the ones with the highest antibacterial activity directed against B. burgdorferi were Ghanaian quinine and Japanese knotweed.
In the current study, the scientists observed that extracts from Ghanaian quinine and Japanese knotweed prevented free-swimming bacteria from proliferating, even when they were present at low concentrations — of 0.03-0.5% — in laboratory dishes.
The two plant extracts also killed entire microcolonies of the bacterium that causes Lyme disease.
In fact, just one 7-day treatment with 1% Ghanaian quinine extract was able to eradicate the bacterium in lab dishes. What is more, the bacterium was unable to make a comeback following this treatment.
At the same time, some of the other natural compounds that the researchers tested offered insignificant or no results.
This was the case with extracts from grapefruit seeds, green chiretta (Andrographis paniculata), ashwagandha, stevia, fuller’s teasel (Dipsacus fullonum), and Japanese teasel.
The researchers also tested some other substances that anecdotal evidence had indicated might be effective against Lyme disease. These were colloidal silver, monoglyceride monolaurin, and the antimicrobial peptide LL37 — also found human immune cells. None of these substances has a significant effect on B. burgdorferi.
Feb 2, 2020 · The home remedies for Lyme disease include the use of herbs like wormwood, oregano, and clove for eliminating the underlying infection. Garlic, valerian, passionflower, and Ganoderma mushrooms are also good for treatment.
May 9, 2023 · 1. Japanese Knotweed. Japanese knotweed ( Polygonum cuspidatum) is a medicinal plant, commonly known as an invasive weed, and is native to Asian countries. A study demonstrated that one of Japanese knotweed’s main compounds, emodin, can effectively stop the growth of the bacteria that causes Lyme disease.
Jun 29, 2018 · Can natural treatments be a more effective, gentler option? Read on to learn about the use of essential oils, oxygen therapy, and other popular natural treatments for Lyme disease.
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High-quality nutritional supplements can profoundly impact your Lyme disease treatment process by reducing inflammation, replenishing depleted nutrients, supporting your gut health, and enhancing detoxification.
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Apr 25, 2023 · 9 of My Most Used Herbs for Lyme Disease treatment support include some of the same herbs proven effective against Lyme spirochetes, in a recent medical study (Feng 2020)
