Just passing by. Nothing to see – move along.
Pearl Harbor 2017? Who coulda knowed?
Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota & Severe Depression
I am re-posting this previous post because I have begun receiving so many contacts and comments from people struggling not just with issues that they recognize as emanating from their gut biome, but who are also suffering from issues affecting the mind like severe depression, and who don’t realize the connection between their gut bacteria and their mind. There are no simple answers to anything involving health and the mind, of course, but sometimes there seem to be some very simple things that people can try that sometimes work almost miraculously. Probiotics are one of these simple solutions – but even simple solutions can be a bit complex. For example, getting your mind healthy through probiotics isn’t just a matter of running down to the local grocery store’s vitamin section and grabbing a bottle of probiotics off the shelf, and it certainly isn’t a matter of going for the most expensive pro-biotics you can find on the theory that more expensive has to be better.
This post discusses some excellent research on one particular probiotic that appears to have some very specific positive effects not only on the terrible wasting syndrome ME/CFS but also on the severe depression and fatigue that are part of this thing that is causing so many people so much suffering. My theory about healing myself has always been – research the hell out of the issue, look in all the corners that most doctors never look into, and check out the qualifications of whoever is making a recommendation. I’ve done that with this article, and I think that you can trust the authors at least enough to consider that they might be onto something – one simple pro-biotic that could help you or someone you love at least partially get over the dreadful burden of ME/CFS and the accompanying mind-sickness.
The Original Post
Readers of PanaceaChronicles may remember a 2014 post where I discussed the potential of Coca Leaf for the treatment of ME/CFS. (Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.) Along with my interest in the potential therapeutic role of Coca Leaf in treating gut diseases I am also intensely interested in the emerging research on the role of gut bacteria in treating, curing and preventing a range of gut diseases.
So when I came across this research, which suggests that there may be one specific bacteria that could play a major healing role in CFS & IBS I sat up and took notice.
The research is solid (placebo controlled, double-blind etc.) and although studies with a larger “N” have to be conducted it may not be too early for people who suffer from ME/CFS/IBS to begin thinking about this “Can’t hurt; might help” probiotic.
Although the researchers are rightfully cautious, My feeling is that it may not be too early to say that it looks like Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota could be at least a partial answer to treating CFS/IBS effectively.
I have to also wonder, although the research didn’t focus on this, if this little bug might also be helpful in ME.
Moreover, there is also some evidence that this single strain of gut bacteria may have other important therapeutic applications.
For example, a simple Google search for the exact phrase “Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota” turns up statements like “Pancreatic necrosis if left untreated has an almost 100 percent fatality rate due to bacterial translocation. Lactobacillus casei has been found to have a wide spectrum of coverage against pathogenic organisms that translocate from the gastrointestinal tract thereby demonstrating therapeutic benefit in pancreatic necrosis.”
I offer excerpts from this important research article, and the link to the whole article, without extensive comment except to say that anyone affected by these illnesses should take the time to not only read this research but also to follow up on the hyperlinked bibliography at the end of the article.
I hope that this information may be helpful.
A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study of a probiotic in emotional symptoms of chronic fatigue syndrome
Key quotes from this study.
“Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) is a medically unexplained illness, characterized by persistent and relapsing fatigue. This severe pathological fatigue is worsened by periods of physical and mental exertion. Along with the ongoing fatigue, it has also been noted that 97% of CFS patients report neuropsychological disturbances. This can manifest as cognitive dysfunction, sleep disturbances, headaches, and a variety of symptoms in the emotional realm. Of these emotion-related symptoms, anxiety and depression are the most prevalent, with approximately half or patients meeting the criteria for an anxiety disorder or major depressive disorder. Over 40% of patients report symptoms that are often part of anxiety and depressive disorders, including dizziness, lightheadedness, heart palpitations, sleep disturbances, appetite changes and shortness of breath.”
“Many CFS patients also complain of gastrointestinal (GI) disturbances. Indeed, patients with CFS are more likely to report a previous diagnosis of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), meet diagnostic criteria for IBS and experience IBS related symptoms. While CFS is neither a gastrointestinal nor psychiatric disorder per se, over 50 percent of patients with CFS meet the diagnostic criteria of IBS, and anxiety itself is often a hallmark symptom in those with IBS. Although the mechanisms behind this frequent overlap with IBS are far from understood, some investigators have documented that there are marked alterations in the intestinal microflora of CFS patients, with lower levels of Bifidobacteria and higher levels of aerobic bacteria.
Recently it was discovered that gut pathogens in the GI tract can communicate with the central nervous system and influence behavior associated with emotion, anxiety in particular, even at extremely low levels and in the absence of an immune response. Researchers have also shown that the administration of certain bacteria found in soil may support resilience and positively alter stress-related emotional behavior in animals under experimental stress. In addition, so-called probiotics, or live microorganisms which confer a health benefit on the host, have the potential to influence mood-regulating systemic inflammatory cytokines, decrease oxidative stress and improve nutritional status when orally consumed.”
“This background led some investigators to hypothesize a possible adjunctive therapeutic role of probiotic bacteria in mood-related psychiatric symptoms. Some hints at the utility of probiotics for mood regulation come from a recent human trial involving the administration of Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota (LcS) or placebo to 132 otherwise healthy adults. In an intriguing finding, the investigators discovered that those with the lowest scores in the depressed/elated dimension at baseline had significant improvement in mood scores after taking the probiotic compared to the placebo group. The probiotic bacteria and placebo were unable to make a difference in those with the highest baseline mood scores. In addition, ongoing experimental studies in this area have recently shown that in the animal model of depression, the oral administration of a probiotic can increase plasma tryptophan levels, decrease serotonin metabolite concentrations in the frontal cortext and dopamine metabolite concentrations in the amygdaloid cortex. With this background, the current investigation was initiated to determine if orally administered probiotics could make a difference in symptoms of depression and anxiety in adult patients with chronic fatigue syndrome.”
“Overall the results suggest that specific strains of probiotic bacteria may have a role to play in mediating some of the emotional symptoms of CFS and other related conditions. However, it is important to note that this is a small pilot study and broad conclusions cannot be drawn at this time. Since we did not evaluate bowel function during the study, it is entirely possible that the decreased anxiety was a consequence of improved bowel function. In an unexplained medical condition such as CFS, where over 70% of patients meet the criteria for IBS, it is possible that regulation of bowel movements made a difference in mental state. Indeed LcS (Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota ) has been shown to regulate bowel function and decrease constipation in a controlled trial. It is also true that LcS (Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota ) has been shown to reduce small intestinal bacterial overgrowth and the subjective reporting of the passage of gas in patients with IBS. This is of significance because SIBO and intestinal permeability often overlap, and patients with chronic fatigue syndrome are known to have both increased intestinal permeability and SIBO. Indeed, correction of SIBO and intestinal permeability has been shown to improve symptoms in CFS and depressive disorders. Therefore, it is entirely possible that our results are an artifact of improved gut structure and function via the LcS (Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota ) restoration of a healthy intestinal biofilm. However, a recent study using the same LcS (Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota ) strain in healthy adults suggests that there may be a more direct microbial influence on emotional state. In healthy adults who were reported to be more depressed/less elated in daily functioning at baseline, there was significant improvement in mood scores after taking the probiotic.”
Are You Trying To Get Grandma To Eat?
My wife and I have cared for both our Mothers at the end of their lives. We were “on the job” for almost 20 years. One of the constant challenges of caring for an older person is making sure that they get enough of the right kind of food. While this may seem to be a matter of strategy – feed them what they like; prepare it attractively and make it tasty; be sure that it is cut up into bite-sized portions; and, in our case, make sure that there isn’t a pack of friendly dogs standing by to volunteer to help Mom clean her plate or be right there when she “accidentally” drops food she doesn’t want on the floor.
But it turns out, as anyone who has tried it knows, that making sure that an elderly person is well-nourished isn’t easy at all, and there are many, many issues that might not occur to any caregiver naturally just because they are a thoughtful and caring person. That was certainly the case with us, and it probably is for a lot of people. Maybe you.
I’ve just been researching the very serious issue of proper nutrition among the elderly, because as readers of this blog know I am very interested in the role that Coca Leaf tea might play in maintaining and even restoring health to the elderly.
I’ve just found a resource that is full of well-written, practical advice that won’t take anyone more than 30 minutes or so to absorb, and is well worth your time if you are caring for an elderly person.
The article, as you’ll see, was written for nurses, but it is equally valuable to anyone who is trying to give an elderly person nourishment along with love and care. The concluding paragraph sums it up:
“Many people assume that anyone can assist another to eat. However, feeding a patient is not a simple procedure that can be assigned to a junior member of staff without experience. Nurses need to be taught how to do it, what the problems are and how they might be overcome. Most importantly, they need to know the danger signs and when help is needed.”
If you are caring for another person, and if helping them eat is part of what you do, please read this article and share it with others. It is not just about technique – it is about how to turn knowledge into loving care that actually works.
The Bad Guys Win Again
I work part-time as a caregiver and have just returned from my first day caring for D., an elderly woman in the hospital with C. Difficile. She is on the edge of death, and talks constantly about having lost the will to live. No wonder. She is being “treated” with a cocktail of antibiotics that would literally kill a horse, and these “medicines” have completely destroyed her gut biome in the name of going after the admittedly dangerous pathogen C. Difficile.
She has no interest in eating, and is existing only on a few sips of “Ensure” every hour or so, which she takes to the applause of her nurses, doctors and family. “Thank God”, they say, “at least she is getting some nutrition.”
Poison is what she is getting. Ensure and those other drinks that are marketed as an easy way to get nutrition into an old person are nothing more than a high fructose corn syrup cocktail. Pure poison. Her whole body is inflamed because of the combination of having her gut biome destroyed by Vancomycin and a mix of other “let’s just throw everything we have at her” antibiotics, and being “fed” one of the most highly inflammatory substances in the world.
On top of that, her doctors apparently don’t know that there is only one antibiotic that can actually destroy C. Difficile without also destroying the entire body – Rifaximin – but they have kept her in the hospital for over eight weeks now, making huge profits for everybody by stringing along D. and her suffering, ignorant family. She has Medicare and, as her family says, “the best supplemental insurance”. So those eight weeks have made the hospital and the doctors hundreds of thousands of dollars.
That poor family – so grateful that the doctors are doing everything they can. So sad watching Mom lying there all swollen and purple and fading away in a swirling hell of pain.
I couldn’t help myself. I asked her daughter if she had ever heard any of the Doctors mention Rifaximin. Of course not. I also asked if D. was being given probiotics. Of course not – what are those? I tried explaining that even though the antibiotics would kill most of the probiotics at least some balance might be restored, and maybe at least a little of D’s appetite might return.
At this point a nurse who happened to be passing by in the hall heard our conversation and must have dropped a dime because inside of ten minutes I was escorted out of the hospital by guards and my employer was almost immediately on my cell phone firing me.
I’m OK with that. It’s not like finding a job that pays $9 an hour is that hard, although I do enjoy working with old folks, especially listening to their stories. So I’ll probably find another Caregiver agency – there seem to be no end of them – and just won’t mention the incident with Dolores. There just isn’t any other work in the small town where I live – not out of choice, but because life has stuck me here. Of course, I won’t be able to see anyone else who is in the hospital, but that’s OK too. Those places are the definition of hell.
But, dear reader, please ask yourself – how do you think D. would be doing today if she had been able to have a few cups of pure, whole Coca Leaf tea a day for the past few years?
Bottom line – don’t let the doctors destroy your gut, or the gut of anyone you love with their “medicines” without doing your own research. Keep everyone’s gut healthy with probiotics. Do not, ever, consume anything laced with HFCS. And please, do everything you can to see that not only Cannabis but also Coca Leaf is taken away from Pig Pharma and the government thugs and given back to We The People.
You have been warned, and with that I’ve done everything I can. As Kinky says – may the God of your choice bless you.
Here’s The Problem
Everywhere you look in the MSM you find statements like these:
Ready & waiting for those damned Panzers
“… virtually everyone knows that Kim’s threats are those of a paper tiger: North Korea is not believed to have a deliverable long-range nuclear weapon, according to U.S. experts, nor does it yet possess an intercontinental missile.”
” The USS Carl Vinson and its carrier battle group are invulnerable to any threats from North Korea.”
“Japan’s SDF is fully capable of shooting down and destroying any number of incoming missiles launched by North Korea.”
“Even if North Korea does have operational nuclear weapons, they have no way to deliver them to South Korea or Japan, much less the United States mainland.”
“Our Maginot Line is impregnable. It would be impossible for German armor to penetrate this defensive line without being destroyed.”
Oops. Wrong war.
Well, the French generals and press were right – there was no way that German armor could have penetrated the Maginot Line. Unfortunately for the French, and almost for the whole world, the Germans had at least one armored General smart enough to attack by going around the Maginot Line rather than making a frontal assault. Mon Dieu! Who could have known?
So hey – nobody learns from history, right? Least of all some dumbass Korean “Dear Leader” or any of his weak-minded generals.
No delivery systems. Hmmmm. Let’s see. I think I’ve mentioned nukes on rusty old NK freighters sailing in international waters off the Japanese and US coastlines. Oops.
Then there are those antique but very stealthy NK diesel subs. Our Navy wouldn’t let them get close enough to launch a missile, right – and even if they did launch we would just shoot it down, right? But how about if one or two of those little subs were carrying a nuke, not on a missile but just sitting somewhere inside the sub, and upon receiving orders, that obsolete little sub surfaces a hundred miles off the coast and simply detonates? Oops.
Or, just another scenario, what if DHL delivered a sizeable package shipped, say, from Pakistan a few years ago that has been sitting in a storage locker somewhere in the US, waiting for a cell phone call? Well shit, that would take more smarts and planning than the Koreans are capable of, right? Oops.
Everybody knows that they are just bluffing, right? All together now – USA! USA! USA!
There – that ought to do it. Oops?
Bait & Switch With Nukes
Look out- I’m gonna hit the US with this!
So Krazy Kim has the whole world, and especially Daffy Don, focused on his Nukes and, more importantly, on his missiles that he is supposedly getting ready to carry those Nukes all the way to the US. (Update 4/13 – from ZeroHedge.com “virtually everyone knows that Kim’s threats are those of a paper tiger: North Korea is not believed to have a deliverable long-range nuclear weapon, according to U.S. experts, nor does it yet possess an intercontinental missile.”
Hey Seal Team 6! You wild & crazy guys!
Not deliverable you say? Not deliverable – how? Are you as suspicious of “what everyone knows” as I am. Case in point – everyone knew that Saddam had WMD, right? So, what if Krazy Kim is Krazy like a fat little fox?
Just a load of kimchi – nothing to see.
What if instead of using missiles to deliver his nukes he has a couple of rusty old freighters chugging along in international waters? Like maybe off the Pacific and Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the US.
Or maybe lurking somewhere upwind of the US carrier “strike force” that the US is now sending to show the flag around NK?
JFK’s “Football” – ready to decapitate the Russkies.
And what if instead of a “football” like Daffy Don has at his side …
A Deadman’s switch is pretty goddamn simple.
He has a dead-man’s switch rigged so if the US “decapitates” him the switch closes a circuit on those floating bombs?
WhooHoo – feelin’ the breeze from the missile launch in my face
Just sayin’ – maybe we better not underestimate pudgy little guys with crazy hair.
We have to kill the terrorists – for the children!
Or pudgy big guys with equally crazy hair
I die, you die, all God’s children die
