This pandemic is exacerbating a big problem, but natural alternatives are still ignored. Action Alert!
Antibiotics are being widely used in hospitals around the world to treat or prevent secondary infections in COVID-19 patients. This will make the problem of antibiotic resistance much worse and lead to many deaths. Natural alternatives to treat bacterial infections exist, but they are ignored by government and the medical establishment.
Researchers around the world are sounding the alarm about the problem of antibiotic resistance during the COVID pandemic. Patients hospitalized for COVID-19 are at great risk of succumbing not only to the virus but to secondary bacterial infections. A Chinese study of 191 patients in Wuhan showed that 50% of those who died had a secondary infection. Nearly all severe COVID-19 patients will receive antibiotics.
More antibiotic use means more of the medicines currently being used become less effective or even useless. With every dose of antibiotics given to a patient, some bacteria survive, and these surviving strains multiply and evolve into resistant superbugs. Superbugs infect one American every 11 seconds and kill one every 15 minutes. One researcher warns that “the current COVID-19 pandemic threatens to further weaken the already crumbling antibiotic infrastructure.”
Resistant infections cause 700,000 deaths worldwide each year. By 2050, they are expected to kill 10 million people each year. Hospitals are particularly dangerous for this: hospital-acquired infections kill 90,000 people a year. MRSA alone infects 90,000 people and kills 20,000 a year.
It is maddening to see conventional medicine continue to rely on drugs when there are potent natural options available to fight these deadly illnesses.
For example:
- We’ve reported on the anti-pathenogenic properties of colloidal silver, the world’s oldest known antibiotic.
- Researchers have reported that CBD, one of the compounds found in hemp, has shown promise against antibiotic resistant infections such as methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA)
- Two studies have now linked vitamin D to the successful prevention and treatment of tuberculosis (TB). In the first study, white blood cells converted vitamin D to an active form of the vitamin, which helps make a protein that kills the TB bacterium. In the second study, Indonesian scientists compared vitamin D to a placebo, testing both on seventy patients for nine months. The patients who received 10,000 IU of vitamin D (rather than the 600 IU recommended by conventional medicine) had an astounding 100% cure rate.
- Some evidence suggests that vitamin C could be effective in fighting antibiotic resistant infections.
- There have also been studies showing that ozone therapy—which increases the amount of oxygen in the body—can be an effective treatment for TB.
- An Italian study found that thyme and clove essential oils were effective in treating bacterial vaginosis.
- A US study found tea-tree oil was a more effective treatment for staph-infected wounds than conventional treatments.
- Additional research found that lemongrass oil could reduce MRSA.
Russell Blaylock, MD, a leading integrative physician, discussed several important studies on silver in his May 2016 newsletter:
- One study found that adding just a small amount of nano-sized silver to antibiotics made the treatment much more potent in killing a resistant type of bacteria.
- Subsequent studies showed that this approach was not harmful to human cells. Animal studies showed that the toxicity that can result from higher concentrations of silver can be avoided by administering silymarin (from milk thistle) and vitamin E in conjunction with the silver.
- Nanosilver can also destroy the bacterium’s biofilm—a protective organic coating that helps protect the bacteria from antibiotics. One study showed that nanosilver destroyed the biofilm, making the bacteria susceptible to lower doses of antibiotics. Researchers found this strategy to be effective against some of the most dangerous bacteria.
Natural alternatives are clearly supported by good research. But sadly, research doesn’t seem to be enough. Silver, essential oils, and vitamin C cannot be patented, and so cannot make billions for drug companies. Then, to prevent these treatments from competing on a level playing field with drugs, the FDA bars the public from learning about their benefits.
Action Alert! Tell the FDA, with a copy to Congress, to advise healthcare professionals on the use of natural antibiotic treatments. Please send your message immediately.
