Quotes and Commentary

This issue might be a good one to print out and take to your doctor. Assuming he or she is not the type to react so vehemently as my orthopedic doctor, the following three pages provide you with sufficient scientific and medical quotes to get your doctor to at least consider that there might be other factors in your ailments. That is, assuming he or she will actually read this stuff rather than just throwing it in the garbage while yelling, “Bullshit!”

Eating Fruits and Vegetables may Cut Arthritis Risk

“Drinking a glass of orange juice a day may help stave off arthritis, new research suggests. Certain carotenoids, compounds commonly found in some fruits and vegetables, appear to be responsible.” – American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, August 2005

OK, so I have arthritis. I have had it for ages. Should I follow this advice? Not only should I do it now, but I should have done it while growing up. As a child, I hated all vegetables and only got fruits, and the sugary ones at that, in the summertime, usually right out of the tree after wiping the grunge off on my shirtsleeve. Would they have helped prevent the onset of my arthritis? Seems they might have, because now that I am eating them regularly (properly cleaned), the pain and inflammation have certainly decreased significantly.

Mysteries of Garlic Revealed

“University of California scientists have determined garlic’s active ingredient (allicin) works in the same way to dilate blood vessels as the chemicals in chili peppers (capsaicin).” – Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, August 2005

We’ve touched on this one before, but now you have a quote from he science side rather than just us quacks. J Garlic is antioxidant and antifungal and you should have fresh cloves of it in your medicine cabinet at all times.

Lifestyle, Diet may Help Prostate Cancer

“A U.S. Defense Department-funded study indicates lifestyle and diet (changes) might stop or reverse prostate cancer progression in some men.” – Journal of Urology, Sep. 2005

OK, first off, I want to know why the defense department is funding diet studies? Are they trying to create the perfect soldier? Secondly, of course, changing your lifestyle and diet can help get rid of prostate cancer, especially because that swollen prostate is probably a yeast infection – a fungal overgrowth sac. Stop feeding the yeast and start killing them and you get healthy. Amazingly simple, isn’t it?

“Drugs and doctors are a leading cause of death in the U.S.” – Journal of the American Medical Association, 2003.

OK, we’ve mentioned that one before. But note that this time, it is not a quote from some outraged group of doctors or researchers, but the AMA themselves. And, further into that same article, they admit that the drugs and doctors are the third leading cause of death, as we stated previously.

“Nosocomial bloodstream infections are a leading cause of death in the United States.” – Center for Disease Control

Nosocomial? They had to invent a whole new word to cover up the real meaning of this quote? Going to the online dictionary (it is not even in my old printed version), we find that “nosocomial” means: “Taking place or originating in a hospital.” Now, let’s rewrite that quote in plain language.

“Infections of the bloodstream, acquired while a patient is in the hospital, are a leading cause of death in the United States.” Hmmmm… I would guess that, if you value your health, the last place you want to ever go to is a hospital. Seriously. There are many good people, well-meaning doctors and nurses who work in hospitals, but the honest truth is that all hospitals have such a high infection rate that they refuse to divulge that rate to prospective customers. I have asked a few and some of their replies are unprintable here. Basically, they said, in different words, that if you don’t trust us, you can go elsewhere, but they refused to give out their infection rate. And they do know what it is. There are laws pending in several states right now to force them to divulge this information.

“A new study reveals that physical exercise is more than just good for your heart and body weight; it also prevents cancer.” – American Cancer Society

“Exercise prevents Alzheimer’s and dementia in seniors.” – American Academy on Aging

I can’t do a whole lot of elaboration on those quotes, except to say that Lannie’s grandmother had Alzheimer’s and she walked regularly as exercise – it didn’t help her. However, if my theory regarding exercise is correct (no way to prove this yet), exercise is only a significant factor in weight loss and health issues if the exercise is rigorous enough to make you sweat. And it has been proven that the more profusely you sweat, the more toxins you flush from your system.

“Fungus was among the first proven etiologic (root cause) agents of infectious disease.” – Clinically Significant Fungi, 1998, Michael Rinaldi, PhD

“In spite of its earlier beginnings, medical mycology was soon overshadowed by bacteriology and has never received as much attention, though some of the fungous (old word meaning fungal) diseases are among the more common infections of man.” – Burrow, WWB, Textbook of Microbiology, Saunders and Co., Philadelphia, 1959

“That animals may be fattened on a predominantly carbohydrate diet demonstrates the ease of conversion from carbohydrates to fat.” – Review of Physiological Chemistry, 16th Ed., Harper, et al, 1977

Gee, I wonder what makes humans fat? Where do we get our carbohydrates? Mostly from breads, cereals, pastas, cakes, cookies, etc. … all those things made from grains, which are, of course, also the highest sources of mycotoxins.

“Mycotoxins have proven to be very toxic and harmful, and it is no wonder that many inhabitants of mold-infested spaces are constantly ill, mainly with upper respiratory tract infections, lethargy, constant headaches, nausea, and a general ill feeling… inhabiting these spaces for a considerable length of time may lead to cancer.” – Ochmanski, W., Przegl Lek, 2000 57(7-8) 419-23

“Stachybotrys (a black mold) has been proven to alter DNA and, in destroying the myelin sheath, causing permanent neurological damage.” – Luther, OK News, July 2005

“The FDA is taking action to ensure that the public is fully aware of a nationwide recall of all of some manufactured drugs (mostly generic prescription drugs, including drugs containing acetaminophen) because of serious concerns about quality assurance standards.” U.S. Food and Drug Administration, May 2005

Gee, did you hear about this last May? I didn’t, and that is the major ingredient of my regular pain medication, which is a generic, not a brand name. So what were the steps to ensure that I (am I part of “the public”?) knew about this?

“The FDA has initiated a voluntary nationwide recall of concentrated infant’s oral drops that are packaged with a dosing syringe bearing only a 1.6 mL mark and containing acetaminophen and pseudoephedrine.” – U.S. Food and Drug Administration, August 1, 2005

What does that mean, “voluntary recall”? Does that mean the consumer can send it back if they want? Or does that mean the seller can pull it from the shelf if they want? The problem here is that 1.6 mL is too high a dose of this stuff for babies to take, but if that is the only mark on the syringe, that is what the parents will assume they are to give to their babies. Now why is that voluntary when there is a potential health risk?

“Higher daily doses of some commonly-used non-aspirin pain relievers increase the risk of high blood pressure in women, the results of two studies suggest.” – Hypertension, August 15, 2005

OK, now I have a “what if” question for all of you. Last night you had cyanide for dinner, perhaps with a side dish of strychnine, and washed that down with a couple diet sodas. This morning when you woke up (assuming you woke up at all), you were feeling really sick. So, what did you expect?

If you are eating things that you know contain poisons, why do you continue to eat them? You have all the evidence you need (from 33 newsletters) to give some credibility – certainly sufficient scientific evidence – to this idea that fungi (molds and yeasts) are destroying your immune system and subjecting you to all manner of aches, pains, and “diseases,” so when do you plan to stop eating poison and start getting healthy? If you won’t quit cold-turkey, will you at least create an exit-strategy? Lay out a plan to wean yourself from these killer foods… and then do something about it!

Remember: If you always do what you’ve always done, you will always get what you’ve always gotten.

Diet, Dimorphic Fungi and Depression

by Doug A. Kaufmann

The following text is copied from the book The Fungus Link: An Introduction to Fungal Disease, copyright © 2000, by Doug A. Kaufmann, with permission of the author.

A man walks into a psychiatrist’s office with a large frog on his head. The psychiatrist says, “My, you seem to have a significant problem.” The frog replies, “Yes, and until I can get this growth removed from my belly, it’s likely to become more significant.”

There are no shortages of puns/jokes directed at mental illness. True depression, however, is no joking matter. Nor, say the statisticians, is it rare. According to the World Book Encyclopedia, approximately 14 million Americans suffer from depression. And, on a monthly basis back in 1990, doctors were writing or renewing in the neighborhood of 60,000 Prozac prescriptions (Newsweek, March 30, 1990). Just imagine today’s count!

All of this data suggest that there are no shortages of depressed people or doctors willing to temporarily erase their symptoms. When dealing with depression, the question that continues to perplex medical scientists is: If we are merely erasing symptoms of depression with medication, what are they symptoms of?

I do not believe that depressed people suffer from a deficiency of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI). Yet Prozac is but one of these medications meant to erase depression – a few hours per pill. There are actually numerous SSRIs and antidepressant medications, all aimed at controlling a symptom. There’s that word again: symptom. What is depression a symptom of? Could it be fungus?

The purpose of this book is to tackle not only physical symptoms of fungal infections but mental symptoms as well, and to educate people about how to recapture the health that most of them once had and that a few have never experienced.

The Fungal Link to Depression

by David A. Holland, M.D.

There is not one of you reading this who has not either experienced depression, or at least known someone who has experienced it. After all, depression is a normal human emotion. In fact, the absence of depression in certain situations, such as the loss of a loved one, can be abnormal.

There are, however, different degrees of depression. That which we will be discussing is the degree of depression that is defined as a clinical illness. You see, just like diseases such as diabetes, depression is defined by technical criteria; criteria which, while not obvious to the majority of people, nonetheless have important implications regarding treatment.

Clinical depression often brings catastrophic consequences with it. It can alter decisions we make regarding our personal and business relationships, decisions that can have a dramatic impact on our future. It can damage our self-esteem, our quality of life, and even our health. It can destroy marriages and lead to job loss, hopelessness, and even suicide. In short, as Doug writes, clinical depression is no laughing matter.

In this essay, I hope to outline how cases of depression may often be linked to a fungal infection. Unfortunately, I may not find one psychiatrist who agrees with me. I can but present some studies that offer a differing viewpoint concerning this disease that strikes one in 20 Americans each year.

I should make it clear that, if you believe you may suffer from clinical depression, you should immediately seek the counsel of a qualified psychiatric doctor. And, if you are correct that you suffer from depression, bipolar disorder, or schizophrenia, you should not delay in beginning treatment. I simply ask that you continue to educate yourself on the facts of your condition from this point on.

In 1984, W.G. Crook, M.D., published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) an article called “Depression Associated with Candida Albicans.” JAMA is among a handful of the most respected medical journals in the world, but the idea of depression associated with a fungal infection apparently did not catch on.

Among the causes of depression, you will fail to find “diet” or “fungi” listed as even remote possibilities. With the exception of life changes or stress factors, the cause of depression is often linked with genetics (i.e., “it runs in the family”). It is difficult then, to try to answer the question of how a fungus might cause depression. What would a living organism have to do with the way you feel?

You may have read that fungi excrete substances called mycotoxins. These are chemicals fungi produce that kill or limit the growth of other organisms, such as bacteria, that compete with fungi for nutrients. You may also have read that antibiotics are actually mycotoxins. In other words, using fungi, we now manufacture antibiotics in massive quantities each day for the specific purpose of killing bacterial infections.

If mycotoxins are, in principle, harmful, is it not reasonable to assume that some do more damage than others? For example, penicillin is a popular mycotoxin that is regularly consumed by humans. In the proper dosage, it is only powerful enough to kill bacteria that have invaded our bodies. On the other hand, if you ever happen to have the misfortune of being exposed to enough of the mycotoxin “aflatoxin,” you will almost certainly develop liver cancer, among other things. Incidentally, some scientists would argue that even penicillin is not actually all that harmless.

If you ingest a moderately powerful mycotoxin such as alcohol, you likely do so expecting an immediate effect. Alcohol can kill you, given enough quantity and time, but it quickly produces behavioral changes even in small doses. During digestion, alcohol is broken down into smaller molecules. One of the chemicals in this degradation pathway is acetaldehyde. If you aren’t familiar with this chemical, simply recall yourself or someone you know who has had a hangover. Yes, it is acetaldehyde you have to blame for making you feel so bad. At least now you have something to blame! So, what are we getting at here?

In an article in the Journal of Nutritional Medicine (1990, 1:33-38), Hunnisett, A., et al, discuss the “auto-brewery” syndrome. This is a condition whereby carbohydrates ferment in the presence of intestinal micro-organisms to yield, you guessed it, alcohol! You don’t need to visit a microbrewery; you are a walking, talking one yourself! In this study, 69% of the patients who consumed 50 grams of glucose (less than two ounces), about equal to the amount of sugar found in one soft drink, had measurable levels of ethanol (alcohol) in their blood stream only one hour after ingesting the 50 grams of sugar. And what fungus is responsible for the conversion of sugar into alcohol? Right again – brewer’s yeast!

If 69% of you are fermenting in your intestines every day when you consume potatoes, grains, or beans (carbohydrates), and you are getting alcohol as a by-product in your blood stream, that alcohol has got to break down eventually into the hangover chemical we discussed above. How would you feel if you had to walk around every day in a constant hangover? Do you feel as though you are walking around every day in a constant hangover? If so, you more than likely suffer from depression.

Do you see where the chronic fatigue syndrome comes into play, as well as depression? If you were an alcoholic, you can deduce that it would be best to avoid not only the alcohol, but also the excess sugars and carbohydrates in your diet, lest you continue to feed your body the fuel it needs to produce the alcohol.

What if alcohol were not your problem, “auto-brewery” or not? What if toxins were to contaminate the food you eat? It’s not unheard of. For example, horses sometimes suffer from a disease called duodenitis/proximal jejunitis syndrome (DPJ). DPJ causes the animals to develop depression and severe gastric reflux. Schumacher, et al, (Vet. Hum. Toxicology, Feb 1995, 37[1]: 39-45), have looked at how the Fumonism B1 toxin, produced by the mold Fusarium moniliforme, may cause DPJ. When horses in their study were fed fungus-contaminated grain, they suffered both intestinal and liver damage. Do you, also, suffer from depression and heartburn? It just might be a fungus in your case as well.

Other mycotoxins, such as T2, vomitoxin, and aflatoxin, all found in mold-contaminated feed, are well known to cause decreased appetite and weight loss in livestock. Weight loss and appetite changes are symptoms typically associated with depression. Could exposure to fungi or their mycotoxins be a factor in your symptoms as well? Until we test for them in the blood stream, we will never know. Please let us know if you find a laboratory in the United States willing to run such tests!

There are means by which fungi can directly invade the meninges (the lining of the brain and spinal cord). Meningitis is nearly always associated with behavioral changes. Most resources will tell you that such an infection, like candidal meningitis, is a devastating and rapidly fatal condition, but other fungi like Histoplasma produce a smoldering infection that can endure for years (C.C. Kibbler, 1996).

If you recall the chapter on bowel diseases, you will remember that many people with conditions like irritable bowel syndrome or Crohn’s disease have neurologic manifestations as well. Most commonly, they suffer from depression! Could invasion from intestinal yeast into the blood stream or production of mycotoxins by these abundant yeasts be the reason for depression? Don’t let anyone tell you that yeast cannot invade the blood stream from the bowels. A.G. Prentice (Mycoses. 32[Suppl.2], 42-46, 1989) says that “even without any other predisposing factor, overgrowth of Candida in the gut will lead to invasion of the blood stream.”

Studies and evidence aside, most people who seek help from alternative medicine practitioners like Doug display a loss of energy to some degree, and many have been previously diagnosed with depression. As far as I’m aware, nearly 100% of Doug’s clients have responded favorably to changes in their diets and the elimination of yeast and yeast-contaminated products. Certainly, if it quacks like a duck and walks like a duck, it must be a duck! When people suffering from depression improve following diet changes and elimination of yeast, it cannot be mere coincidence. In other words, the cause of depression is not genetics, but either a poor diet or a fungus.