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Parasites- A Serious Co-infection of Lyme Disease

February 16, 2020 Brenda Cosentino

Let’s face it.  No one wants to consider the fact that they might have worms. It is not only repulsive, but we live in a society that tells us this cannot be a problem here in North America. With today’s sanitation and standard of living, we are never taught about routine parasite cleansing. Years ago, our ancestors all knew the importance of routinely deworming family members. We have lost this practice. This is a serious co-infection that must not be neglected for those who have Lyme Disease and are immunocompromised.

In 1995, Hulda Clark published her book, The Cure for all Diseases. She stated that:

“ No matter how long and confusing is the list of symptoms a person has, from chronic fatigue to infertility to mental problems, I am sure to find only two things wrong: they have in them pollutants and/or parasites.”

 Her solution for parasites was electronic, herbal treatment and avoidance of anything that was polluting the body.

Dr. Dietrich Klinghardt, a well-known Lyme doctor stated that he and his colleagues have found that all chronic illness is the outcome of chronic infections:

“Other than the co-infections, there is what I call the “opportunistic infections.” The combined effect of the initial infection is an immune suppressive effect, and then the patient becomes vulnerable to all sorts of other things. The most common things people contract early on in the course if the illness are different forms of parasites, such as protozoa; Babesia itself being one of them.

There is Giardia, amoebas, Trichomonas, malaria, and different forms of infections that aren’t labeled yet. There is a new one, called FL1953. Stephen Frye discovered that. It’s a protozoan organism that’s causing severe fatigue and illness in chronically ill people. It’s almost always present in a patient with Lyme disease.

And then we find a lot of worms in people. They may be microscopic and they may be macroscopic. That means they may be visible in the stool or they may not be visible.”  ( Interview with Dr. Joseph Mercola )

After researching the work of Dr. Klinghart, I decided to try a holistic approach to treating the Lyme and co-infections, taking into account his findings.

Symptoms of Parasites

Intestinal Problems – Constipation, diarrhea, abdominal pain, nausea, burning sensation in the stomach, digestive problems, gas and bloating.

Fatigue – Chronic fatigue, weakness and lethargy

Weight and Appetite Issues – Parasites live undetected and rob the host of much-needed nutrients. Many persons with chronic infections of any kind will be nutrient-deficient. This can produce the urge to eat constantly and gain weight, while never feeling satisfied. Parasites can also cause the host to become underweight for the same reasons.

Sleep Problems – Examples include teeth-grinding, multiple nighttime awakenings, over-sleeping and insomnia.

Mood and Anxiety Problems – Mood swings, depression, forgetfulness, unclear thinking, anxiety and restlessness.

Muscle and Joint Pain – Pain in the back, thighs, shoulders, arthritic pain, muscle cramping, numbness in the limbs, heart pain,  irregular heartbeat and pain near the belly button.

Blood Disorders – For example, anemia and hypoglycemia.

Sexual and Reproductive Problems– Menstrual pain and irregularities, cysts and fibroids, prostate problems, yeast infections and male impotence.

Skin Disorders and Allergies – Hives, sores, eczema, crawling sensations, itchy skin, dry skin, dry hair, hair loss, brittle hair, itchy nose and itchy anus.

My Accidental Discovery of Parasites

In 2009, my alternative health practitioner advised me to have my amalgam fillings removed. My health was not improving, despite having switched to the Specific Carbohydrate Diet for a full year. Once the amalgams were removed, I was advised to eat lots of raw garlic to help with the elimination of mercury from my system. Quite by accident, I discovered a large Ascaris worm in my stool. To my shock and horror, I began researching parasites and possible treatments.

Research led me to Hulda Clark and several other herbalists and Naturopathic Doctors on internet forums. Hulda Clark claimed that flatworms, roundworms, protozoa, bacteria and viruses were easy to kill using black walnut tincture (extra strength), wormwood and cloves. I decided to give these a try.

I discovered while cleansing that I had a very bad Ascaris, tapeworm, fluke and rope worm problem. Most chronically ill people have these, but will never discover them unless they do a cleanse.

“Make no mistake about it, worms are the most toxic agents in the human body. They are one of the primary underlying causes of disease and are the most basic cause of a compromised immune system.” – Hazel Parcells, D.C., N.D., Ph.D., 1974

Most commercial parasite products are too weak

I bought and tried various commercial parasite products and found many to be too weak to kill the larger worms. These weak products gave me the impression many times that I had cleared the parasite infections.  Symptoms told me that I still had them. It took a lot of trial and error to figure all of this out.   These products may have been effective decades ago but for those that have had to deal with the newly discovered stealth infections like ropeworm, these products are much too weak. I began studying the most common herbs used in these products and decided to make my own herbal parasite cleanse. Not only were these commercial products ineffective, but expensive. I realized I could make my own for a fraction of the cost and use them at dosages that would finally be effective.

My first recipe consisted of black walnut, wormwood (artemisia), ground cloves, goldenseal, barberry, quassia, olive leaf powder, cat’s claw and elecampane.

It took me a full year on these herbs to clear the parasites. It was an unbelievable and frustrating time of cleansing. Once I stopped cleansing I would relapse in a few months. My energy would drop and all of the parasite symptoms would return. This pattern of parasite cleansing and relapse went on for several years.

Why kill, kill, kill doesn’t work

It is really important to reduce the pathogenic load. When the load is very high, it is really difficult to bring the body back into a balanced state. I did have to kill off my parasites, but did it in a gentler way. In 2014, I decided to try eliminating all substances that might be harming my intestinal flora. I removed the goldenseal, barberry and high amounts of raw garlic from my cleansing routine. I also stopped using oregano oil, grapefruit seed extract, colloidal silver, high doses of Lugol’s iodine and any other substances that were having an antibiotic or antiseptic effect.  These substances are great for eliminating pathogens, but cannot differentiate between the good and bad flora. I also made sure that I was eating probiotic foods every single day and bone broth several times per week. Instead of just killing pathogens, I would work on increasing good probiotics that would naturally push out the bad. This was the approach that finally worked and brought me into remission.  I had to change the intestinal terrain to achieve lasting remission.

Real Food Rebel Parasite Cleanse Recipe

Black walnut hull powder  – 1/4 cup
Artemisia Annua (Sweet Annie Wormwood) –  1/2 cup
Ground cloves – 1/4 cup
Olive leaf powder – 1/4 cup
Cat’s Claw powder – 1/4 cup
Pau d’arco powder – 1/4 cup
Cascara Sagrada – 1/2cup

Mix all of the dry powdered herbs together and store in a glass jar. I used 1 tablespoon in an 8oz glass of water, in the morning and at night before bed, on an empty stomach. I drink another big glass of water to wash everything down. I started with a much smaller dose and worked my way up over a period of two to three weeks.  This approach will enable each person to determine what the ideal dose for their particular parasite infection will be. It is really important to be drinking at least 3 liters of water per day while cleansing.

Optional herbs –  Elecampane was helpful with a chronic, cough that would appear at least once or twice per year and last for months on end. Andrographis is another wonderful herb that can be rotated every 30 days with the wormwood. I used the wormwood longterm but many herbalists advise against this.

Note – Later on, I discovered the anti-parasitic drug mebendazole. I took this for 6 days over the full moon each month to give a little extra pressure on the roundworms and rope worms. I only did this about 4 times so it certainly wasn’t the primary dewormer that finally brought me to full elimination of the worms. I did try albendazole but was experiencing hair loss and liver pain so I decided not to use it.  It does work systemically but it was much harder on my body. Mebendazole works mainly in the intestinal tract and is poorly absorbed, so it doesn’t affect the liver and kidneys. The mebendazole is available in Mexico as an over the counter medication that costs less than $4.00 per treatment. It is exponentially more expensive here in Canada and a doctor’s prescription is necessary.
This cleanse should not be used during pregnancy. Please seek the guidance of your healthcare practitioner.

Feeling worse before feeling better!

I suffered immensely during the first months of treatment. My body was fighting an active infection while dealing with the heavy burden of toxins and heavy metals released by pathogens as they were dying off. This is known as a Jarisch–Herxheimer Reaction, commonly referred to as a “herx”; it is not an easy thing to go through.  It is the body’s reaction to endotoxins released during the death of harmful microorganisms. Also known as a die-off reaction, it can be very intense. It can produce fever, chills, headaches, muscle aches, intestinal upset, dizziness, sore throat, ear pain, tooth pain, sweating, emotional upset and many other adverse symptoms. It is short-lasting and resolves once the toxins have been cleared from the body. You can read more about dealing with die-off here.

Other things I added

Betaine HCL with all meals – Stomach acid is the first line of defense against unwanted pathogens. I had very low stomach acid the entire time I was sick. I was taking 5 – 6 tablets with each meal. Everyone is different, but having enough HCL in the stomach will really help with blocking the entrance of new pathogens and digestion of food. Most people with parasites have low stomach acid. I still use betaine HCL with everything that I eat but I only need 2 per meal now. You can read more about it in this article.

Proteolytic Enzymes on an empty stomach before bed during periods of heavy cleansing. I no longer take these before bed.

Wahls Paleo Diet– This diet is nutritionally packed and eliminates sugar, grains, processed foods, dairy, soy, corn and eggs. I added back the eggs, as I wasn’t affected by them. Parasites cannot thrive in an alkaline environment. Eating dairy, sugar and processed foods will only make the parasite problem worse. This diet completely eliminated the yeast problems that I was having. You can read more about the diet here.

Kelp – I added kelp tablets (bioavailable source of iodine) daily and have been on them for a year.

Copper – Hair testing showed a continuous copper deficiency (copper is an important infection fighter and critical for the formation of red blood cells; if the infection becomes chronic, the body’s tissue copper stores become depleted). I wasn’t compliant with supplementation and it took me 2 years to get my copper into the normal range. Hair testing will reveal which minerals are low or high.

Daily probiotic foods – I love beet kvass and homemade sauerkraut. I love experimenting with new recipes, and cannot emphasize enough the importance of eating these every single day. These will help to maintain intestinal balance.

You can read about everything else that I did to recover my health here!

Staying Healthy with NutritionMaintenance Protocol for Parasites

I have been in remission from all chronic illness since November 2014.  I am currently doing a 30-day herbal cleanse with my recipe every 6 months. My parasitic load has been quite low with this cleansing schedule. Parasites are no longer getting the upper hand due to the health of my gut and all of the antiparasitic foods that I have incorporated into my diet! You can read more about these foods here! Change the terrain and you will no longer be a good host for these pathogens! It is time to Take the Fear out of Lyme Disease. I feel better than I have in decades!

Don’t ever give up!  You can do this!

Blessings and Best of Health!

Brenda

Everything that I have done to recover my health is available here for free on my blog. If you would like a little extra help, I offer nutritional therapy consultations and hair tissue mineral analysis for a fee. Please go to this page for a list of my rates and to book an appointment for health coaching.

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Detoxification, Featured Post, Gut Health, Lyme Disease & Co-infections, Nutritional Deficiencies ascaris, Chronic Fatigue, depression, flukes, gut health, herbal treatments, herbs for parasites, lyme disease, parasites, probiotic, ropeworms, roundworms, Success Story, tapeworms

About The Author

Hi! I’m Brenda Cosentino, Nutritional Therapy Consultant (NTC), chronic illness warrior, digital nomad and mother of three gorgeous children. read more.

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