109 replies to this topic

[Ark]

What do you mean, "years ago" ? The hospital tests had been
done years ago, they were still not sure what was wrong with
you then, and now only you are seeking treatment ??

I need current test results, and any doctor would too, for that matter.

It's unlikely to be TB then, since you would have deteriorated badly by now.
Like I emphasized before, you need to be investigated by a chest doctor
thoroughly.

And I wonder what is wrong with your IQ. Even if I had to ask
you directly, as in my last post, surely you would have noted
me bringing up the issue of fever and weight loss at least twice
before that, which are two classical symptoms of TB ? Yet you
remained silent on that.

For the umpteenth time, DO YOU HAVE :

FEVER

WEIGHT LOSS ?

I have been doing everything I can to get rid of this, trust me everything you can think of every penny in the bank. Don't assume you know what I've done or been through just because your suffering yourself.

[Ark]

"I'm thinking of treating myself for flukes/anti-fungal, also I plan on adding Sulfazine / Mullein / Elecampane and a strong Anti depressant (as serotonin can help repair damaged lungs) If that doesn't work I will push Garlic,Cordcyeps, strong new aged antibiotics and I'll super charge them by upping my body temperature and consuming tons of sugar."

I'm not familiar with using sugar in this way. Germs and cancer cells like to eat sugar so I would think you would be better off eating less sugar right now.

I've never heard that Serotonin and/or Anti-depressants can help repair damaged lungs. What evidence do you have that this is true? This doesn't sound like the best plan.

I'm sorry that western medicine has performed so poorly for you. It can be a miracle when done properly, but too often I hear stories like yours. That's why I like to use limited resources on Chinese Medicine and well-chosen supplements, diet and lifestyle modifications. I had some kind of lung "infection" (although I think in my case it was more of an adverse reaction to environmental chemicals and a hidden food allergy). I had a horrible loud hacking cough and phlegm in my lungs. The cough was so bad it pulled a muscle. It went on for months. I followed all the diet and lifestyle advice I gave to you earlier, and I went to an acupuncturist for about two treatments. I also took the herbs he gave me. I also discovered I had a hidden allergy to oats so I had to give up oatmeal. It was causing some of the phlegm in my lungs.

The problem was solved. It went away without a trace. I still drink Pu-erh tea.

So yeah, you could try fooling with more Western doctors. Somewhere out there is one who can help you. And a lot who won't.

Do you feel lucky punk? Do you?

You could try treating yourself with stuff you read about on the internet but it hasn't worked yet. Or you could go back to my earlier postings and follow all the diet and lifestyle advice. And avoid oats just in case. And you could find the best acupuncturist in your area and spend several hundred dollars on treatment. That's what I did. And it worked.

You should also write down what you eat and all the supplements/other substances you consume so I could look at them and see in there's anything bad in there. You might not realize it's bad. You wrote about Kava. I would avoid Kava because it has cold energy and you don't need that right now. I would avoid pot because it is something your liver and brain don't need to deal with right now. If you want to pursue this this, let me know if the food or drinks are cold or hot or room temperature. Tell me what your lungs are being exposed to. What kind of environment do you work in, live in exercise in? What do you use to clean your house? Do you have a deodorizer thing in your car? If you want to do this, I will help you but you'll have got send me a lot of information and answer a lot of questions. Feel free to send the information in a message if you don't want to post it here.

If you don't want to go this route, I was thinking you could try the sulfa-what-cha-callit drug again that worked before, but you'd at least have to get a prescription from a doctor and that's a hassle. And there's public health doctors since you may have something contagious, but you can't always predict what they may do. I would go my route because it's the least hassle for the most benefit, most of the time. I have been studying on wholistic medicine for thirty years and I'm willing to help you.

If you do want to do this, please make sure your writing is as clear and detailed as possible. Sometimes I have a hard time making out what you are saying. Thanks.

Seems like you might not be as up to date on your lung protocols as you might think, no matter i truly appreciate everything your doing and saying but i don't think this can be cured from diet or acupuncture.

[Luminosity]

But it can be cured by random vitamins?

It could most likely be cured by diet and acupuncture but only by those that will adopt them. "not as up to date on your lung protocols as you might think," What does that even refer to?

It's your body. I'm out of here.

Edited by Luminosity, 19 January 2012 - 03:23 AM.

[Ark]

Whoa.

I don't understand why you said before your uncle had an undiagnosed lung infection, but now you say he had TB and was in quarrantine for it? Can you explain the discrepancy?

The TB Control project in your county said they no longer operate their own clinics due to budget cuts. They said they would refer you to community clinics where you may have already been, the ones who do the negative skin tests.

Basically, you have to make a more consistent effort to resolve this, whether you go with Western medicine or Chinese medicine. The world will never treat you better than you treat yourself, in fact, it's impossible for people to help you until you get out of your own way.

As I said before, that would mean giving up pot, kava or other substances so you have maximum clarity and follow through. We've had to pull the needed details out of you and that should not have been. Some people who consume marajuana are bad with details, clarity and follow through. It's delusional to believe that you can cure this with random vitamins.

I continue to hope that you will take the advice I gave you earlier. I think that's the most likely way for you to be cured. I just read about someone being cured on tuberculosis from Chinese medicine a few days ago. Today she is a practioner with her own clinic. (Esther Ting, Phd. Santa Monica, California)

I'm not going to read this thread anymore because I can't take it. I hope you get it together. If you want my help, you'll have to send me a message, or preferably, just follow the advice I already wrote here.

http://www.medicalne...ases/198462.php
http://news.injurybo...googleid=246942
http://www.thelancet...2155-1/fulltext
http://www.msnbc.msn...ter-says-study/
http://blog.sunlight...una-antibiotics

[Luminosity]

So, not so random but there are still concerns and discrepancies. There may be data behind your ideas but there's 5,000 years of experience behind mine.

[Ark]

Also; I want to note that both statements are true my uncle did have TB and had something else(which was never made clear)

He was a lifetime cig smoker so his chances of surviving with TB or any other Lung infections were low.

I heard when he had his coughing fits he coughed up so much stuff fungus/bacteria and blood (he ended up flat-lining several times from coughing fits before he ended up causing a pulmonary bleed and bleed to death from the inside, his condition was so bad that he had to have morphine because they were afraid if he had another coughing fit he'd die (which he did)

One of the reasons I'm sort of cryptic is I'd rather not be found out who this account belongs too and it's also a bit hard to talk about after having so many failed attempts to get better only to have nothing completely work. *YEARS of MISERY% I've trained my whole life in MMA and was on a path for the big leagues(strike force) before this huge set-back, it kills me to have to watch my dreams slip through my fingers due to my right lung problem. I can't last two rounds or one for that matter, before getting sick I could go 12 rounds in boxing, win Jujitsu / Submission wrestling tournaments no problem. Now I can just do drills and it makes me sick to think I put everything into being a athlete and one problems keeps me from all my dreams.

This year I wanted to go and win Pan-Ams in jujuitsu but it won't happen unless I get rid of this problem.

Edited by Ark, 19 January 2012 - 04:14 AM.

[Ark]

Update* I just emailed a few online pharmacy's to see if or where i can get rifampicin and D-Cycloserine .

Once i track down both I will buy 6-8months worth and give it a go with everything I have left.

Edited by Ark, 19 January 2012 - 05:02 AM.

[Ark]

Supplements/Drugs that I will Run in conjunction of rifampicin and d-cycloserine.


The bucket list; Mullein, Stablon, Sulfazine, Garlic, Cordacyeps and Cat's Claw

[Ark]

PMing you now Luminosity

[nameless]

Just now glanced at this thread, but I strongly suggest not treating yourself with drugs unless you plan to see a doctor and get liver function tests. Even common antibiotics can damage the liver.

Also suggest saving and paying to see a regular doctor if you have no insurance, or try a free clinic (if there are any)... get a repeat chest x-ray, and whatever tests they can do without emptying your bank account.

[Arch_NME]

Forget this herbal BS. Have you taken any antibiotics at all for this yet? That is the CURE for TB and other infections. You can't get some stuff off amazon and other online stores as "pet antibiotics" but it's perfectly good for human use. The rifampicin is very good if you can get that, it may be good to combine that with another antibiotic at the same time if you are actively experience symptoms right now. You could easily have had a case of latent TB all this time. If you can't find a source for what you need PM me and I'll give you mine.

Follow this link:
http://en.wikipedia....losis_treatment
Acquire all the drugs up front and go through the full treatment, all 6 months of it. When you take antibiotics you have to go all the way with them or you're going to end up with an incurable drug resistent infection. You want to hit it with everything you can all at once for as long as proscribed.

Get some ANTIBIOTICS and you need to get some heath insurance. Frankly you really shouldn't be engaging in MMA with no coverage either. You WILL incure injuries and need treatment and this do it yourself medicine probably isn't going to get you to age 40 let alone immortality.

[niner]

If a bunch of medical professionals and thirty thousand dollars worth of tests have come to the conclusion that ark doesn't have an active TB infection, is it really appropriate to start a lengthy course of TB treatment?

[Ark]

If a bunch of medical professionals and thirty thousand dollars worth of tests have come to the conclusion that ark doesn't have an active TB infection, is it really appropriate to start a lengthy course of TB treatment?

It's my best bet, my doctors kept thinking I had TB but weren't sure why the skin test was coming back Negative you have to remember I got this sickness in a subtropical climate half way around the world. My doctors are used to the common flu not tropical infectious diseases, I would have been better off going to the hospital in New Zealand as they would have had a better shot of knowing what's wrong.

[Lufega]

Supplements/Drugs that I will Run in conjunction of rifampicin and d-cycloserine.

The bucket list; Mullein, Stablon, Sulfazine, Garlic, Cordacyeps and Cat's Claw

I think you should secure a diagnosis before you commit to long-term antbiotics. I understand your financial situation so google "tuberculosis free testing" and whatever city you live in. TB is not something most health departments want to leave untreated so most cities offer some type of support for this. In the meanwhile, and I don't mean treat with vitamins instead of antibiotics, start off with a couple of things that are specific for the lung like mullein and garlic, then take it from there. Less is more. Kitchen sink approaches rarely work for anyone.

[Ark]

You have to remember I've been to doctors and I've done everything within the system as possible. That being said there are tests but there just the skin tests due to the fact that TB has been stamped out in Pacific North West.

I will move ahead with 6-8 month treatment and will get liver levels tested as I go, I do know their are public health services that i can tap into for this.

[niner]

If a bunch of medical professionals and thirty thousand dollars worth of tests have come to the conclusion that ark doesn't have an active TB infection, is it really appropriate to start a lengthy course of TB treatment?

It's my best bet, my doctors kept thinking I had TB but weren't sure why the skin test was coming back Negative you have to remember I got this sickness in a subtropical climate half way around the world. My doctors are used to the common flu not tropical infectious diseases, I would have been better off going to the hospital in New Zealand as they would have had a better shot of knowing what's wrong.

My impression is that the skin test is neither necessary nor sufficient to diagnose TB. They couldn't have ruled it out on that basis. There must have been other tests done in order to run up that $30,000 tab. And ultimately, they ruled it out, or they would have treated you. They aren't going to let a person with active TB run around untreated. This just doesn't add up. A pulmonologist in the US might not see a ton of TB, but they know how to diagnose it. I can think of two possiblities for what's going on:

1) Your doctors think that you are sick, but they can't figure out what it is, so they gave up. This seems unlikely.

2) Your doctors think that you aren't sick, rather they think you are crazy, and they cut you off.

[Ark]

If a bunch of medical professionals and thirty thousand dollars worth of tests have come to the conclusion that ark doesn't have an active TB infection, is it really appropriate to start a lengthy course of TB treatment?

It's my best bet, my doctors kept thinking I had TB but weren't sure why the skin test was coming back Negative you have to remember I got this sickness in a subtropical climate half way around the world. My doctors are used to the common flu not tropical infectious diseases, I would have been better off going to the hospital in New Zealand as they would have had a better shot of knowing what's wrong.

My impression is that the skin test is neither necessary nor sufficient to diagnose TB. They couldn't have ruled it out on that basis. There must have been other tests done in order to run up that $30,000 tab. And ultimately, they ruled it out, or they would have treated you. They aren't going to let a person with active TB run around untreated. This just doesn't add up. A pulmonologist in the US might not see a ton of TB, but they know how to diagnose it. I can think of two possiblities for what's going on:

1) Your doctors think that you are sick, but they can't figure out what it is, so they gave up. This seems unlikely.

2) Your doctors think that you aren't sick, rather they think you are crazy, and they cut you off.

If you say so.... BTW that's total bullshit thanks for posting.

[niner]

If you say so.... BTW that's total bullshit thanks for posting.

Which part of it? What do your doctors think, anyway? They must have either told you that they think you are sick (but they don't want to treat it, or don't know how) or that they don't think you are sick. Is there another possiblity that I'm missing?

[Ark]

Here's what happen, My primary doctor did all the stranded test and decided something was wrong, he referred me to a Eye Nose Throat doctor (*who ran a cat scan of my nasal passageway and throat) who referred me to a another pulmonary doctor who did the same tests as both doctors before, he then told me i didn't have Asama and nothing was wrong, it was summer and i didn't say much. I went home got sick went back to my primary MD who was shocked that i was still sick meantime i did like a thousand skin tests 2 came back positive the rest negative, at which point i was sent to another pulmonary specialist which said he thought i had TB so he finally after running all the tests over again referred me to the University Of Washington Tropical infection specialist , unforgivably by this time i lost my insurance and could no longer afford to go. (don't ask me why they did this, I complained allot about re-doing all the tests I had just did. When i told the Nurse/Tech staff doing it, they argued and said doctors orders (ask him) when i asked him he said he wanted to double check.....

I was screwed by the system, I'm not crazy, thanks. I do have all the psychical symptoms of TB, It all came after ex poser to someone who died of TB and not to mention the amount of time exposed to someone who was actively being quarantined level 5 TB -here(http://www.northland...tals/whangarei/). I also want to mention I did have a incubation time when I was there where i got really sick deathly ill for 2 days, I did come down with something un-explainable and nasty, when I came back to the states I lost almost 28 pounds in 3- months and i have been on a bulking diet since and never gained another pound. Also I did test positive for TB but I also tested Negative, during all this time I did end up coughing up something that they ran tests and were able to make grow, then whatever it was died and they told me there was nothing there and it was a false positive and that they weren't sure another sample was asked for at the same time i was suppose to go see the Tropical disease specialist and like I said all my money ran out and these things not only take good insurance but also a heavy Co-pay plus more medical bills that the insurance doesn't even cover


Look common sense says if it looks like a duck , walks like a duck , and quacks like a duck it's a duck or in my case TB if I don't do this now, i may never get a second chance. And at lass will lose the race to Immortality badly.

I never did anything drastic and if anything i have been in major denial about the seriousness of my lung infection and in a way was trying to ignore it for the longest time hoping for some reason it would just go away. Which Tb doesn't do, as I have found out the hard way.

[Lufega]

I think there is another possibility. The twilight zone of rare and poorly diagnosed diseases. Although, now we know these are less diagnosed than they are rare. I went through something similar myself. For years I couldn't figure out what was wrong but I knew something wasn't right. I never want to go through that again. I was snubbed, scoffed and called a hypochondriac by many Doctors over many years. Lucky for me, I gained unlimited access to lab work while I was in Med. school so I eventually diagnosed myself, which the Docs. later confirmed. Sure, common things occur commonly we are taugh, but some Doctors seem to think that uncommon things don't occur at all. So they never look.

During some of those years, I went on wild speculations about what I thought I had, followed by even crazier supplement protocols. Some of that nonsense you can find in some of my old posts. So I went on these kitchen sink, cure all approaches that did nothing but waste my money.

Ark,

Tham took a real interest in helping you. Maybe you can help him by proving the information he needs and again, figure out what you have first before you try to do anything about it.

*posted this before I saw your reply.

Edited by Lufega, 20 January 2012 - 04:39 AM.

[Ark]

Indeed; Tham and I are talking PMs, I also sent him the info in regards to boosting the property's of antibiotics through raising body heat and sugar for his TB treatment.

Lufega; Thanks for your story, I hope there is a light at the end of the tunnel for me.

Edited by Ark, 20 January 2012 - 04:50 AM.

[Lufega]

Indeed; Tham and I are talking PMs, I also sent him the info in regards to boosting the property's of antibiotics through raising body heat and sugar for his TB treatment.

Lufega; Thanks for your story, I hope there is a light at the end of the tunnel for me.

Are you referring to this ? Sugar makes bacteria more metabolically active and thus, susceptible.

http://www.scienceda...10511134215.htm

Also, look at this http://www.ncbi.nlm....losis carvacrol

Carvacrol and thymol are found in Oregano Oil. You can even try an oregano nasal spray if you're man enough.

http://www.iherb.com...60-ml/8790?at=0

[Ark]

Forget this herbal BS. Have you taken any antibiotics at all for this yet? That is the CURE for TB and other infections. You can't get some stuff off amazon and other online stores as "pet antibiotics" but it's perfectly good for human use. The rifampicin is very good if you can get that, it may be good to combine that with another antibiotic at the same time if you are actively experience symptoms right now. You could easily have had a case of latent TB all this time. If you can't find a source for what you need PM me and I'll give you mine.

Follow this link:
http://en.wikipedia....losis_treatment
Acquire all the drugs up front and go through the full treatment, all 6 months of it. When you take antibiotics you have to go all the way with them or you're going to end up with an incurable drug resistent infection. You want to hit it with everything you can all at once for as long as proscribed.

Get some ANTIBIOTICS and you need to get some heath insurance. Frankly you really shouldn't be engaging in MMA with no coverage either. You WILL incure injuries and need treatment and this do it yourself medicine probably isn't going to get you to age 40 let alone immortality.

I found rifampicin at Alldaychemist.com , i plan to buy up 8 months worth of antibiotics and anything that will boost the removal of the infection. I'm still open to new suggestions if anyone else knows of anything else that will help end this plight of mine.

[Ark]

Indeed; Tham and I are talking PMs, I also sent him the info in regards to boosting the property's of antibiotics through raising body heat and sugar for his TB treatment.

Lufega; Thanks for your story, I hope there is a light at the end of the tunnel for me.

Are you referring to this ? Sugar makes bacteria more metabolically active and thus, susceptible.

http://www.scienceda...10511134215.htm

Also, look at this http://www.ncbi.nlm....sis%20carvacrol

Carvacrol and thymol are found in Oregano Oil. You can even try an oregano nasal spray if you're man enough.

http://www.iherb.com...60-ml/8790?at=0

I have indeed tried nasal sprays http://www.sinusfres...s&itemid=538661

and I have also read, about the infection fighting power of Oregano Oil, I will add this to my support stack as it may help clear any remnants of the infection .

http://www.ncbi.nlm....losis carvacrol

Essential oils from Achyrocline alata and Swinglea glutinosa were the most active with minimal inhibitory concentrations of 62.5 +/- 0.1 and 100 +/- 36 microg ml(-1), respectively. Carvacrol, thymol, p-cymene, 1,8-cineole, limonene, and beta-pinene were the major components, most often identified in the 11 plant extracts of essential oils. Time-kill curve assays demonstrated the bacteriostatic activity of these essential oils.

CONCLUSIONS:

The essential oils from A. alata and S. glutinosa plants, and the components identified therein, are candidates as potential phytotherapeutic agents for human tuberculosis control.

I wonder if there are any supplements containing these Colombian medicinal plants?

BTW nice find Lufega

Edited by Ark, 20 January 2012 - 05:11 AM.

[Lufega]

No need to find those specific colombian plants. Essential oils are redundant in nature so you can find them in my places. Carvacrol and thymo are the active oils in oregano and thyme oil. So those will do just fine.

Propolis. I've also found nasal sprays online. http://beehealthyfar...p?id_product=61

Synergism between ethanolic extract of propolis (EEP) and anti-tuberculosis drugs on growth of mycobacteria.

Scheller S, Dworniczak S, Waldemar-Klimmek K, Rajca M, Tomczyk A, Shani J.

Source

Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Silesian Academy of Medicine, Zabrze-Rokitnica, Poland.

Abstract

Ethanolic extract of propolis exerts a strong anti-bacterial activity, in addition to antifungal, antiviral and antiprotozoal properties. In previous studies from these laboratories we have demonstrated that the intensity of the bactericidal activity of EEP is correlated with the virulence of the mycobacteria tested, and that EEP has a synergistic effect with antibiotics on growth of staphylococcus aureus. In the present study we investigated whether the same synergism and correlation exists between EEP and some anti-tuberculosis drugs on tuberculosis mycobacteria with different degrees of virulence. Six standard strains and 11 wild strains of mycobacteria were exposed for 30 days to EEP, with or without streptomycin, rifamycin, isoniazid or ethambutol. Out of the 17 strains, 8 were resistant to at least two standard antibiotics, and were considered "multi-resistant strains". The rest were either susceptible or resistant to only one of the antimycobacterial drugs. Antagonism was recorded only in one case, when Staphylococcus aureus were treated with a mixture of EEP and ethambutol, suggesting that a chemical bond could have been formed between this anti-tuberculosis antibiotic and one of the active components of the ethanol extract of propolis.

[Ark]

No need to find those specific colombian plants. Essential oils are redundant in nature so you can find them in my places. Carvacrol and thymo are the active oils in oregano and thyme oil. So those will do just fine.

Propolis. I've also found nasal sprays online. http://beehealthyfar...p?id_product=61

Synergism between ethanolic extract of propolis (EEP) and anti-tuberculosis drugs on growth of mycobacteria.

Scheller S, Dworniczak S, Waldemar-Klimmek K, Rajca M, Tomczyk A, Shani J.

Source

Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Silesian Academy of Medicine, Zabrze-Rokitnica, Poland.

Abstract

Ethanolic extract of propolis exerts a strong anti-bacterial activity, in addition to antifungal, antiviral and antiprotozoal properties. In previous studies from these laboratories we have demonstrated that the intensity of the bactericidal activity of EEP is correlated with the virulence of the mycobacteria tested, and that EEP has a synergistic effect with antibiotics on growth of staphylococcus aureus. In the present study we investigated whether the same synergism and correlation exists between EEP and some anti-tuberculosis drugs on tuberculosis mycobacteria with different degrees of virulence. Six standard strains and 11 wild strains of mycobacteria were exposed for 30 days to EEP, with or without streptomycin, rifamycin, isoniazid or ethambutol. Out of the 17 strains, 8 were resistant to at least two standard antibiotics, and were considered "multi-resistant strains". The rest were either susceptible or resistant to only one of the antimycobacterial drugs. Antagonism was recorded only in one case, when Staphylococcus aureus were treated with a mixture of EEP and ethambutol, suggesting that a chemical bond could have been formed between this anti-tuberculosis antibiotic and one of the active components of the ethanol extract of propolis.

What do you think about this?


A Ukrainian herbal product has been the subject of several small, open label clinical trials, with promising results in TB patients^[131][132] and in patients with TB/HIV coinfection.^[133] Open label trials with Dzherelo/Immunoxel have also been positive in Multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis patients^[134] and Extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis patients.^[135] Stirling Products Ltd of Australia has announced further work in drug-resistant TB and in TB/HIV in trials in Nigeria.^[136]

[Ark]

Faster TB Healing by Combining Dzherelo (Immunoxel) with TB Drugs

The clinical study in 75 first-diagnosed TB patients published in the monthly journal of journal of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases reveals that when standard, first-line TB drugs are combined with Dzherelo (Imunoxel), the combination can produce significant clinical and radiological improvements and clearance of M. tuberculosis at higher rate than in patients on TB drugs alone. Biochemistry and hematological analysis of blood samples support favorable adjunctive effect of Dzherelo, which has not shown any adverse effects throughout the study duration.

http://www.prweb.com...rweb2470834.htm

[Ark]

Faster TB Healing by Combining Dzherelo (Immunoxel) with TB Drugs

The clinical study in 75 first-diagnosed TB patients published in the monthly journal of journal of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases reveals that when standard, first-line TB drugs are combined with Dzherelo (Imunoxel), the combination can produce significant clinical and radiological improvements and clearance of M. tuberculosis at higher rate than in patients on TB drugs alone. Biochemistry and hematological analysis of blood samples support favorable adjunctive effect of Dzherelo, which has not shown any adverse effects throughout the study duration.

http://www.prweb.com...rweb2470834.htm

Interesting enough Immunoxel is sold OTC in the Ukraine but I can't seem too find it on the web?

Does anyone know a Ukrainian website that's selling Dzherelo/Immunoxel?

[Ark]

Bump, I'm also going to add Quercetin to my 8 month lung recovery stack because I just read this:


Quercetin Reduces Upper Respiratory Tract Infections

Quercetin, a flavonoid found in fruit, such as apples and berries, helps reduce illnesses in people who have carried out extensive exercise.

Researchers writing in the Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise journal found that supplementation of quercetin reduced incidence of upper respiratory tract infections (URTI). This study adds to an increasing body of evidence pointing to the health benefits of the antioxidant quercetin, which has been linked to having an ability to fight oxidative stress as well as anti-cancer benefits.

According to the New Scientist, studies of quercetin have been supported by DARPA (the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) - the Pentagon's research arm - in the hope it could be used to protect US troops. This too shows the potential of the flavonoid is also being considered outside of the consumer food market.

Lead author Dr. David Nieman from Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, wrote: "During missions, soldiers are running around for two or three days with heavy packs on. They don't eat or sleep, and infections are as much of a problem if not a more serious issue than injuries,"

Researchers gave 40 male cyclists 1000 mg of quercetin a day, which is the equivalent to eating 100 apples, or a placebo for three weeks. During this time, the cyclists spent a three-day period training at maximum intensity for three hours each day.

Blood and saliva samples were collected before and after each of the three exercise sessions and examined for natural killer cell activity, PHA-stimulated lymphocyte proliferation, polymorphonuclear oxidative-burst activity, and salivary IgA output.

They found that changes in these levels did not differ significantly between quercetin and placebo groups. However, URTI incidence during the two week post-exercise period "differed significantly."

Source: David Nieman, Dru Henson, Sarah Gross, David Jenkins, Mark Davis, Angela Murphy, Martin Carmichael, Charles Dumke, Alan Utter, Steven Mcanulty, Lisa Mcanulty, Eugene Mayer. Quercetin Reduces Illness but Not Immune Perturbations after Intensive Exercise; Medicines and Science in Sports Exercise; DOI: 10.1249/mss.0b013e318076b566

[Lufega]

Does that article specify which type of infections it protects against? I think quercetin helps with viruses but bacteria are a whole different thing.