=E2=80=9CAdrenal Fatigue, Correction of Genetic Methylation Pathways, and=
Protocol for
Decreasing Inflammation in Lyme, Autism and Chronic Illness=E2=80=9D
=C2=A0
=C2=A0
Dr. Chitra
Bhakta, M.D., Director of Orange County Integrative Medical Center in Tust=
in, California, presented a talk on the above
topics on Saturday afternoon, September 12, 2009, in Conference Room F in=
the lower
level of the Presbyterian Intercommunity Hospital in Whittier, CA.=C2=A0
=C2=A0
The talk
was sponsored by the Southern California Lyme Support group, coordinated=
by
Earis Coram.=C2=A0 I heard about it from Al
Melillo, who also attended, together with about 30 other people.
=C2=A0
Dr. Bhakta
is from India, where she received her medical
training.=C2=A0 She did her residency at the Los Angeles County Hospital.=
=C2=A0
Her specialty is family medicine.
=C2=A0
It was
clear to me from her talk and discussions afterward that Dr. Bhakta puts=
the
best interests of her patients first, and that she continues to search for=
new
developments that will enhance their treatment.=C2=A0
The protocols she uses today combine contributions from several
front-line researchers.=C2=A0=20
=C2=A0
A few
years ago, she was treating a number of autism patients, and she had becom=
e
familiar with and used the Defeat Autism Now! (DAN!) approach for treating
autism.=C2=A0 This was effective for many of
the cases, but some of the kids she was treating never got=20
better.=C2=A0 She attended the Lyme-Induced-Autism
conference and then tested these nonresponding patients for Lyme disease,=
finding
that they all had either Lyme disease or its coinfections.=C2=A0 This is=
how she became involved in treating
Lyme disease.=C2=A0 She then trained with Dr.
Charles Ray Jones (age 82!) in Connecticut.=C2=A0
He is the foremost pediatrician treating Lyme disease.
=C2=A0
She
integrated the DAN! and ILADS (International Lyme and Associated Diseases
Society) approaches to treatment into her treatment protocols, but felt th=
at
antibiotics were being used too much to treat Lyme disease.=C2=A0 She deve=
loped an approach that treats several
aspects first, and then uses antibiotics later, if necessary.
=C2=A0
She
decided to start her treatment with the gut, as is done by others in
autism.=C2=A0=20
=C2=A0
She has
been treating the methylation cycle for about ten years, based on the rese=
arch
of Drs. S. Jill James and Richard Deth.
=C2=A0
She became
aware of the later work of Amy Yasko, Ph.D., N.D., who applied the science=
of
nutrigenomics, which had come from the University of California at Davis,=
to the treatment of autism.=C2=A0 She believes that this approach has mer=
it,
but she found Dr. Yasko=E2=80=99s treatment to be very complicated.=20
=C2=A0
She
reported that she found my work (involving the Glutathione
Depletion=E2=80=94Methylation Cycle Block (GD-MCB) hypothesis for chronic=
fatigue
syndrome (CFS) and the Simplified Treatment Approach based on it) on the0A=
internet.=C2=A0 She noted that I had applied
the methylation cycle related biochemistry to CFS and had been able to exp=
lain
many of the features of CFS on this basis.=C2=A0
She also noted that I had =E2=80=9Cstreamlined=E2=80=9D the Yasko treatmen=
t approach,
making it easier to use.
=C2=A0
She
displayed a large chart showing the methylation cycle and associated pathw=
ays
that had been developed by Dr. Yasko, and explained the relationships betw=
een
the methylation and folate cycles and the transsulfuration pathway, includ=
ing
glutathione.
=C2=A0
She
explained that Dr. James and coworkers had found that genetic =E2=80=9Cwea=
knesses=E2=80=9D can
block several sites in this part of the metabolism.=C2=A0 In addition, env=
ironmental factors, such as
thimerosol in vaccines, can contribute to this as well.=C2=A0 A block in=
the methylation cycle will cause
decreases in plasma methionine and the ratio of S-adenosylmethionine to
S-adenosylhomocysteine (SAMe/SAH). It will also lower the ratio of reduced=
to
oxidized glutathione (GSH/GSSG).
=C2=A0
She went
on to describe the GD-MCB hypothesis for CFS in detail.=C2=A0 A discussion=
of this hypothesis can be found
on the internet at
=C2=A0
http://aboutmecfs.org/Rsrch/GSHMethylation.aspx
=C2=A0
She noted
that according to this hypothesis CFS is caused by a combination of geneti=
c
predisposition and stressors, except in the epidemics or clusters, where
the
genetic factor is less important because of the action of a virulent patho=
gen.
=C2=A0
0AShe
suggested that polymorphisms in the enzymes CYP2D6 and COMT may be associa=
ted
with fibromyalgia, and a polymorphism in NAT2 may be associated with multi=
ple
chemical sensitivity.
=C2=A0
She also
reported that Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria have been found to deplete
glutathione in their host, and noted that I had suggested that this may pr=
ovide
a link between Lyme disease and CFS.
=C2=A0
She
reviewed some of the polymorphisms to which Dr. Yasko has drawn attention,
including AHCY-1, BHMT-08, CBS C699T, COMT V158M, MTR A2756G, and MTRR A66=
G.
=C2=A0
She
discussed the work of Dr. Ritchie Shoemaker on Lyme and other biotoxin
diseases, noting his FACT test for visual contrast sensitivity, HLA DR DQ
typing, and other tests.
=C2=A0
She said
that she prefers using the K-PAX multivitamin.
=C2=A0
She
reported success in raising the glutathione levels in two autistic patient=
s
using OSR#1 at a dosage of 300 mg per day, in whom it had not been possibl=
e to
raise glutathione levels before.
=C2=A0
She
discussed KPU or the =E2=80=9Cmauve factor=E2=80=9D as originally discover=
ed by the late Dr.
Abram Hoffer and coworkers.=C2=A0 This was
originally found in the urine of schizophrenia patients.=C2=A0 It results=
from an inborn genetic error in
the pyrrole metabolism, which is used to make hemoglobin.=C2=A0 Dr. Dietri=
ch Klinghardt has found that this
is present in 80% of his Lyme patients, and it causes a depletion of zinc=
and
vitamin B6.=C2=A0 Dr. Bhakta recomme
nded
getting the $59 test for KPU from www.kryptopyrrole.com.=C2=A0 She describ=
ed Dr. Klinghardt=E2=80=99s KPU treatment,
which is available on his website.=C2=A0 She also
discussed his metal detox protocol.=C2=A0 Dr.
Bhakta said that she prefers to use the Metagenics formulas for detox, i.e=
. the
Ultraclear Renew for fibromyalgia, and the Ultraclear Plus pH for CFS.
=C2=A0
Dr. Bhakta
also discussed the Neuroscience approach to testing and treating the
neuroendocrineimmune issues.=C2=A0 She talked
about the stages of adrenal fatigue and noted that correction of this cond=
ition
must be done centrally, because neurotransmitters are involved.
=C2=A0
She
discussed inflammation and noted that there are many chronic inflammatory
conditions, which involve inflammatory cytokines.=C2=A0 She discussed new=
research pertaining to the
cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway, and noted that acetylcholine has be=
en
found to be important for lowering the levels of inflammatory cytokines an=
d
stopping inflammation.=C2=A0 She discussed a
new treatment called Avipaxin, produced by Neuroscience.=C2=A0 Avipaxin co=
ntains both a cholinesterase
inhibitor to inhibit the breakdown of acetylcholine, as well as supplement=
s to
feed the formation of new acetylcholine.
=C2=A0
In
starting her treatment with the gut, she recommends three tests:=C2=A0 foo=
d allergies, stool analysis, and an
organic acids test.
=C2=A0
She
emphasized that the human body is complex, and it is necessary to address
several aspects of these illnesses in order to treat it succe
ssfully.=C2=A0 She pointed out the importance of eating
organic food, locally grown and seasonal.=C2=A0
She
recommended eating 5 or 6 small meals per day, like a diabetic diet.
For food
allergies, she recommends a rotation diet, switching foods each week.=C2=
=A0 She recommended taking Juice Plus to get the
nutrients from vegetables and fruits.=C2=A0
For omega-3 fatty acids, she recommended EPA-Select.=C2=A0 She emphasized=
that it=E2=80=99s important to raise
the EPA intake, but not DHA.
=C2=A0
She favors
starting with one new supplement at a time, to see what the response is,=
before
adding others.
=C2=A0
In
response to a question, she recommended that vegetables be cooked at first=
,
until the gut is able to handle raw vegetables.=C2=A0
At that point, salads are very beneficial.
=C2=A0
For
protein, she recommended Alaskan wild salmon and organic meats, such as bi=
son
meat.
=C2=A0
She favors
removing amalgams, so that they do not continue to introduce mercury into=
the
body.
=C2=A0
She
emphasized that in treating these disorders, it is necessary to use a
synergistic approach.
=C2=A0
I was of
course gratified to learn that Dr. Bhakta had found the Glutathione
Depletion=E2=80=94Methylation Cycle Block hypothesis and the Simplified Tr=
eatment
Approach based on it to be helpful in treating her patients.=C2=A0 She has=
found treatment of the methylation
cycle issue to be an important part of her overall treatment protocol, but=
it
must be emphasized=20
that it is not the whole thing. Her treatment also includes
several other aspects of these disorders as well.=20
=C2=A0
=C2=A0
=C2=A0Rich Van Konynenburg, Ph.D.=C2=A0 (richvank@aol.com)
=C2=A0
=C2=A0
=C2=A0
=C2=A0
=C2=A0
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