Herbal Support For Lyme Disease
Lyme disease a bacterial infection caused by Borrelia Burgdorgeri and in late stages, it can be difficult to treat. There is evidence that the Borrelia bacteria persists in tissues and can shift its form or shape in unfavorable host conditions, including a round body or cyst shap1.Different types of antibiotics and herbs have been studied to find the most effective agent that can kill or eradicate all forms of the bacteria. In subculture studies, single antibiotic agents are often found to be ineffective at eradicating all forms of the bacteria, therefore, multiple agents may be used in order to increase effectiveness of therapy.
In a study published in 2020, a variety of herbs and antibiotics were studied for their effectiveness at killing all shapes of lyme bacteria in cultures. An herb native to W. Africa, Cryptolepis Sanguinolenta, was the only agent found to eradicate all forms of the Lyme bacteria. As the authors concluded, “only 1% Cryptolepis S. extract caused complete eradication,” as after 21 days in subculture no spirochetes were visible2 (Feng et al., 2020). The authors found that Cryptolepis was highly effective at eradicating both growing and non-growing stationary phases of Borellia bacteria.
As an herb, Cryptolepis has many mechanisms of action. In a review written on Cryptolepis the main active constituent cryptolepine was found to have anti-inflammatory properties as well as anti-microbial properties against many different types of microorganisms3. The use of other herbs have also been shown to have anti-microbial properties as well as anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and immune stimulating properties. These include Oregano, Japanese Knotweed, and Cat’s Claw. In herbal medicine, combining multiple herbs can have a synergistic effect which may increase overall effectiveness.
Herbal therapies can have interactions with medications and some are contraindicated during pregnancy. Some may also have mild side effects. Therefore it is highly recommended that for proper dosing and precautions, you should consult with a provider who is familiar with herbal therapies and their possible interactions with medications. If you are interested in starting an herbal therapy, please call the Stram Center today as all our providers are trained in the use of natural and herbal therapies.
References
1. Persisting atypical and cystic forms of Borrelia burgdorferi and local inflammation in Lyme neuroborreliosis.
Miklossy J, Kasas S, Zurn AD, McCall S, Yu S, McGeer PL.
J Neuroinflammation. 2008 Sep 25
2. Feng J, Leone J, Schweig S, Zhang Y. Evaluation of Natural and Botanical Medicines for Activity Against Growing and Non-growing Forms of B. burgdorferi. Front Med (Lausanne). 2020 Feb 21;7:6. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2020.00006. PMID: 32154254; PMCID: PMC7050641.
3. Newman Osafo, Kwesi Boadu Mensah, Oduro Kofi Yeboah, "Phytochemical and Pharmacological Review of Cryptolepis sanguinolenta (Lindl.) Schlechter", Advances in Pharmacological and Pharmaceutical Sciences, vol. 2017, Article ID 3026370, 13 pages, 2017. https://doi.org/10.1155/2017/3026370
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