INFECTIOUS DISEASES

Fratellone Medical Associates treats a variety of infectious diseases. Infections can be bacterial, viral, parasitic, fungal or spirochetic in origin. The practice’s response to these infections is unique. We treat infections such as Lyme disease, hepatitis and HIV/AIDS using complementary approaches to enhance the effectiveness of traditional medical approaches. Treatment is individualized and takes into consideration the patient’s preferences. Some recently diagnosed individuals want to avoid conventional medications, instead relying on complementary therapies; others wish to integrate alternative therapies with conventional medications; still others desire from time to time to have “holiday” from pharmaceuticals. We routinely schedule both a nutritional and a metabolic/supplement review for patients with infectious diseases.

Lyme Disease

The prevalence of Lyme disease has escalated since it was first diagnosed some 20 years ago in Old Lyme, Conn. It has now been found in almost every state in the nation. The vector for this spirochete infection is the deer tick, which can be carried by deer as well as mice, other mammals and birds. If diagnosed and treated quickly, Lyme disease typically responds well to certain antibiotics. However, if undiagnosed and untreated, the condition can result in symptoms such as muscle pain and fatigue, and lead to arthritis, neurological and cardiac complications and other serious conditions.

HIV/AIDS

It has been more than 20 years since the initial diagnosis of HIV in patients. Originally called the HTLVIII virus, the condition has been extensively researched and new treatments developed in the last decade. Today, there are multiple HIV/AIDS  “drug cocktails” available. Although beneficial, these treatments often have side effects.

At Fratellone Medical Associates, we treat patients with HIV/AIDS, using complementary approaches to enhance the effectiveness of traditional medical treatments. Treatment is individualized and takes into consideration the patient’s preferences. Some recently diagnosed individuals want no conventional medications, instead relying on alternative therapies; others wish to integrate alternative therapies with conventional medications; still other patients desire from time to time to have a medication-free “holiday” from pharmaceuticals." Both a nutritional and a metabolic/supplement review are routinely scheduled for new patients.

Hepatitis

Fratellone Medical Associates has treated many patients with hepatitis B and hepatitis C, including individuals who are preparing to start a course of treatment with interferon, those who have finished interferon and others who have failed on interferon.)

For more on our practice’s treatment protocols, see Treatment of Infectious Diseases, click here.

TREATMENT OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES

Although each condition and each patient requires an individualized approach, treatment of infectious diseases typically includes the following programs:
 

• An individualized nutritional program
• An oral supplementation program
• An intravenous supplementation program
• A detoxification program

In the case of hepatitis, it is also essential to stop consuming alcohol, in concert with psychotherapy or enrollment in a 12-step program

Treatment of Infections: An Individualized Nutritional Program

When diagnosed with Lyme disease, hepatitis or HIV/AIDS, an individual must almost always make dietary changes to bolster his or her immune system. A diet low in simple sugars is crucial. No foods made with refined sugars, high-fructose corn syrup or with a high glycemic index (GI) are permitted. Nor should artificial sweeteners be substituted with the exception of Stevia and Xylitol.

Digesting meat requires digestive and pancreatic enzymes, thus depleting enzymes that are necessary for the immune system. Consume only small amounts of meat, poultry and dairy products and use only organic products, which have not been treated with hormones or pesticides.

To raise alkalinity, it is important to avoid foods and beverages that produce an acidic environment such as eggplant, peppers, tomatoes and other nightshade vegetables, as well as dairy products, red meat and caffeine.

To avoid constipation and regularly cleanse the gastrointestinal tract of toxins, it is important that your diet be high in fiber. Drinking plenty of water, green tea and other unsweetened fluids is also essential to avoid constipation and wash out toxins.
Most beneficial foods include:

• Nuts and seeds (but no peanuts)
• Whole grains
• Low-glycemic vegetables such as broccoli, asparagus, cauliflower, lettuce, spinach and kale
• Wheat grass
• Foods high in fiber, such as wheat and oat bran, ground flax seed and vegetables
• Avocados
• Low-glycemic fruits such as apples, berries, cherries and pears
• Brown rice and other whole grains such as oatmeal and barley

Treatment of Infections: Oral Supplements

Patients with an impaired immune system tend to have an elevated level of free radicals relative to antioxidants. Because antioxidants can inactivate these free radicals, we use large amounts of the following herbs and antioxidants in our protocols:

• Co-enzyme Q10
• Grapeseed extract
• Apha liploic acid
• Beta-carotene
• Vitamin E
• Vitamin C
• Germanium sesquioixde
• N-acetyl cysteine
• Glutathione
• Bioflavonoid complex
• NT factor (www,energyntfactor.com)

Other oral megadoses of vitamins used in treating infections include:

• Vitamin C- 2 - 4 grams/ day
• N-acetyl cysteine - 1,500 - 2,000 mg/day
• Selenium - 100 - 400 mcg/day
• Magnesium - 500 - 750 mg /day
• L-glutamine 30 - 40 grams/day in divided doses
• L-carnitine 2,000 mg/day

The above recommendations are an average of what we use at Fratellone Medical Associates.  Each patient is prescribed an individual treatment protocol.

An oral program will also include herbs such as:

• Milk thistle (Silybum marianum)
• Chinese throughwax (Bupleurum falactum)
• Globe artichoke (Cynarta scolymus)
• Tumeric (Curcuma longa )
• Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra)
• Gentian (Gentiana lutea)

Treatment of Infections: Intravenous Nutritional Supplementation

Our intravenous treatment is individualized but typically includes 50 to 200 grams of vitamin C. Because high doses of this vitamin can be irritating to the gastrointestinal system, some patients opt for the placement of a permanent catheter. In addition to our vitamin C protocol we use intravenous L-glutathione on a regular basis.

A DETOXIFICATION PROGRAM

In today's toxic environment, tissue acid wastes, chemicals and heavy metal residues rapidly build up in the body, resulting in a greater incidence of allergies and of both mental and physical incapacitation than ever before. That’s why detoxifying the body is an essential component of integrative medicine and key to our practice’s treatment of infectious disease and support of cancer treatments.

With the notable exception of Western medicine, all healing traditions—whether ancient Egyptian, Native American, Ayurvedic, homeopathic, Chinese or Shamanic—include body cleansing as a means to heal and avoid disease.

In addition to chelation and intravenous vitamin treatments, at Fratellone Medical Associates, we use two other programs—ionic cleansing and photoluminescence—to reduce symptoms and help maintain good health. The various detoxification programs support each other. For more on ionic cleansing, see The Health Benefits of Ionic Cleansing; for more on photoluminescence, see The Health Benefits of Photoluminescence.

THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF IONIC CLEANSING

At Fratellone Medical Associates, we use a device called the ionCleanse®, which draws toxins out of the body through the feet in a comfortable, relaxing way. You simply place your feet in the water, and seconds after the unit is activated, millions of ions enter your body and begin to draw out wastes. After 20 to 30 minutes, particles, fat and mucous residues that have left the body are present in the water.

Ionic cleansing works more effectively and faster than any herbal or fasting procedures, with little or no stress to the patient and may even reduce the discomfort associated with rapid detoxification. In combination with a healthy diet and low-stress lifestyle, ionic cleansing helps maintain high energy levels and long-term wellness.

Most people benefit from ionic cleansing footbaths, but especially patients with the following symptoms: edema, inflammation, gout, osteoarthritis and pain unrelated to joint dislocation. Eighty-five percent of patients with such ailments will experience an immediate benefit. Because disease, surgeries and many medical procedures leave the body weak and toxic, ionic cleansing may prove essential to ongoing health.

Restoring Alkalinity to the Body

Ionic cleansing can also be used to helps restore an alkaline pH to the body, neutralizing acidity in the tissues. (See The Dangers of Acidity.) Symptoms of such wastes include pimples, rashes, dark circles beneath the eyes, swollen joints and yellow-or green-tinted or blotchy complexions. The procedure creates the same kind of alkaline environment you would experience when you walk barefoot along the beach because of the alkalinity of seawater. Actually, ionic cleansing is more powerful because your feet are in direct contact with the ions being manufactured in the water.

How Ionic Cleansing Works

As you may remember from high school chemistry classes, an ion is a charged atom that has gained or lost an electron, which creates a magnetic field capable of attaching to and neutralizing oppositely charged particles. These neutralized particles are extracted from the body through the process called osmosis, the movement of particles through a membrane from an area of lower concentration to an area of higher concentration. In this case, the higher concentration refers to the ion field that is set up by placing the array into the water while running the ionic cleansing device, which activates a low-level direct electrical current. (The current is perfectly safe.)

The metals in the array combine with the water and salt. making the water molecules convert to oxygen and hydrogen and generating positively and negatively charged ions. When the electrical current of unit is set to positive, more negative ions are produced in the water. We believe that this negative ion flow makes blood pH more alkaline. Conversely, when the unit is set to negative, the result is the production of more positive ions in the water. We believe that this positive ion flow makes blood pH more acidic.

Approximately 95 percent of people in our culture have a blood pH lower than 7.45, meaning they are in a state of acidity. They will greatly benefit from exposure to high concentrations of negatively charged ions.

Litmus paper (Ph strips) determine the proper polarity setting. We speculate that ions generated by the ionic cleansing device travel through the body, attaching themselves to a multitude of toxic substances, thereby neutralizing their positive or negative charge. It may be possible to reduce pain and other symptoms caused by a lifetime of toxic buildup in the body. To achieve the long-term benefits of ionic cleansing detoxification, a person also has to be willing to make lifestyle changes.