It’s been noted by medical doctors and natural therapists alike that garlic and vitamin C may pack a one-two punch against Lyme disease. Garlic has generalized antibiotic properties and foods packed with vitamin C (citrus fruits, strawberries, peppers) and/or echinacea, can help build immunity for quicker relief. You may need up to 1,200 milligrams of fresh garlic per day, so if your friends and workmates don’t mind, go for it!
Varro Tyler, Ph.D., Dean and Professor Emeritus of Pharmacognosy (natural product pharmacy) at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, is outspoken in his support of Echinacea, noting that the herb has been extensively studied as an immune-stimulant and that it increases the body’s resistance to bacterial infection.
Louis Pasteur was the first to describe the antibacterial effect of garlic juices. More recently, Dutch studies suggest that getting the best antibiotic action from garlic requires ingesting 5 to 15 average-size cloves a day. It’s hard to get that much fresh garlic down; juicing it with carrots is a viable option.
If you’ve acquired Lyme disease and have localized joint pain, it can be treated with analgesics as prescribed by your health care professional, however hydrotherapy can also help relieve some of the pain. Hot applications (magic bags heated in the microwave) help relieve dull, penetrating pain, while sharper, more intense pain responds better to cold (a frozen bag of peas from the freezer). This is also a very personal choice as some people just cannot stand cold applications and will always use heat.
It’s also been reported that alternating with heat and cold to relieve the pain works just as well. When using a cold application, such as a bag of frozen peas, make sure to wrap it in a light cloth to protect your skin. Only hold the cold pack in place for 10 to 20 minutes at most, at a time. You can repeat this alternating process every four hours until the pain subsides.
Always check with your health care professional before beginning any type of treatment.
Q: What has your experience been with Lyme Disease?