Rather than make any interested reader read 3 pages of my experience and research, I will start by stating my conclusions. If they interest you, feel free to read more!
Conclusions:
I was sent an article about a UCSF study on antihistamines and MS. I was not surprised by the results, though the hypothesis as to why it worked seems improbable. According to the article’s author, Devika Bansal, “In light of previous laboratory studies of the antihistamine compound at UCSF, the researchers said, the drug most likely exerted its effect by repairing damage MS had inflicted on myelin.” http://www.ucsf.edu/news/2017/10/408646/allergy-drug-improves-function-patients-chronic-injury-multiple-sclerosis
My thought on the matter is as follows:
Conclusions:
- MS is an allergy and should be treated as such.
- Antihistamines do not make myelin. They stop the autoimmune response aka allergy. Antihistamines allow the body to continue remyelination without the myelin being attacked.
- Flaxseed and other omega 3 fatty acid sources regulate cells associated with allergies, inflammation, & autoimmune cells.
- Humans best absorb animal sources of omega 3 fatty acids
- Allergy tests to myelin can help guide us in diagnosing MS
- Rather than looking at the here and now, we need to turn our attention to the cellular level of MS. We need to view ALL allergy signaling cells as at a potential root cause beyond just histamines
- Figuring which type of inflammation or allergy cell is attacking the patient would allow us to better target and fix the cause for each individual
- Research into giving patients a synthetic myelin could distract the body’s immune system from attacking the body’s myelin. Current rheumatoid arthritis treatment successfully mimics this procedure.
I was sent an article about a UCSF study on antihistamines and MS. I was not surprised by the results, though the hypothesis as to why it worked seems improbable. According to the article’s author, Devika Bansal, “In light of previous laboratory studies of the antihistamine compound at UCSF, the researchers said, the drug most likely exerted its effect by repairing damage MS had inflicted on myelin.” http://www.ucsf.edu/news/2017/10/408646/allergy-drug-improves-function-patients-chronic-injury-multiple-sclerosis
My thought on the matter is as follows:
*** Antihistamine itself does not repair myelin, but rather antihistamine stops the body’s immune system from attacking the myelin. This allows the body’s natural remyelination process to continue without it being destroyed by the body as it is no longer mistaking myelin is being a foreign object that needs to be attacked – the latter being the very exact definition of what an allergy is. ***
How do we treat allergies?? With antihistamines! It seems rather rudimentary; however, the best treatment for MS with allergy medications needs to extend further than just with antihistamines. Antihistamines are a common knowledge treatment for allergies; however, histamines are only one type of many allergy response cells that are signaled in the body. Thanks to Flonase’s recent commercial citing many of those allergy cells, more people are becoming aware of them. How did I become aware of them? Here is a bit of my background.
I have always had an eye for science. When I was 9 years old, I scored a near perfect score on my state math, science exam in both the multiple choice portion as well as the hand written essay section. When I was 11, a scout from Johns Hopkins University had a few other students in the county and I take the SATs. Being young, my parents did not want me to pursue anything further and just live a normal life. This is also the point in my life where I started feeling chronic pain and fatigue, yet no one could figure out why. Of course one of the disorders I would not figure out because at this point in my life, there was not even a name for that disorder.
At the end of 2012 I was struggling trying to figure out what was wrong with my health. For a while now I have had headaches, chronic fatigue, and an electrical sensation in my hands was increasing. Being from the North East, I feared that I had Lyme Disease or maybe Multiple Sclerosis or MS for short.
Every single doctor I visited did not take me seriously whatsoever. Apparently because I was a single mother, I was impervious any and all sickness, but it was mandated that I must have depression. Much like addiction the first thing they ask depressed people is “how is depression is affecting your home and work life?” I was the number one associate at a corporation of over a few dozen THOUSAND employees. So yes, if depression is affecting my work… give me some more of that depression please rather than being a pill pusher. Clearly that was not what was going on here and I was all on my own because no doctor thought there was anything wrong with me. This pattern continued even when I had an MRI with a radiologist report confirming that yes, I absolutely have a rare disorder.
Prior to that, all I had was a lab report that was all typed except for my Lyme results which were suspiciously hand written.. I do not have Lyme. Ok. So what is MS exactly?? This is where I made a mind blowing discovery.
I have always had an eye for science. When I was 9 years old, I scored a near perfect score on my state math, science exam in both the multiple choice portion as well as the hand written essay section. When I was 11, a scout from Johns Hopkins University had a few other students in the county and I take the SATs. Being young, my parents did not want me to pursue anything further and just live a normal life. This is also the point in my life where I started feeling chronic pain and fatigue, yet no one could figure out why. Of course one of the disorders I would not figure out because at this point in my life, there was not even a name for that disorder.
At the end of 2012 I was struggling trying to figure out what was wrong with my health. For a while now I have had headaches, chronic fatigue, and an electrical sensation in my hands was increasing. Being from the North East, I feared that I had Lyme Disease or maybe Multiple Sclerosis or MS for short.
Every single doctor I visited did not take me seriously whatsoever. Apparently because I was a single mother, I was impervious any and all sickness, but it was mandated that I must have depression. Much like addiction the first thing they ask depressed people is “how is depression is affecting your home and work life?” I was the number one associate at a corporation of over a few dozen THOUSAND employees. So yes, if depression is affecting my work… give me some more of that depression please rather than being a pill pusher. Clearly that was not what was going on here and I was all on my own because no doctor thought there was anything wrong with me. This pattern continued even when I had an MRI with a radiologist report confirming that yes, I absolutely have a rare disorder.
Prior to that, all I had was a lab report that was all typed except for my Lyme results which were suspiciously hand written.. I do not have Lyme. Ok. So what is MS exactly?? This is where I made a mind blowing discovery.
*** The very definition of MS holds the answer for the cure. ***
The Mayo Clinic along with many other sources describe MS as when “the immune system attacks the protective sheath (myelin) that covers nerve fibers.” Well, myelin is not a foreign object, yet it is being mistaken as foreign and is thereby attacked. That right there is also the very definition of an allergy- when the body mistakes something as foreign and attacks it. So, why in god’s name are we not treating MS like an allergy?? It is so rudimentary!
To fix anything at all be it medication or even in a relationship, a business etc, one must get to the very origin of the problem to stop it where it starts. In medicine everything starts at the cellular level. Treating MS goes even further beyond treating just histamines that we always associate with allergies or even other allergy cells such as mast cells, leukotrienes, cytokines, tryptase, and chemokines. What causes each cell to be created? Are there cells that signal the brain to secrete more histamines? Prostaglandins regulate hormones and inflammation which works with mast cells, leukotrienes, and histamines just to name a few. Omega Fatty Acids have been known to help regulate prostaglandins. Being allergic to fish, I took 2-3 liquid flaxseed oil pills with each meal. I must stress that this is above the suggested dose and that flaxseed oil is a blood thinner. For your safety, you must check with your doctor before using this method.
The effects were blatant, fast, and some were completely unexpected which ruled out the effects being psychosomatic. A clear indication of my prostaglandins being regulated was that my skin cleared up of almost all acne – a side effect I had not expected whatsoever after having tried over 17 acne products all to no avail. Then it occurred to me that prostaglandins also regulate hormones. The flaxseed must have affected my hormones via the prostaglandins. A month later I realized I was walking into rooms without forgetting why I was there- a problem I have had for over a decade. Much like getting over a two week cold and suddenly getting your hearing back… I felt like I had super powers when my memory came back.
I got to thinking that I found something to help me. If I did have MS, I could not only help treat but also tell doctors about this to help diagnose people with MS symptoms. My new set of eyes viewing MS as an allergy made me think that people with MS symptoms could be tested the same way we test people for allergies. It is risky to introduce similar yet foreign components to humans. That can actually cause an allergic response. I recalled a chemist saying that we use sheep blood to test for strep throat. Why not make better use of the sheep by also using their myelin? Could this cause molecular mimicry? Although I am not a doctor and I do not have the exact answer to that question, I am a mother with a lot of passion, enthusiasm, high pattern recognition, and an enormous will to live the best life I can so that I can be there for my son. What I also know is that this also a great place to start.
Other tests are still be needed, but it could act as a guide or at least be another tool to use to fight this terrible sickness. Currently invasive spinal taps are used to diagnose MS along with MRI’s to see if there is any damage to the brain or spinal cord. Since an MRI can only diagnose MS after there is already damage to the central nervous system, a test that can be conducted sooner is ideal. An allergy test may not be able to 100% confirm MS, though it could help to get people on the right diet rather than waiting for there to be damage to our critical central nervous system.
Further research became slow on my part as my headaches from Chiari Malformation (the brain hernia) became excessive after a roundtrip from Southern California to New England. I became unable to move my neck, be in light, and at times I couldn’t even walk. I found an incomplete diagnosis of my pain which was that I had Chiari Malformation – a congenital hernia of the brain into the brain stem region towards the spinal cord. The doctor (and for that matter - all future neurologists) refused to acknowledge that the cabin pressure of my flight had any role in my symptoms coming out – that it was just a coincidence that after each of my THREE 6.5 hour cross-country flights exacerbated my symptoms permanently. But alas, that is for another time.
I don’t have MS; I have Chiari Malformation. So, how come my flaxseed intake was giving me such help? That is because the doctor skipped an extremely crucial step: figuring out why did I have Chiari? I asked him if he could give an MRI to my son. He refused and told me that “it is not genetic.” It was just something that I was “born with.” That statement has a few holes especially when I tell you that it is also flat out wrong. Chiari IS most certainly inherited in families that have collagen and/or connective tissue disorders (CTDs.) This doctor who I shall not name did help me, though because of this missed step, it has been suggested that I should not have had this operation. I was not tested for it, but if he asked me one single question… “are you flexible” - he would have known instantly that I absolutely have a collagen issue because when a maybe more studious or open minded doctor asked me that same question, the answer was, “Absolutely!! I can turn myself into a human basket by putting my legs behind my head and my arms through my knees. I can bend over, touch my toes, make my hands flat on the ground, AND bend my elbows. When I was a kid, the neighbors would make bets about what laundry baskets and boxes I could fit into, can I fit into the skinny locker… That’s why I’ve been called Gumby, but I also danced for 15 years…” This is where the studious doctor made a sad face because she knew that doing ballet doesn’t make you a contortionist.. a collagen disorder does.
Collagen disorders are often called “connective tissue disorders” which is HIGHLY misleading. Collagen is found in everything in the body- not just connective tissue, but also in your eyes, tongue, organs, and even 30% of the dry bone is collagen. So, let’s be respectful of people’s pain and call the “everything disorders” what they truly are: a collagen disorder – not merely just a CTD. It is most noticeable in connective tissue because we humans do not have x-ray eyes. We cannot see the osteoporosis of your bones, but we do notice when someone is “double jointed” or that a person can zip themselves into a suitcase… (yes you can laugh!!) But why is this important you might ask?? That is because Mast Cells – remember those things?? They are stored in connective tissue… the very thing that is damaged in my collagen disorder. Naturally, many people with Collagen Disorders or my specific disorder called Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (EDS) in short are very prone to Mast Cell disorders such as Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS) also known as Mast Cell Activation Disorder (MCAD.) My insane allergies and out of control hormones were caused by my mast cells having a field party in my poorly constructed body that could not hold the mast cells where they belonged. This is why the flaxseed pills worked for me.
Despite not having MS, I have an “everything disorder” that sadly includes an immune disorder, MCAS. Omega 3 fatty acids need to be looked into for MS and other immune disorders. Stopping the cells that cause the MS problem of demyelination holds great promise to exceedingly decrease MS symptoms by greatly decreasing the cause. For those who skip to the bottom of pages… once again here are is a synopsis of conclusions:
*** Antihistamine itself does not repair myelin, but rather antihistamine stops the body’s immune system from attacking the myelin. This allows the body’s natural remyelination process to continue without it being destroyed by the body as it is no longer mistaking myelin is being a foreign object that needs to be attacked – the latter being the very exact definition of what an allergy is. ***
To fix anything at all be it medication or even in a relationship, a business etc, one must get to the very origin of the problem to stop it where it starts. In medicine everything starts at the cellular level. Treating MS goes even further beyond treating just histamines that we always associate with allergies or even other allergy cells such as mast cells, leukotrienes, cytokines, tryptase, and chemokines. What causes each cell to be created? Are there cells that signal the brain to secrete more histamines? Prostaglandins regulate hormones and inflammation which works with mast cells, leukotrienes, and histamines just to name a few. Omega Fatty Acids have been known to help regulate prostaglandins. Being allergic to fish, I took 2-3 liquid flaxseed oil pills with each meal. I must stress that this is above the suggested dose and that flaxseed oil is a blood thinner. For your safety, you must check with your doctor before using this method.
The effects were blatant, fast, and some were completely unexpected which ruled out the effects being psychosomatic. A clear indication of my prostaglandins being regulated was that my skin cleared up of almost all acne – a side effect I had not expected whatsoever after having tried over 17 acne products all to no avail. Then it occurred to me that prostaglandins also regulate hormones. The flaxseed must have affected my hormones via the prostaglandins. A month later I realized I was walking into rooms without forgetting why I was there- a problem I have had for over a decade. Much like getting over a two week cold and suddenly getting your hearing back… I felt like I had super powers when my memory came back.
I got to thinking that I found something to help me. If I did have MS, I could not only help treat but also tell doctors about this to help diagnose people with MS symptoms. My new set of eyes viewing MS as an allergy made me think that people with MS symptoms could be tested the same way we test people for allergies. It is risky to introduce similar yet foreign components to humans. That can actually cause an allergic response. I recalled a chemist saying that we use sheep blood to test for strep throat. Why not make better use of the sheep by also using their myelin? Could this cause molecular mimicry? Although I am not a doctor and I do not have the exact answer to that question, I am a mother with a lot of passion, enthusiasm, high pattern recognition, and an enormous will to live the best life I can so that I can be there for my son. What I also know is that this also a great place to start.
Other tests are still be needed, but it could act as a guide or at least be another tool to use to fight this terrible sickness. Currently invasive spinal taps are used to diagnose MS along with MRI’s to see if there is any damage to the brain or spinal cord. Since an MRI can only diagnose MS after there is already damage to the central nervous system, a test that can be conducted sooner is ideal. An allergy test may not be able to 100% confirm MS, though it could help to get people on the right diet rather than waiting for there to be damage to our critical central nervous system.
Further research became slow on my part as my headaches from Chiari Malformation (the brain hernia) became excessive after a roundtrip from Southern California to New England. I became unable to move my neck, be in light, and at times I couldn’t even walk. I found an incomplete diagnosis of my pain which was that I had Chiari Malformation – a congenital hernia of the brain into the brain stem region towards the spinal cord. The doctor (and for that matter - all future neurologists) refused to acknowledge that the cabin pressure of my flight had any role in my symptoms coming out – that it was just a coincidence that after each of my THREE 6.5 hour cross-country flights exacerbated my symptoms permanently. But alas, that is for another time.
I don’t have MS; I have Chiari Malformation. So, how come my flaxseed intake was giving me such help? That is because the doctor skipped an extremely crucial step: figuring out why did I have Chiari? I asked him if he could give an MRI to my son. He refused and told me that “it is not genetic.” It was just something that I was “born with.” That statement has a few holes especially when I tell you that it is also flat out wrong. Chiari IS most certainly inherited in families that have collagen and/or connective tissue disorders (CTDs.) This doctor who I shall not name did help me, though because of this missed step, it has been suggested that I should not have had this operation. I was not tested for it, but if he asked me one single question… “are you flexible” - he would have known instantly that I absolutely have a collagen issue because when a maybe more studious or open minded doctor asked me that same question, the answer was, “Absolutely!! I can turn myself into a human basket by putting my legs behind my head and my arms through my knees. I can bend over, touch my toes, make my hands flat on the ground, AND bend my elbows. When I was a kid, the neighbors would make bets about what laundry baskets and boxes I could fit into, can I fit into the skinny locker… That’s why I’ve been called Gumby, but I also danced for 15 years…” This is where the studious doctor made a sad face because she knew that doing ballet doesn’t make you a contortionist.. a collagen disorder does.
Collagen disorders are often called “connective tissue disorders” which is HIGHLY misleading. Collagen is found in everything in the body- not just connective tissue, but also in your eyes, tongue, organs, and even 30% of the dry bone is collagen. So, let’s be respectful of people’s pain and call the “everything disorders” what they truly are: a collagen disorder – not merely just a CTD. It is most noticeable in connective tissue because we humans do not have x-ray eyes. We cannot see the osteoporosis of your bones, but we do notice when someone is “double jointed” or that a person can zip themselves into a suitcase… (yes you can laugh!!) But why is this important you might ask?? That is because Mast Cells – remember those things?? They are stored in connective tissue… the very thing that is damaged in my collagen disorder. Naturally, many people with Collagen Disorders or my specific disorder called Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (EDS) in short are very prone to Mast Cell disorders such as Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS) also known as Mast Cell Activation Disorder (MCAD.) My insane allergies and out of control hormones were caused by my mast cells having a field party in my poorly constructed body that could not hold the mast cells where they belonged. This is why the flaxseed pills worked for me.
Despite not having MS, I have an “everything disorder” that sadly includes an immune disorder, MCAS. Omega 3 fatty acids need to be looked into for MS and other immune disorders. Stopping the cells that cause the MS problem of demyelination holds great promise to exceedingly decrease MS symptoms by greatly decreasing the cause. For those who skip to the bottom of pages… once again here are is a synopsis of conclusions:
- MS is an allergy and should be treated as such.
- Antihistamines do not make myelin. They stop the autoimmune response aka allergy. Antihistamines allow the body to continue remyelination without the myelin being attacked.
- Flaxseed and other omega 3 fatty acid sources regulate cells associated with allergies, inflammation, & autoimmune cells.
- Humans best absorb animal sources of omega 3 fatty acids
- Allergy tests to myelin can help guide us in diagnosing MS
- Rather than looking at the here and now, we need to turn our attention to the cellular level of MS. We need to view ALL allergy signaling cells as at a potential root cause beyond just histamines
- Figuring which type of inflammation or allergy cell is attacking the patient would allow us to better target and fix the cause for each individual
- Research into giving patients a synthetic myelin could distract the body’s immune system from attacking the body’s myelin. Current rheumatoid arthritis treatment successfully mimics this procedure.
*** Antihistamine itself does not repair myelin, but rather antihistamine stops the body’s immune system from attacking the myelin. This allows the body’s natural remyelination process to continue without it being destroyed by the body as it is no longer mistaking myelin is being a foreign object that needs to be attacked – the latter being the very exact definition of what an allergy is. ***