Lyme Disease — Are You At Risk? by Katina I. Makris, CCH, CIH T
he U.S. is currently in the throes of a swiftly moving Lyme disease epidemic. Hundreds of cases are
contracted daily, and the tick popula- tion, the primary insect carrier, is mul- tiplying in proportions beyond historic norms. Anxiety over potential infection is rising, nationwide. Climate changes over the past decade have yielded milder temperatures in higher latitudes, enabling ticks to now ‘winter over’ in northern New England, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Canada and mountainous elevations of the Alleghenies, Sierras, Cascades and Rocky Mountains. Addi- tionally, migratory bird patterns have in- troduced Lyme disease to Florida, Texas, and even as far distant as Uruguay and Scandinavia. Lyme disease is now found in eighty-nine countries.
migraines, learning disabilities, bi-polar disorders, Parkinson’s, heart arrhythmia’s and others, when the Lyme organisms are the true culprits. Reasoning suggests more than two million people in the U.S alone are afflicted with the chronic form of Lyme. Immediate attention, funding, research and education need to be stepped up to address the misunder- standings and ravages of this complex illness. It has already surpassed HIV in its growth rate, and is now the fastest spreading infectious illness. The Eastern seaboard, Ohio River
valley, northern California and the Pa- cific Northwest are under fierce assault as more individuals and pets come into proximity with ticks. North Carolina is in the cross-hairs of the epidemic, and most people are not savvy about
The Center for Disease Control by their own admission estimates 300,000 cases of Lyme are contracted in the U.S. annually and that a mere 10% are properly diagnosed.
Lyme disease is transmitted by ticks and is a bacterial infection caused by an organism known as Borrelia burg- dorferi, or one of the variant tick-borne co-infections caused by parasites, bac- teria and mycoplasmas. Borrelia, the primary, is a spirochete or corkscrew bacteria in the same family as syphilis. Like syphilis, Lyme initially starts out with seemingly mild symptomatology, but if untreated, can cause devastating effects to the central nervous system, heart, kidneys, skeletal and immune systems, sometimes with permanent repercussions. The Center for Disease Control by
their own admission estimates 300,000 cases of Lyme are contracted in the U.S. annually and that a mere 10% are properly diagnosed, leaving more than 250,000 people annually with misdiagnoses, such as Fibromyalgia, Lupus, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, MS,
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the risks. We can never be slack about caution with this illness. The standard lab tests that most local and regional facilities run for Lyme disease have an error rate over 60%. These tests are very inaccurate, giving many false negatives and leaving people sick when they need treatment. A LLMD (Lyme literate) physi- cian will use one of the three Lyme spe- cialty labs that have more attuned test- ing. These newer labs: Igenex, Advanced Specialty and Clongen, are helping to turn thousands of lives around. The chronic form of Lyme dis-
ease may require prolonged treatment protocols. Some people may effectively respond to a rotational regime of anti- biotics, antimalarials, and anti-parasitic pharmaceuticals, administered by a Lyme literate physician. However, the best recovery outcomes for those with chronic Lyme seem to be obtained by an Integrative Medicine approach. Re-
building the massive depletions to vari- ous systems of the body is just as critical as killing off the entrenched microbial infections.
A Certified Clinical Nutritionist, Li- censed Naturopath, Licensed Acupunc- turist, or Certified Classical Homeopath versed in Lyme, may be excellent resources to assist in recovery. It appears this is the epidemic of our era; one that requires us to marry the diagnostics and pharmaceutical weaponry of conven- tional medicine with the supportive therapeutics of Complementary Alter- native Medicine. These two hands of modern healthcare working together are better than one. Without addressing the serious depletions to the immune, ner- vous, and endocrine systems, recovery from chronic Lyme appears to be partial, at best, in many longer term cases. Please pay attention and take care
of yourself and loved ones. This ill- ness should not be glossed over. Lyme disease support groups and associations can be of assistance. With the mild weather upon us, daily tick checks and preventative measures such as covering limbs with long pants and shirt sleeves in the woods and tall grasses, tick repel- lent on us and our pets, and being alert to possible early infection symptoms are essential. Explore the
www.ILADS. org website to find a symptom list and a trained Lyme specialty physician.
Katina I. Makris, CCH, CIH is the author of the award finalist book, “Out of the Woods, Healing Lyme Disease and Other Chronic Illness, Body, Mind & Spirit.” A classical Homeopath, she has worked in health care for 26 years and is a former popular newspaper colum- nist and a past board member of The Council for Homeopathic Certification. She is a graduate of Duke University and The Stillpoint School of Integrative Life Healing. She lectures extensively about Lyme disease. See ad on page 11.
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