Lithium Orotate in Support of Lyme Disease treatment
Excerpt from "The Top 10 Lyme Disease Treatments"
by Bryan Rosner
Book available from http://www.lymebook.com
Protection for your brain
Most people know of lithium only as a powerful antipsychotic drug used in treating severe psychiatric disease. Lithium is most familiar to the public as a treatment for afflictions such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and depression. You may, therefore, be shocked to see it listed here as one of ten breakthrough therapies for Lyme Disease.
Believe it or not, lithium is not a drug - it is actually a mineral - belonging to the same family of minerals (the alkali metals) that includes sodium and potassium. In fact, some forms of lithium are sold over-the-counter as nutritional supplements and are recommended by physicians for healthy people without any disorder, mental or otherwise. So, pause for a few minutes, take a deep breath, and get ready to learn the truth about lithium. Leave your preconceived notions at the door as we embark on a journey to explore one of the most misunderstood minerals in existence.
It is true that lithium is sold as a prescription drug product for serious mental illnesses like bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. It is also true that the pharmaceutical version of lithium is associated with potentially severe and damaging side effects. Pharmaceutical lithium drugs are comprised of a potent form of lithium (lithium citrate or lithium carbonate) and are given in extremely high doses. Consequently, these drugs often cause side effects in the form of lithium toxicity, which we will examine in a few pages.
What is less well-known is that there is an over-the-counter type of lithium, known as lithium orotate, which is given in smaller doses and is associated with numerous brain-boosting/protecting effects. Lithium orotate can be given in low but still therapeutic doses without imposing the risks associated with prescription lithium. The properties of drug-form lithium at high doses which are responsible for improving symptoms of severe mental illness are the same properties which are at work in lower doses of over-the-counter lithium. Treatment with lithium orotate can lead to improvement in numerous conditions involving less profound forms of brain dysfunction.
This chapter will first examine the beneficial effects of lithium in both its forms, as a prescription drug and as an over-the-counter nutritional supplement. Then we will look at the very important differences between the two types of lithium. We will show how this information is of value to the Lyme Disease sufferer and describe how lithium therapy might be incorporated into a treatment program.
Lithium and neurotoxicity
Although lithium has other effects on the body, its primary beneficial actions are on the brain. These actions are so numerous that it would require the writing of another book to do justice to this powerful mineral. Lithium is so effective in treating illnesses like obsessive-compulsive disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and depression that some researchers have postulated that these conditions are actually caused by a lithium deficiency! Lithium's beneficial effects on the brain are a result of its incredible ability to protect the brain from the damaging effects of numerous types of neurotoxins, including, you guessed it, the Lyme Disease neurotoxin.
The neuroprotective effects of lithium were discovered by researchers who set out to identify the mechanism of action behind lithium's ability to stabilize mood and improve symptoms of mental illnesses. These researchers expected to discover that lithium acts on the parts of the brain which control mood and emotions, in much the same way that antidepressant drugs work, by adjusting this or that neurotransmitter in order to create chemical changes in the brain. To their surprise, lithium had no action at all in these areas. Instead, the mood stabilizing effects of lithium were found to be attributed to an entirely unrelated method of action, namely, shielding the brain from neurotoxins. Researchers found that lithium can protect the brain from dozens of different offensive chemicals and toxins, both synthetic and naturally occurring.
The ramifications of this discovery were groundbreaking and have very important implications in several medical disciplines. First, because we now know that lithium's method of action in helping the brain is to protect it from toxins, and because we also know that lithium is incredibly effective in reducing the symptoms of mental illness, we can conclude that numerous serious mental disorders are actually caused by toxic substances that end up in the brain. This finding validates the medical reality that there is a physiological explanation for many psychiatric disorders (such as schizophrenia, depression and manic-depression, multiple personality disorder, and obsessive compulsive disorder) which have long been disparaged as personality problems or character flaws and are sometimes even blamed on the patient. Many mental illnesses are not in fact bizarre personality variances but instead are the result of poisoning with very common toxins found in nature and industrialized society.
The involvement of toxicity in psychiatric and cognitive problems (as is evidenced by their amelioration with a neuroprotective agent like lithium) makes them just as real as cancer or food poisoning. And in the same way that cancer and food poisoning are no fault of the patient, neither are mental disorders. Lyme Disease patients, much like victims of psychiatric disease, are often blamed for behavioral, emotional, and cognitive problems that are actually a direct result of toxic bacterial byproducts in the brain. Thus, an indirect result of lithium research has been to vindicate Lyme Disease patients by enabling them to defeat age-old stereotypes which lead to demoralization, embarrassment, and feelings of hopelessness.
Unfortunately, the discovery that toxins play a role in mental disease is often wholly ignored by the conventional medical community in favor of less accurate, more drug-friendly models of disease. Nevertheless, as we shall see later in the chapter, the availability of an all-natural, over-the-counter supplement to combat mental dysfunction has the potential to empower patients to stop relying solely on medical practitioners and the pharmaceutical industry and to take back control of their own health.
A second important ramification of the discovery that toxins can cause mental dysfunction has been to enhance the ability of medical practitioners to treat mental illnesses more effectively and safely. Instead of masking symptoms with the over-prescribed, dangerous, and side effect-laden antidepressant/ antipsychotic drugs which are so popular in modern medicine, it is now possible to use natural minerals like lithium to actually treat the root cause of the problem and protect the brain. Moreover, when given as over-the-counter lithium orotate, such treatment will save the patient from the ghastly side effects of brain chemistry-altering drugs.
Lithium and Lyme Disease
How does this information about the benefits of lithium relate to Lyme Disease treatment? Since a significant number of Lyme Disease symptoms result from the brain dysfunction caused by Lyme neurotoxins, lithium can play an important role in protecting the brain and minimizing neurological symptoms during the course of Lyme Disease treatment. For some Lyme sufferers, lithium supplementation can replace pharmaceutical treatments for Lyme-related depression, mental confusion, and behavioral instability. Not only can lithium offer increased effectiveness over many prescription antidepressant, anti-anxiety, and other psychotropic drugs, lithium can be safer and have far fewer side effects.
Lithium can be more effective than pharmaceutical solutions to the cognitive ill-effects of Lyme Disease because, as we have said, lithium actually protects the brain from the harmful toxins causing the problem instead of rearranging brain chemistry to mask the symptoms of toxic poisoning. So profound are the neuroprotective effects of lithium that numerous Lyme Disease sufferers have noticed huge improvements in mood, memory, motivation, aggressive feelings, and other mental functions, simply by adding a very small amount of lithium to their supplementation regimens.
The negative action of Lyme Disease neurotoxins is not limited to behavioral, emotional, and cognitive problems. Many physical symptoms such as fatigue, headaches, vision problems, spatial orientation issues, and vertigo can also be caused by Lyme Disease neurotoxins. Lithium can reduce and even eliminate these symptoms as well.
Lithium supplementation can work synergistically with the detoxification therapies discussed in Chapter 8. Many detoxification therapies send toxins into circulation before they are eliminated. This can cause increased symptoms of toxin circulation as the liver and kidneys and other detoxification pathways work hard to remove the poisons from the bloodstream. Lithium supplementation during this time can greatly reduce symptoms and protect the brain.
Other benefits of lithium
But the story does not end there. Lithium has many other brain boosting and protecting effects. Jonathon V. Wright, M.D., medical director of The Tahoma Clinic in Renton, Washington, is an expert on lithium supplementation. In a two-part article on lithium entitled "The Misunderstood Mineral," he describes some of the many benefits of lithium supplementation. Dr. Wright recommends lithium supplementation not just for disease conditions but also to healthy people for anti-aging and general brain health. Below are some of Dr. Wright's findings and my comments in italics:
1. Lithium prevents brain cell death from reduced blood flow after a stroke. Lithium treated rats experienced 56% less cell death and significantly fewer neurologic deficits than control rats in a study which examined potential for lithium to be used as a treatment for stroke. It is well-known that Lyme Disease causes decreased blood flow to the brain. Therefore, lithium may be beneficial in preventing brain cell death in Lyme Disease.
2. Lithium prevents medication-induced toxic side effects. Scientists use the word "robust" to describe the ability of lithium to prevent neurological side effects during treatment with medications which are known to have a negative impact on the brain. Flagyl (metronidazole), a very effective antibiotic commonly used in treating Lyme Disease, is known to have nasty neurologic side effects. Other medications commonly used in Lyme Disease also have neurologic side effects. Lithium may render Lyme Disease medications safer and more tolerable.
3. Researchers have suggested that "the use of lithium as a neurotrophic/neuroprotective agent should be considered in the long term treatment of mood disorders, irrespective of the primary treatment modality being used for the condition." Lyme Disease is known to cause many mood disorders. Research indicates that lithium would be a helpful treatment to combine with any other treatment a Lyme Disease sufferer is using for management of mood disorders.
4. Lithium can slow progression of, and improve symptoms of, Alzheimer's disease. Lithium may also prevent latent Alzheimer's disease from manifesting. One of the toxins believed to contribute to Alzheimer's disease is the heavy metal aluminum. Lithium's ability to help Alzheimer's disease may be partially a result of its known ability to protect the brain from the negative effects of aluminum. Recent research has found a possible correlation between Lyme Disease and Alzheimer's disease. Also, aluminum poisoning is known to worsen Lyme Disease. Because aluminum is very difficult (if not impossible) to remove from the brain, lithium's ability to protect the brain from aluminum toxicity is extremely valuable.
5. 10 years of data accumulated from 27 Texas counties indicate that the incidence of homicide, rape, burglary, drug use, and suicide, as well as other crimes, were significantly lower in counties whose drinking water supplies contain 70 to 170 µg of lithium per liter in comparison with counties with little or no lithium in their water. Researchers conclude "these results suggest that lithium at low dosage levels has a generally beneficial effect on human behavior ... increasing human lithium intakes by supplementation or lithiation of drinking water is suggested as a possible means of crime, suicide, and drug-dependency reduction at the individual and community level." Lyme Disease is very often associated with numerous types of behavioral disorders, ranging from "Lyme rage" and violence to apathy and suicide. Additionally, the Lyme Disease infection has been implicated in other health conditions which involve behavioral disorders, such as autism, Tourette's syndrome, bipolar disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and others. Therefore, lithium may be invaluable in helping Lyme Disease patients who suffer from behavioral disorders.
6. Lithium has been found to help break addictions to alcohol (and possibly other substances). One article in the British Journal of Addiction found that "both controlled and uncontrolled experiments show that symptoms of both alcoholism and of affective disturbance are reduced in patients treated with lithium." Additionally, Dr. Wright has found that relatives of alcoholics with alcoholism may benefit from taking lithium even if they themselves do not have problems with alcohol. Although there is no known correlation between alcoholism and Lyme Disease, people with alcohol dependency who suffer from Lyme Disease may find lithium helpful. Additionally, Lyme Disease sufferers are often addicted to sugar and other counterproductive foods as a result of overly acidic pH and other Lyme-related imbalances. Lithium may be helpful in controlling these problems.
7. Fibromyalgia patients have noticed some helpful effect from lithium treatment. One study which examined three women suffering from fibromyalgia (none of whom had responded to conventional treatment) found that all three noticed a marked reduction in symptoms after lithium was added to their treatment programs. It is generally accepted that there is a strong correlation between fibromyalgia and Lyme Disease. In some cases, fibromyalgia may actually be caused by Lyme Disease. Therefore, as an added bonus, those who use lithium supplementation to treat neurological symptoms may notice improvement in muscle soreness, fatigue, and other symptoms of
fibromyalgia.
8. Cluster headaches have been found to yield to lithium treatment. One study examined lithium's effect on 19 men with cluster headaches. Eight men experienced rapid improvement in just two weeks. Four individuals had both cluster headaches and psychiatric symptoms-these four had almost complete elimination of their headaches. This is just another example of lithium's ability to have a profound effect on a wide range of neurological issues.
9. Viruses, including herpes simplex, adenovirus, Epstein-Barr virus, cytomegalovirus, and the measles virus were found by one study to have inhibited reproductive capabilities when exposed to lithium. Another study demonstrated a "consistent reduction in the number of herpes episodes per month, the average duration of each episode, the total number of infection days per month, and the maximum symptom severity" during lithium treatment. People suffering from Lyme Disease are also typically affected by co-infection with other bacteria, viruses, protozoa, and parasites. Use of lithium may help control viral co-infections.
10. Several peer-reviewed studies have shown that lithium has anti-aging effects on the brain including the ability to increase gray matter, stimulate production of new brain cells, and prevent brain shrinkage (which is known to occur as the human brain ages). For example, a study published in the Lancet by the University of Detroit found that eight of 10 people taking lithium experienced a 3% increase in gray matter after just four weeks of supplementation. This benefit of lithium is self-evident with regard to Lyme Disease: as the body is desperately fighting off the infection, lithium supplementation will help preserve brain function and integrity. Remember, Lyme Disease is primarily a disease of the central nervous system. So, a treatment that can protect the central nervous system is highly valuable.
The above-listed benefits of lithium add momentum to the already strong argument that lithium deserves a place in the supplement regimens of most Lyme Disease sufferers. Not only does lithium protect the brain from Lyme Disease neurotoxins, it also has many other properties which can reduce symptoms and preserve brain health throughout the recovery process.
Prescription vs. over-the-counter lithium
Now that we have established the benefits of lithium in treating various disorders, including Lyme Disease, we will move on to explore the differences between prescription lithium and over-the-counter lithium. It is important to clarify these differences because prescription lithium often has serious side effects which the Lyme Disease patient will want to avoid at all costs, while over-the-counter lithium (which is therapeutic at low doses) is nontoxic and much safer.
Lithium itself is a mineral. However, as with most minerals, the right amount can be healing but the wrong amount can be dangerous. Prescription lithium drugs contain lithium carbonate or lithium citrate. At low doses, these forms of lithium are harmless. However, the therapeutic benefit of lithium carbonate and lithium citrate is only realized at extremely high doses which come very close to causing lithium toxicity. This is because lithium carbonate and lithium citrate have very low bioavailability (the fraction of a dose of a particular medication that is actively available to the targeted body area). As such, pharmaceutical lithium is formulated to contain mega-doses of lithium and is therefore reserved for treatment of only the most severe of illnesses.
Ward Dean, M.D., describes this phenomenon in an article he released in July, 1999, entitled "The Unique, Safe Mineral with Multiple Uses." Dean's article explains that lithium carbonate and lithium citrate (the drug forms of lithium) require very high doses to have therapeutic effect because these forms of the mineral are poorly absorbed by the body's cells. Because the therapeutic action of lithium takes place inside the cells, acting on intracellular structures like the mitochondria and lysosomes, high doses of pharmaceutical lithium must be taken in order to obtain satisfactory intracellular concentration. Unfortunately, these doses cause blood levels of lithium to be so high that they border on toxic. Thus, people using prescription lithium must be closely monitored for excessive levels of the drug. Frequent blood tests are necessary to measure both serum lithium and serum creatinine level in order to guard against toxicity.
The toxic effects of high-dose lithium can include frequent urination, thirst, nausea, hand tremors, and vomiting. Extreme toxicity may involve drowsiness, muscular weakness, poor coordination, ringing in the ears, and blurred vision. Kidney damage is also possible. These side effects are listed on the boxes or inserts of prescription lithium medications. Obviously, prescription lithium is no walk in the park. However, because it is so effective in treating certain mental illnesses, people who are debilitated by these disorders are willing to risk the side effects. With these risks and limitations, lithium drugs are not much use to the Lyme Disease sufferer who is interested in protecting the brain but is not willing to endure toxic side effects.
Enter lithium orotate, the non-prescription form of the mineral. Although somewhat similar to lithium carbonate and lithium citrate, lithium orotate differs because it has a much better bioavailability profile, as well as greater intracellular absorbability. Smaller doses of the over-the-counter, orotate form have the same active benefit as much larger doses of prescription lithium. During recent history, several researchers have pointed to lithium orotate as an alternative to lithium carbonate and lithium citrate which offers substantial therapeutic benefit at much lower, much safer doses.
One of the first researchers to study lithium orotate was Hans Nieper, M.D. Dr. Nieper was born in Germany in 1928 and died in 1998. His premedical studies were conducted at Johann Gutenberg University in Mainz and his initial medical training at the University of Freiburg. He received a medical degree from the University of Hamburg.
Hans Nieper was known for his expertise in applying the advanced principles of physics to medical concepts. One of his most significant achievements involved working with mineral supplements as treatments for disease. He and several colleagues identified a series of "mineral transporters," substances that he believed would increase the bioavailability of minerals in tissues and cells. Among the transporters he used were AEP (2-aminoethylphosphonic acid), aspartic acid, arginine, and orotic acid.
According to Nieper, when these transporters are combined with certain minerals, they form organic mineral salts such as magnesium AEP, magnesium aspartame, magnesium arginate, magnesium orotate, and lithium orotate. Of the transporters Nieper worked with, he preferred the orotates because he believed they produced higher bioavailability than other transporters. Consequently, Nieper postulated that lower doses of mineral orotates would have the same therapeutic effect as higher doses of other forms of minerals.
Nieper's work, which began as abstract theory, eventually gained credibility as clinical results followed. Nieper and other physicians have been clinically successful in treating various conditions with low doses of mineral orotates. These conditions include multiple sclerosis, cancer, calcification of bone, coronary heart disease, alcoholism, mood disorders, liver damage, radiation effects, and others. Success has been achieved in these areas even when other forms of mineral dosing/supplementation have failed.
Dr. Ward Dean, whose above-mentioned article described the risks associated with high dose pharmaceutical lithium, went on in that article ("The Unique, Safe Mineral with Multiple Uses") to contrast these drugs with the lithium salt of orotic acid (lithium orotate). In stark contrast to the drug forms of lithium, Dean explains that lithium orotate improves the therapeutic effects of the mineral many fold by increasing lithium bio-utilization. The orotate component of lithium is highly effective in transporting lithium across cell membranes to the mitochondria, lysosomes, and other intracellular structures, Dean says. Because of its superior bioavailability, therapeutic doses of lithium orotate can be much smaller than therapeutic doses of prescription forms of lithium and thereby offer a nontoxic alternative to these drugs.
For example, severe depression can be treated by only 150 mg per day of lithium orotate. In comparison, the same treatment with lithium carbonate or citrate requires 900 to 1800 mg per day. In referring to a study conducted by Hans Nieper, Dean notes that 150 mg per day of lithium orotate is not associated with adverse effects and that there is no need for monitoring blood lithium levels at this low dose. This conclusion agrees with those of Dr. Wright, who has found it unnecessary to monitor his patients when they take low-dose lithium orotate supplements.
The work of doctors Nieper, Dean, and Wright is confirmed by actual experiences of Lyme Disease sufferers, many of whom have taken lithium orotate at low doses and have noticed great benefit without side effect. In fact, many Lyme Literate Medical Doctors (LLMDs) across the United States and abroad include lithium supplementation in their recommended list of supplements. Experience has simply shown that Lyme Disease sufferers receive great benefit from lithium supplementation.
Conclusion and product information
Although very helpful, lithium supplementation is not antibacterial and is thus not a curative treatment for Lyme Disease. Because Lyme Disease is caused by the presence of a bacterial infection, it cannot be cured unless the bacterial infection is eliminated. However, lithium supplementation can reduce symptoms and protect the brain while other antibacterial therapies (such as rife machines, the Marshall Protocol, or antibiotics) are used to eradicate the infection. Considering that healing from Lyme Disease can require two to four years even if everything is done just right, it is extremely helpful to utilize available treatments which make that process more tolerable. Lithium orotate is such a treatment.
Dr. Wright recommends 10 to 20 mg of elemental lithium per day in the form of either lithium orotate or lithium aspartate (lithium orotate is more commonly available and has thus been the focus of this book). In some cases, a lower dose is acceptable in the treatment of Lyme Disease-such as 5 to 10 mg. Lithium supplement products sometimes show on their labels quantities of two types of lithium: lithium orotate and elemental lithium. For example, some products contain 5 mg elemental lithium and 120 mg lithium orotate. In these cases, the number upon which to base dosing is the lower number, the elemental lithium content.
Dozens of brands of lithium orotate supplements are available, so the best course of action is to select a brand name that you trust.
Dr. Wright has been recommending lithium supplementation since the 1970s for brain protection and anti-aging. He explains that when he first recommended lithium to his patients, he was exceptionally cautious and asked them to have regular lithium level blood tests and thyroid function tests. However, after a year or so he stopped asking for lithium blood tests because 100% of them came back at very safe levels. Soon after, he stopped asking for thyroid function tests as well, because he rarely found them necessary. However, the decision about whether or not to undergo testing while using lithium supplementation should be made by you and your trusted physician.
Because lithium is cleared by the kidneys, it may not be safe for people with kidney disorders. Some people with Lyme Disease may have unknown kidney disorders or weak kidneys. In these cases, lithium supplementation may not be appropriate. Consult a physician before using lithium. Lithium should not be used by people with certain types of cardiovascular diseases, severe debilitation, dehydration, or sodium depletion, nor by people who are taking diuretics or ACE inhibitors. Consult your doctor before use if you are taking anti-hypertensive drugs, anti-inflammatory drugs, analgesic drugs, or insulin. Lithium should not be used by pregnant women and breast-feeding mothers. Mineral orotates (including lithium orotate) are not FDA approved, and their clinical use remains officially experimental.
