Lyme findings
We started out Chuckles on antibiotics. Unfortunately this 3 weeks antibiotic regime coincides with her month long sailing program, which means I’m covering up my poor daughter in full length rashies, large brimmed hats and super polarized sunglasses. Friends of mine have mentioned to me that their children got blotchy skin after burning easily in the sun on antibiotics and yellow teeth.
Anyhow, after seeing Under Our Skin, the new full length documentary on Lyme disease and the shameful politics going on preventing people (yes, mothers, fathers, children and babies) from getting the antibiotics they need to recover from this insidious disease, I am not taking any chances with my kids.
I have done some internet research about Lyme gathering information but I wasn’t aware of the extent of the problem and how poorly it is treated and how difficult it is to get the needed care to make this thing go away, if initial symptoms are not treated.
The Lyme bacteria is similar to the syphilis bacteria, a spiral shaped bacteria that can burrow into the tissues or any organ it chooses. As we know with syphilis, it infects all areas of the body including the brain and that is what is seeming to happen with Lyme. Some have speculated it could also be sexually transmitted as it does transfer to the womb from infected mothers.
There can be multiple bacteria that are transferred at the same time as Lyme which may overwhelm the immune system.
Another interesting point was that the Lyme bacteria clumps in bio-films which look like little blobs of concentrated bacteria under the microscope which somehow can evade attack from antibiotics. Lyme can therefore be dormant and then strike different parts of the body mirroring different diseases. It seems that if you have Lyme you are on a fast track to MS, ALS, Alzheimer’s and similar conditions.
What seems to help these suffering people is long term antibiotics where you are not playing hit or miss with dormant periods of the disease. Some patients said it takes about 3 years of constant antibiotics before the badly affected start getting their normal lives back.
There needs to be more research done.
It is not an easy film to watch, but I think we all need to more informed. It is becoming more common and spreading far and wide and here in New England an epidemic.
July 29th, 2009 at 7:30 am
yowsers! better get some good bacteria to balance all those antibiotics…
July 29th, 2009 at 12:51 pm
I have been giving Chuckles pro-biotics at lunch time and I’m hoping they don’t negate the anti biotic affect on the nasty little Lyme (et al.) bacteria inside her. It’s bad but nothing compared to what I saw in the video. Enough to move to Perth!
July 31st, 2009 at 9:44 am
The yellow teeth is a side effect of using cycline drugs on children, taking that drug while the teeth are still in the formation stage, not yet broken through the gums. Adults or kids about over age 12 are usually put on doxycycline. Kids under 12 or those who don’t have all their adult front teeth in are usually put on non-cycline drugs for Lyme in order to not wreck their teeth, like amoxicillin (a penecillin drug). Kids allergic to PCN whose adult teeth are not all out yet, in the case of my son, can be put on Ceftin.
Ask your doctor, but the typical dose to try to prevent a yeast overgrowth due to antibiotic usage is double the normal dose of the probiotic and to keep it up for 2-3 weeks after the antibiotic is done. Also use a good brand of probiotic, usually the refrigerated brands have live organisims in them and are dubbed more potent than pills that can sit on a shelf at room temperature.
Sunburn or red splotches from sun exposure is small beans compared to a stage 2 Lyme Disease infection.
Having been through the Lyme mill with my whole family I found “Under Our Skin” moving and very scary. I knew all that stuff before but to see it reinforced and all in one place being explained in layman’s terms was useful. I only knew all that stuff from reading various sources in books and talking to some people on the phone and opinions of different doctor’s we consulted with. I am pretty sure it was the ranger in the movie that I read an article about in Outside magazine while at the barber’s office, his story was moving too about how in other parts of the country the doctors think “we don’t have Lyme here”.
July 31st, 2009 at 11:52 am
Thank you so much ChristineMM for the information about the teeth. She is on Omoxicillin so I will stop making her brush her teeth straight away afterwards! I will make sure I keep up the PB for 3 weeks afterwards. I appreciate all of the advice. Thanks.
June 14th, 2010 at 3:02 pm
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