I am big on promoting the benefits of Glutathione. It has been shown to be beneficial in treating over 69 different diseases or conditions. However, even though it is so wonderful, those who choose alternative treatments need to do so with caution and balance.
Common sense for treating health problems is not so common. So, strive for balance.
People who promote natural cures often times become unbalanced in their zeal. It is almost as if you take this or that natural cure, you will be preserved alive even though you die.
One of my friends with a child having a particular allergy that causes the throat to swell and restrict breathing (and potentially die) was told a natural product that had the very allergen was totally safe for her child to take.
Needless to say she avoided it.
So, here is the challenge. How do we as a society recognize that not everything is cured by natural treatments?
Even the doctor who created MAX Gxl died, unable to heal himself, and this prior to being able to publish his studies that claim to boost your glutathione by a few hundred percent. Incidentally, although there are claims that his creation boosts your Glutathione, there is no high level scientific proof that it does.
Don’t get me wrong here. I use MAX and love it. What I do not like is people making claims that are more focused on selling products than what is best for consumers.
Max is not the only one. One of the ads for Goji juice was made to look as though it was covered by a news team. There was no news team and there was no coverage. Does Goji or GoChi work. I believe they do. If you can find any research on the ingredients you will find that they boost your intercellular glutathione.
What is interesting is the price of all of these. They all run about $75 a month.
Are you old enough to remember a time when things on TV cost $19.95? Is $75 the new tipping point?
There is even a crystal you wear on your skin from Australia that is scientifically proven to boost your glutathione. Of course, the scientific proof is not to be found in any high level research or peer reviewed journals. Oh yes, and it costs $75 US. I checked. Shipping will make it a bit more to get here in the states.
So, what is the balance?
The common sense or balancing point has been moved a bit farther with a number of studies I recently came across.
It seems that if your in Antarctica, on a submarine, in outer space, in the jungles of Brazil or in the outback of Australia on a walk about and you are the one with an appendicitis, the above natural cures could be a plan C.
There is science that indicates antibiotics can work in a very small amount of cases. At the very least, it could provide time to get you to a location where surgery could be preformed.
In a controlled clinical trial in 40 adults who were thought to have appendicitis were randomized to either get their appendix out or 10 days of intravenous and oral antibiotics. If the appendix ruptures, surgery is required within hours or you will be dead.
Now lets assume that antibiotics are not available. I have to admit, the last time I was hiking to the Mayan style ruins in the mountains a few hours west of Bogota, Columbia, we did not have any antibiotics in our supplies. Neither did we have any Noni, GoChi, Goji, or any other juices with us nor would we. However, we did have water and it would have been easy to have a number of packs of Max. Again, this is only a plan C should antibiotics not be available. Run this by your doctor, of course providing him with the appropriate research before embarking on your walk about or space flight.
There is another problem here. Although it is poorly reported on, you can overdose on N-acetylcysteine, the main ingredient in MAX. It causes your heart to do the Macarena dance.
One paper found that “antibiotic treatment may be a useful temporizing measure” or in other words, it could buy you some time. You will still need surgery eventually. That is, if you want to keep living. So, it may just be that if you were to use the NAC as a rescue med, it could buy you time.
But wait…
Some will think that they can put off the appendectomy and go to their childs wedding first by doing this. Wrong, wrong, wrong. It seems that NAC is contraindicated with some antibiotics. This is only in an emergency and if you get medical guidance on the dosing and usage.
I was recently interviewing an eye doctor. She was treating a guy who read that we need to let sun light into our eyes. He stared at the sun. Needless to say, he severely damaged his eyes but is not totally blind. The article he mis-read indicated that we need to be outside and have our glasses off and allow some of the suns rays to get to our eyes. Not stare at the sun to let its rays into our eyes.
By the way, sun light helps the body make the steroid like chemical we call vitamin D. It just so happens that this is a precursor of glutathione. Hmmm, maybe there is some way we can charge people for $35 for 15 minutes exposure once a day. Those over 35 will need two doses at $70 a month.
Common sense is not so common anymore.
So, do not stare at the sun, do not use alternative medicines and think you can fire your doctor and if you want to use the alternatives as a rescue med on your next trip, pay for a doctors office visit and develop an action plan. I have and it is worth the expense. Of course, get a doctor who is experienced in complimentary alternative medicine.
Good health to you.