Chagas Disease, Kissing Bug, Parasites, Vegetables

I often hear “disease starts with inflammation”!   No it doesn’t.  Ask the question, “Why do I have inflammation?”  “Where does it come from?”  It is because there is a toxin of some type that the body cannot deal with or is in the process of dealing with.  In this world we have a lot of possible toxic voluntary and involuntary “choices”.

As an example, an individual may come in contact with a parasite that uses a living person or animal as a host.  A parasite consumes your resources and creates waste (a toxin) that your body must deal with.  The Triatome (kissing) bug recently came to my attention. Known as the insect “vector” for Chagas disease is a major killer in Latin America.  The Triatomine Beetle is the American version of trypanosomiasis, the carrier for the parasite trypanosomes.  This is similar to the disease carried by the tsetse fly in Africa causing sleeping sickness. 

The normal venue for these beetles is a secretive nocturnal life in the cracks and holes of substandard housing or in any outdoor/indoor environment including doghouses, chicken houses, woodpiles, etcetera.  They like to bite faces, suck blood, and defecate leaving the parasite.  The area itches, is scratched, and unknowingly rubbed into mucous membranes of the eyes, nose or mouth.   Other possible transmissions is thru blood transfusions, organ transplantation, and the ingestion of food contaminated with the parasite.  How much of our food comes from Central or South America?

With the world’s mobile population, you can disregard the old textbook world parasite prevalence maps.  There are currently hundreds of thousands of immigrants from Latin America living in the U.S. 

The worst possible impact is a massive enlargement of the heart causing sudden death (cardiomyopathy).  Have you ever heard of a dog suddenly dying in the kennel?  The scary part is that most are symptom free.  Mild symptoms include fatigue, fever, headache, diarrhea and vomiting.  There may also be a swollen eyelid on the side of the bite.

If you are at risk for parasites (blog), consider Verma Comp, Vermasode, and Verma HP.  A preventative for pets is diatomaceous earth(blog) dusted in the kennel.

Stay Well!

Eating Dirt

Have you ever eaten dirt?  Although you may be unaware, the answer is likely yes.  Perhaps you have inadvertently eaten particles of unwashed produce or consumed Pepto Bismol or Kaopectate, which contain clays.  Geophagy is the word to describe the consumption of clay.  This practice has been used to aid in child birth, male virility and various other cultural beliefs.  My father remembered as a child that a black woman he knew commonly ate clay as a remedy for intestinal issues.  This was part of the African culture.  My favorite earth mined substance is diatomaceous earth (DM). 

DM is the fossilized remains of hard-shelled algae known as a diatom.  This multi use silica abrasive has been used in toothpaste, in scrubs, deodorizers, facial masks, and as an insecticide.  DM can absorb six times its weight in water and is used in cat litter boxes. 

As an insecticide, it absorbs lipids or fats from the waxy outer layer of insects causing dehydration.  It is an effective, non-toxic substance that can be used as a dust for fleas or cockroaches. It can be taken by animals or humans internally for intestinal parasites.  For dogs you can make cornmeal biscuits with DM.   Wet DM for horses and mix in their feed.  And for humans, mix a tablespoonful in juice and drink.  The only precaution is not to breathe the dust because it causes silicosis, a respiratory disorder.

Silica is also an important mineral that is vital for skin, hair, and nails and for the recalcification of bones.  You will find it in any quality calcium/mineral supplement or hair, skin, and nail formulas.  It is commonly listed as horsetail, an herb which contains silica.  Silica may also interfere with the body’s retention of aluminum. 

The Homeopathic Materia Medica for Silica terra (Flint) is useful among other things “for soreness in the feet from the instep to the sole”.  I can offer a personal testimony for its effectiveness.