Infections

Infections are a part of life. Every day we are infected by a plethora of bacteria, virus, fungi and more. Each day the immune system analyses these pathogens and decides how to react.

When we are young the exposure of these pathogens quite literally teaches our immune system how to act. Through the course of this we also develop our micro biome (the host of trillions of bacteria, protozoa, fungi, yeast and virus’s that live in harmony within our gastrointestinal system, many of our mucus membranes and skin). The balances of these bacteria have a tremendous effect on our immune system and are vital for the function of out gastrointestinal, hepatic and nervous systems.

Although the definition of acute is generally short term, even acute infections such as tonsillitis have long lasting effects on our entire system.

For example, when children who have had a tonsillectomy are at higher risk of developing an autoimmune conditions, some cancers, allergic reactions, respiratory issues and infectious diseases. This is because the tonsils are a major hotspot of immune cells that analyze everything that pass into the gastrointestinal system and lungs. When removing these the immune system is not able to detect pathogens as quickly and the immune reactions may be delayed.

This increased risk is most likely compounded by the fact that a large percentage of tonsillitis patients are primarily treated with antibiotic treatment although tonsillitis is causes 70%-85% by a viral infection. Therefore antibiotic use simply damages the gut’s micro biome weakening the immune system even further.

Chronic infections are as Epstein Barr, Lyme, Ross River, Hepatitis, HIV, CMV are persistent infections and therefore reside within your body for years or forever waiting for the opportunity to replicate and grow. These opportunistic style infections can have disastrous effects on almost every system in the body and often testing for these is the only way of finding out if these may be a factor. However alongside these viral infections and bacterial infections, chronic gastrointestinal dysbiosis can also have severe consequences.

For instance, spore forming bacteria stimulate the colon’s mucosal lining to release 5HT which is the precursor for serotonin. In fact up to 90% of the body’s serotonin (Neurotransmitter linked to happiness) is produced in the gut. Therefore Depression may be linked to an infection of the wrong gut bacteria. Another example would be that an overgrowth/infection of bacteria in the small intestine (SIBO) which causes bloating and a host of other digestive complaints can also lead to the opening of the tight junctions leading to a condition called Intestinal permeability or leaky gut. This leads to inflammation within the liver and increases the risk to a long list of diseases.

Once we have investigated and found which infections are contributing your heath state we implement therapies, which help you reduce the pathogenic load, boost the immune system and support the detoxification pathways. Treatment is mostly done slowly and gently enabling the body time to heal.