Page 7 - Spring 14

Removing Drug Induced Obstacles to Cure by Tom Farrington, Ireland
This is a very broad subject and this arti- cle is just an introduction that will hope- fully stimulate your interest in researching the subject further. Removing obstacles to cure is a fundamental tenant in homeopathy something Hahnemann makes very clear in § 3
In this way, recovery must result. Adapting what is curative in medicines to what is diseased in patients requires that the physician be able to:
1 adapt the most appropriate medicine,
according to its mode of action, to the case before him (selection of the remedy, that which is indicated)
2 prepare the medicine exactly as required
3 give the medicine in the exact amount
required (the right dose)
4 properly time the repetition of doses
Finally, the physician must know the obstacles to recovery in each case and be aware of how to clear them away so that the restoration of health may be permanent. (Drug induced Nutrient Depletion)
[If the physician has this insight, discernment, knowledge and awareness EN7] then he under- stands how to act expediently and thoroughly, and he is a genuine practitioner of the medical art. (Hahnemann, Samuel (2013-04-22). Organon of the Medical Art (Kindle Locations 1028-1033). Birdcage Press.)
These measures can involve the following:
• Probiotics, such as Acidophilus, Lactobacillus ( a wide combination is a good idea and sometimes you have to try several different combinations of probiotics to find the one that suits the patient best (again do not give at the exact time of antibiotic admin- istration, but do give from the outset and for at least a month after the antibiotic). The pro- biotics should not be used daily for the rest of the patient’s life either, as they can have side effects such as affecting dopamine lev- els in the brain.
• Prebiotics, such as Aloe Vera. These contain fructo-oligosaccharides among a wide range of other nutrients and help promote the growth of good bacteria (again not all dogs tolerate these).
• A suitable multi-vitamin/multi-mineral sup- plement should be given to help replace nutrients lost from intestinal flora modifica- tion and to replace nutrients lost in metabolising and removing the antibiotic from the body, while still helping the body deal with the Lyme's Disease infection. If the supplements do not have Co-Enzyme Q10, it should be added separately at a dose of 30- 80mg daily (the dose of Co-Q10 can be as high as 300mg safely, but generally there is no additional benefit at the higher dose).
• Antioxidants, (these should contain bioflavi-
be brought into play to sort the problem, but nutrient replacement as above and a fresh food diet are essential to treating such drug induced problems. In my experience in the vast majority of cases homeopathic medicine supported as above is by far the best way to sort these problems. The nutrient depletion in these cases is made more severe the more drugs that are introduced to cope with the symptoms. For example in Lyme’s cases joint inflammation is common so a wide vari- ety of non steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAID’s) are often included and then H2- receptor antagonists to prevent gastric ulcer- ation leading to further nutrient depletion. It is also worth remembering tissue salts to help cope with nutrient depletions for exam- ple in rickets and other nutrient depletion conditions and homeopathic mother tinc- tures and low decimal potencies to help sup- port organs connected to drug metabolism or nutrient stress
Thanks to modern technological advances since Hahnemann’s time we now know much more of, what goes on, when any substance including nutrients enter and pass through the body. We can follow the metabolic pathways taken and the resultant nutrient retention or depletions caused, as substances are metabolised in the body. We can thus measure the effects of drugs, chemicals and even day to
As an example of this process of removing drug induced nutritional deficiency obstacles, we will start from the prescription of a drug from a con- ventional perspective. Doxycycline is currently one of the most common antibiotics used to treat Lyme’s disease. It is very important not to give any form of calcium including milk, bone meal or other foods with calcium at the same time, as the antibiotic to prevent inactivation of the drug (possibly hypocalcaemia if a prolonged course is given). Meanwhile, the antibiotic itself can in some patients trigger chronic diarrhoea, which can persist even after the antibiotic is stopped. Thus it is very important to take pre- ventative measures to avoid those side effects.
noids) and these help once again with the metabolism of the antibiotic and the replen- ishment and recycling of compounds used in those metabolic pathways while helping the body deal with the Lyme's infection.
• A good diet is essential during all this with plenty of fresh food, which can be home cooked. Later in the article is an example of what happens, when this is not done. As homeopaths we often have to sort out the chronic effects of such treatments, where corrective supplementation was not carried out and even in some cases, where it is.
• Remedies such as Aloe socotrina, Gaertner Bach, Tuberculinum and a wide range of similimum or constitutional remedies have to
day substances on the body and the efforts it makes to compensate or correct the ripple effect of these on the body’s auto-regulation in an effort to maintain homeostasis. Most of us as veterinary surgeons are aware of the need to compensate for the loss of certain nutrients, such as potassium, when a drug, such as Frusemide, is given. What most of us are unaware of is the extent of the changes chem- icals, drugs, toxins and even nutrients them- selves can wreck in the body and the symptoms, these lead to, which are often mis- taken for homeopathic symptoms rather than signs of an obstacle to cure.
We have wonderful tools as homeopaths in the form of the materia medica and the repertory, Continued on page 7
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