Have you been in poor health, seemingly getting the same infection over and over again? You might be prescribed one antibiotic after another, seemingly getting a little better only to relapse. There is an organism called a mycoplasma that just might be the culprit for your ill health. Mycoplasmas can act as stealth; hidden, difficult to see or grow. They are highly adaptable to changing environments and can move anywhere in the body, attaching to or invading virtually any type of cell in the body. There are hundreds of identified mycoplasmas that can be found in plants, insects and animals. Fortunately only a handful can be found in the blood and tissues throughout the human body. Not all mycoplasmas found in humans are disease-causing.
These type of microorganisms fall into a category between a bacteria and a virus and act as a parasite in the host body. Parasitic in that they rely on the nutrients found in host cells including cholesterol, amino acids, fatty acids and even DNA to survive. Bacteria have a cell wall and are easy to culture in the laboratory. They also tend to be sensitive to penicillin. Mycoplasmas, on the other hand, have no cell wall; they are the tiniest of jellyfish-like organism with a pliable membrane that can take on many different shapes. This makes them difficult to culture; it can take up to 2 months to grow in the lab if at all. Because they can morph into different shapes they are difficult to identify even with a high powered electron microscope.
Mycoplasmas have an affinity to proliferate in tissue fluids such as the blood, joint fluids, spinal fluids and the fluids surrounding the heart and lungs. They can attack to specific cells without killing the cells; therefore their infections process can go undetected. However, the immune system senses the upheaval and responses to these invaders by producing signs of inflammation such as, heat, swelling and inflamed tissues at the joint or area of involvement. Mycoplasmas have been implicated in diseases such as Gulf War Syndrome, rheumatoid diseases, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, lupus, multiple sclerosis (MS), Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), Alzheimer’s, Crohn’s, psoriasis, scleroderma, Sjogren’s syndrome, leukemia, lymphoma, asthma, atypical pneumonia, pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), interstitial cystitis, prostatitis, and endocrine disorders. While we are familiar with these diagnoses, the cause of these conditions has been listed as autoimmune, which they are, but the mycoplasmas, as rudimentary pathogens, can take advantage of a weakened immune system and proliferate.
Mycoplasmas can travel throughout the body as they hitch a ride inside the white blood cells and can cross the blood/brain barrier, a very selective barrier designed to protect the brain, central nervous system and the spinal fluids. Additionally, there is a high correlation between mycoplasma infection and different cancers, which suggests the possibility of an association between the two. The cancer causing mechanism involved in mycoplasma remains unknown.
However, Dr. Garth Nicolson, president and founder of The Institute for Molecular Medicine has been working with two colleagues, Drs Darryl See and Ferre Akbarpour, of the Immune Institute in Huntington Beach, CA. Their research has found that nearly 90% of certain late stage cancer patients show infection with pathogenic (disease causing) mycoplasmas. These mycoplasmas appear to drive the progression of cancer cells, making them more malignant and metastatic (capable of spreading throughout the body).
While it is challenging to identify these organisms in the laboratory, obviously it has the propensity to play havoc on our health. One method of identifying it as a potential culprit to poor health is to have an electrodermal scan done. This method selects pathogens that are out of their normal frequency and can either open doors for further testing or if one is interested in natural endeavors, try natural products that weaken the Mycoplasmas.
The method of treatment, usually long term antibiotic use or natural antibacterial therapy will be a long road to recovery.
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