We will probably never know the answer to the title of this article. However the information on Vitamin C presented here presents some great information on what Vitamin C can actually do. Take the time to discover the healing powerhouse of Vitamin C and its many uses.
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Can Vitamin C Cure Ebola?
Commentary by Steve Hickey PhD, Hilary Roberts PhD, and Damien Downing MBBS, MSB.
(OMNS Aug 20, 2014)
If there were a drug that worked on Ebola you should use it. There
isn't. There is only vitamin C. But you must be extremely careful what
you believe, because, as it ever was, the Internet is full of dangerous
loonies. For coming up to a decade now the OMNS has reported on
nutritional therapies; we leave the medical
politics to one side and work from the facts. Here are the facts about
vitamin C and Ebola.
1. Taking a gram or so of day of vitamin C
won't protect you against anything except acute scurvy; it doesn't
matter whether the vitamin is liposomal, nano-particles, or even
gold-plated. Beware of websites, companies, and Youtube clips making
wild and unsubstantiated claims about the efficacy of vitamin C.
2. Clinical reports suggest that taking
vitamin C almost to bowel tolerance every day (in divided doses) will
help to protect you against all viruses. Reports by independent
physicians have been consistent for decades. However, the doctors also
stipulated most emphatically that the dose and the way you take it must
be right - or it will not work. There is no direct placebo controlled
"evidence" that massive doses of vitamin C will work on Ebola, and
nobody would volunteer to take part in that study. But massive doses
are reported to have helped against every virus it has been pitched
against. This includes Polio, Dengue and AIDS, and it even makes
vaccination work better. In the 1980s when no other treatment was
available it was reported that full blown AIDS could be reversed and the
patient brought back to reasonable health.[i,ii]
At risk or worried about Ebola? This is what you should do.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C is the
primary antioxidant in the diet. Most people do not take enough to be
healthy. While this is true of many nutrients, vitamin C is a special
case. Ignore governments telling you that you only need about 100 mg a
day and can get this amount from food. The required amount of vitamin C
varies your state of health. A normal adult in perfect health may need
only a small intake, say 500 mg per day, but more is needed when someone
is even slightly under the weather. Similarly, to prevent illness, the
intake needs to be increased.
The intake for an otherwise healthy
person to have a reasonable chance of avoiding a common cold is in the
region of 8-10 grams (8,000-10,000 mg) a day. This is about ten times
what corporate medicine has tested in their trials on vitamin C and the
common cold. Ten grams (10,000 mg) is the minimum pharmacological
intake; it may help if you have a slight sore throat but more (much
more) may be needed. To get rid of a common cold, you may need anything
from 20 to 60 grams (60,000 mg) a day. With influenza the need might be
for 100 grams (100,000 mg) a day. Since it varies from person to person,
and from illness to illness, the only way to find out is to experiment
for yourself.
Dynamic flow
The problem with
oral intakes is that healthy people do not absorb vitamin C well due to
something Dr Robert Cathcart called bowel tolerance. [iii]
Take too much of the vitamin
in a single dose and it will cause loose stools. In good health, a
person might be able to take a couple of grams at a time without this
problem. Strangely, when a person becomes sick they can take far more
without this side effect: as much as 20-100+ grams a day, in divided
doses. [iv]
High dose vitamin C has a short half-life
in the body. The half-life is the time for the level in the blood
plasma to fall back to half its concentration. Until recently, some
people claimed that the half-life of vitamin C was several weeks. We
have shown that this long half-life applies only to very low doses.[v]
By contrast, the half-life for high blood levels is only half an hour.
This short half-life means that for high dose vitamin C the period
between doses needs to be short - a few hours at most.
The aim is to achieve dynamic flow, to
get vitamin C flowing continuously through the body. Dynamic flow
requires multiple high doses taken throughout the day. When separated in
time, each dose is absorbed independently. Two doses of 3 grams, taken
12 hours apart, are absorbed better than 6 grams taken all at once.
Multiple large doses, say 3 grams four times a day, produce a steady
flow of the vitamin from the gut, into the bloodstream and out, via the
urine. Some of the intake is not absorbed into the blood and stays in
the gut, as a reserve against the early onset of illness. As illness
begins, the body pulls in this "excess" to help fight the virus.
The idea behind dynamic flow is that the
body is kept in a reduced (antioxidant) state, using high doses. There
is always vitamin C available, to refresh the body and other
antioxidants. Each vitamin C molecule (ascorbic acid) has two
antioxidant electrons, which it can donate to protect the body. It then
becomes oxidised to dehydroascorbate (DHA). This oxidized molecule is
then excreted, so the body
has gained two antioxidant electrons. The kidneys reabsorb vitamin C,
but not DHA; the vitamin C molecule is absorbed, used up, and then the
oxidized form is thrown out with the rubbish.
The effectiveness of vitamin C is not
directly proportional to the dose; it is non-linear. There is a
threshold above which vitamin C becomes highly effective. Below this
level, the effect is small; above it, the effect is dramatic. The
problem is that no-one can tell you in advance what intake of vitamin C
you need. The solution is to take more - more than you think necessary,
more than you consider reasonable. The mantra is dose, dose, dose.
Types of Vitamin C
Straightforward,
low cost ascorbic acid is the preferred form of supplement. Vendors may
try to sell you "better absorbed" forms with minerals or salts such as
sodium, potassium or calcium ascorbate, and so on. These are irrelevant,
if not counterproductive, for
high intakes. It is worth noting the following:
- Timing is more important than form. Two large doses of ascorbic
acid taken a little time apart are better absorbed than a single dose of
mineral ascorbate.
- Mineral ascorbates are salts and do not
carry the same number of antioxidant electrons. Ascorbic acid has two
electrons to donate while a salt typically has only one. With high
doses, the "improved" forms are thus only about half as effective. This
is consistent with reports that mineral forms are correspondingly
ineffective in combating illness.
- Ascorbic acid is a weak acid,
much weaker than the hydrochloric acid in the stomach. Mineral
ascorbates may be better tolerated, as they make the stomach more
alkaline than ascorbic acid. However, an alkaline stomach is not a good
idea - there are reasons the body secretes hydrochloric acid into the
stomach, including preventing infection. Furthermore, if you are coming
down with a haemorrhagic viral infection,
mild discomfort will not be
something of great concern.
- For high intakes, capsules of
ascorbic acid are preferable to tablets. This is because tablets are
packed with fillers and it is not wise to take massive doses of these
chemicals. Check the ingredients - you want to take ascorbic acid and
very little else. Bioflavonoids are alright, and the capsules may be
made with gelatine or a vegetarian equivalent.
- The cheapest way
to take ascorbic acid is as powder, dissolved in water. If you do this,
use a straw to avoid it getting on the tooth enamel, as it is slightly
acidic. You will need a set of accurate electronic scales to monitor the
dose. If you do not weigh it carefully, it will be difficult to keep
close to bowel tolerance.
Intravenous Vitamin C
Ideally,
infected people would be given a continuous intravenous (IV) infusion
of massive doses of vitamin C (sodium ascorbate is preferred as ascorbic
acid is irritant
to
veins).
- People who are sufficiently ill will not be able to take vitamin C by mouth.
- IV provides the highest possible blood levels
- IV means continuous drip, not an injection (short half-life)
Unless
you are a medical professional who can treat yourself and your family,
or are exceptionally rich, IV ascorbate will not be an option in an
Ebola outbreak.
Rectal Vitamin C
Rectal
administration of sodium ascorbate is a method that can be used in
emergencies, and in developing world circumstances, when IV is
unavailable or unsuitable. Nurses can quickly be trained to mix 15-30 g
of sodium ascorbate in 250-500 ml clean water, and give it by enema. It
can be safely and effectively used in children. An enema also removes
from the bowel material that may be challenging. This has been done
successfully with aboriginal people in the Australian outback.
Liposomes
In healthy people,
liposomes help the absorption of oral vitamin C; in some circumstances
this is also true for sick people. However, we need to dispel some
popular myths.
In a healthy person, higher blood levels
(about 600 microM/L) can be achieved using liposomal vitamin C compared
with standard ascorbic acid (about 250 microM/L). We were the first to
demonstrate this fact experimentally.[vi] However, the two
absorption methods are different and if both are used together the
resultant plasma levels are additive (something like 600 + 250 = 850
microM/L). Since ascorbic acid is much cheaper than liposomal vitamin C,
it is cost effective for a healthy person to start with ascorbic acid
and top up with liposomes as required.
When a person becomes ill they can absorb
massive doses of standard ascorbic acid, using the dynamic flow
approach. So if you are sick, taking a gram
of liposomal vitamin C instead of a gram of cheap ascorbic acid will
provide little extra benefit. Both will be well absorbed , and the
liposome contains sodium ascorbate which is less effective. Liposomes
only provide added benefit once the sick person has approached bowel
tolerance levels, using standard ascorbic acid.
Liposomal vitamin C is NOT more effective
than IV for fighting acute infections. This suggestion is unscientific
and unsupported by data. We prefer liposomes for chronic infections and
cancer, but this does not extend to acute illness. There is also a lot
of hype around the fact that liposomes can be absorbed directly into
cells. Many liposomes are absorbed from the gut and pass into the liver,
where they are stored and the vitamin C released. Liposomes may also
float around in the bloodstream, lymph nodes, and so on, waiting to
release their contents or be taken up by cells. But the cells that take
up the liposomes are not
necessarily those that are most in need of vitamin C. Moreover cells may
suffer side effects; liposomes are basically nanotechnology and have
additional theoretical issues.
Prevention
To have a reasonable
chance of avoiding a major viral infection, a daily intake of at least
10 grams of ascorbic acid is needed. The idea is to start low, taking
say 500 -1,000 mg four times a day. Build up the intake to close to
bowel tolerance; increased wind and large soft stools will occur before
diarrhea signals that bowel tolerance has been exceeded. At this stage,
back off the dose a little, to a reasonably comfortable level.
At the first hint of an infection -
feeling unwell, itchy throat, fatigue, and so on - take more ascorbic
acid. If the hint of impending sickness is mild, take perhaps 5 grams
every half hour or even more frequently. Anything more than a hint of
infection, take as large a dose as you feel could
be tolerated and follow this by taking 5 grams every half hour. The rule
is to take as much as you can without going over the tolerated level:
you will probably be taking too little, even though you are trying hard
to take a massive dose.
If you are already in dynamic flow and
want extra protection, then add liposomal vitamin C. Take it at the same
intervals as the ascorbic acid; that is several times a day. The limit
is once again bowel tolerance - take too much and it will give you loose
stools. This will provide the maximum preventive effect, for the lowest
cost.
Treatment
We assume that you are
not a medical professional and do not have access to IV ascorbate.
However, if IV sodium ascorbate is available, it should be given slowly
and as continuously as possible. For children, enemas may be the most
practical method (we hope to publish practical instructions for this
soon). Medical professionals can
deal with such things with little difficulty, but others may do more
harm than good.
The first important thing is to start the
treatment early. The longer a person waits after the initial symptoms,
the less effective the treatment will be. Also if the illness is allowed
to develop the sick person may become unable to take anything orally.
Once again, the idea is to get dynamic
flow going with as much ascorbic acid as can be tolerated. In this case,
the doses are massive. Five to ten grams every half hour, through the
day, will provide 120 to 240 grams a day. Even at this high intake, the
blood plasma levels may be low or undetectable; at most 250 microM/L
will be achieved. So the question then becomes how much additional
liposomal vitamin C the patient can tolerate.
A practical approach would be to start with 5 grams of ascorbic acid and a similar amount of liposomal vitamin
C in very frequent doses. Remember the key is dose, dose, dose. More vitamin C!
How it Works
The mechanism of
action of high dose vitamin C is known and understood. In normal healthy
tissues it acts as an antioxidant. In other tissues, it generates
hydrogen peroxide, the chemical that platinum blondes use to bleach
their hair. This happens in sick and inflamed tissues, for example in a
malignant tumour. The process is typically a form of Fenton reaction,
generating free radicals. The oxidation and free radicals arising from
the hydrogen peroxide kill bacteria and inactivate viruses. In other
words, vitamin C acts as a targeted bleach and antiseptic.
Vitamin C is unique, because it has low
toxicity and can be taken safely in massive amounts. Other antioxidants
and supplements will not have a similar effect. Do not be confused and
think that Echinacea, for example, will help. Yes, there may be
supplements
and herbs that provide a little immune system support, but this is Ebola
we are talking about - get real!
Note, vitamin C is not some magical
antitoxin; this idea is a metaphor. A disease such as Ebola is not
caused by toxins that are inactivated by vitamin C. Free radicals are
not toxins. Oxidants are not toxins. Vitamin C nearly always acts by
transferring electrons, as an oxidant or antioxidant. It is just basic
chemistry. Also, it does not matter if you have poor dental hygiene,
this will hardly affect how massive intakes of vitamin C tackle an acute
viral infection.
Interactions
Sugar interferes
with the uptake of vitamin C. If you are using vitamin C to combat a
viral infection do not eat any sugar or carbohydrates (long chain
sugars) or the vitamin C will not be absorbed properly. We stress that
this means no sugar and no carbs, at all.
Smoking releases
enormous amounts of oxidants and free radicals into the bloodstream. The
vitamin C will expend itself, trying to mop up the chemicals from the
smoking. We have no moral objections to people smoking: it is a personal
choice. However, smoking will hinder even massive doses of vitamin C
from preventing infection. Once infected with Ebola, smoking will stop
the vitamin C from keeping you alive.
It is sensible also to supplement with a
little chelated magnesium, such as magnesium citrate, which helps
overcome the (largely theoretical) risk of kidney stones.
The reaction that generates hydrogen
peroxide in sick tissues can be enhanced a little by taking selenium
with the vitamin C. A little caution is needed as too much selenium will
cause diarrhoea, fatigue, garlic breath, and hair and nail loss; severe
toxicity can have more severe effects but is hard to achieve.
Methylselenocysteine is a less toxic form and this
would be our choice. The normal intake is perhaps 100-200 micrograms
(0.1-0.2 mg) a day; we would take 400 micrograms a day during an
epidemic and up this to 1,000 micrograms (one milligram) a day, at the
initial onset of symptoms. It is possible to go up to 3 mg for short
periods, with medical supervision.
Other supplements may be synergistic with
vitamin C. Alpha-lipoic acid can be taken at reasonably high levels
reasonably safely. We would take up to a gram or two a day (1,000-2,000
mg) in the short term. Vitamin K also helps with blood clotting and is
safe in the recommended amounts - we would get the highest dose vitamin
K2 supplement available. Note vitamin K is contraindicated in those with
clotting disease or those on blood thinners such as warfarin.
Contraindications
The only
established side effects of ascorbate therapy are wind, loose bowels and
chronic good health. There are some
contraindications; people with kidney disease, iron overload disease, or
glucose-6-phosphatase deficiency should not immediately take high doses
of vitamin C. In the setting of an epidemic they can start as we
recommend but should increase more cautiously, with appropriate medical
monitoring.
Why Put This Out?
People need to
know that vitamin C is an option for fighting Ebola, and how it works.
There is a great deal of misinformation, particularly on the internet,
both from vested interests and from "loonies". Moreover, in an Ebola
epidemic vitamin C supplements may be hard to source.
This account is intended for intelligent
adults, who can make their own rational decisions and take
responsibility for their health. We strongly promote the idea that
medicine should be based on rational patients, rather than authoritarian
doctors. Doctors are there to provide the information for patients, to
help them
choose between available options. This is information only - what you
decide to do with it is up to you.
In our opinion the use of vitamin C in
Ebola is a no-brainer. Get the illness and, it is said, you have at best
a 50-50 chance of surviving without vitamin C-based therapy. Corporate
medicine has no effective treatment. Furthermore, if a drug were
available, it would be untested and almost certainly unavailable to you,
dear reader. Vitamin C is considered safe and should do no harm. The
cost of treatment is low. The clinical reports of vitamin C in viral
infection are that if you get the dose right, you will survive. Vitamin C
is known experimentally to inactivate viruses. In the event, we hope
people make rational decisions.
For further reading:
There are lots of other sources but these make a good fast start for a person beginning an investigation into the
antiviral properties of vitamin C.
Hickey S., Saul A. (2008) Vitamin C: The Real Story, the Remarkable and Controversial Healing Factor, Basic Health. The book gives an easy readable account of the story of vitamin C.
Pubmed http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed contains mostly abstracts of medical research papers.
Unfortunately, most of these have been selected to exclude observations on high doses of vitamin C.
References:
ii Brighthope I, Fitzgerald P. (1988) The AIDS Fighters, Keats.
v Hickey D.S. Roberts H.J. Cathcart R.F. (2005) Dynamic Flow: A New Model for Ascorbate, J Orthomolecular Med, 20(4), 237.
vi Hickey S. Roberts H. and Miller N.J. (2008) Pharmacokinetics of oral ascorbate liposomes, J Nutritional Environmental Med, July, 10. 1080/13590840802305423.
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