Supplements and Nutriments - Part I

I would like to call your attention to what is called alternate or complementary therapy: supplements you can take in addition to chemo. It is not recommended to blow off chemo but there are more than a few things out there which you can do additionally. You can find all kinds of claims on the internet about modern-day "Snake Oils" which can cure cancer or at least help. I researched quite a few options. Essiac Tea, Flor-Essence, Mangosteen Juice are some I passed on. The only ones I considered were the ones that had actual clinical trials and research to back up their claims. Those turned out to be ACHH pills and a substance called Avemar.

Before I go any further, here is a link to the Memorial Sloan Kettering database of various herbs and alternative products. You can look up and read about almost everything out there and see what, if any, supportive scientific evidence exists too.

You can also find more research online, and of course, the more real research you find, the better.

Essiac Tea is hailed by some as a bigtime cancer curing elixer. But the problem with is that the recipe is questionable- as it was held secret by it's maker. Flor-Essence is another brand which claims to have the original Essiac recipe, which is different, and so basically there is no way to tell which is correct. Furthermore there have never been any studies to show that it actually works or not. Simply "miracle cure" hearsay exists. A lot of it, but still not enough for me to be convinced. At best it might be a good liver detox.

Mangosteen juice is also currently being proported to be helpful. It is mainly because of its antioxidant content, and also because it contains certain polysaccharide compounds which may raise white blood cell production. However there has not been enough studies to confirm this.

Im not saying I wouldn't try drinking some, but I wouldn't bet my life on them just yet.

What did catch my attention, and what I have been taking daily since June, are Avemar and ACHH.

ACHH, developed in Japan, is basically a propriatory genetic blend of different mushrooms which have been shown to raise your immune system. Specifically, NK cells, which go out and kill cancer as well as other invaders. There is actual research supporting this and ACHH pills are currently prescribed in over 700 hospitals in Japan. It can actually raise your NK cell count as much as 300%. You can read the published research in reputable journals here.

As an aside, the mushrooms which have been shown to have medicinal value for this are: Maitake, Shitake, Coriolus Versicolor, and Reishi Mushroom

These mushrooms are also available in many different supplement pill products sold at health-food stores, but because there are so many brands and blends to choose from, I could not decide which to get. For a while, I was also trying to find the actual mushrooms at asian grocery stores, with no luck. Because of that, I decided to stick with the ACHH pills since ACHH is a consistent patented form.

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Avemar is a fermented wheat germ extract which has been shown in many studies to be very beneficial for fighting cancer. Not only does it help fight cancer but it also reduces the possibly damaging side effects of chemo itself. You can read boatloads of published research about Avemar here, and learn general information about it here.

Avemar was developed in Hungary, used throughout the world, but is marketed and sold in the United States as "Ave"

Taking ACHH and Avemar together is supposed to be great. The ACHH raises your white blood cell count and the Avemar appears to regulate them, basically gets them on guard, worked up, and off to battle.

A few things about Avemar: It is something that has to kept refridgerated and is mailed to you in a cooler with dry ice. It comes in 30-day supply boxes and isnt cheap. See here. However it is worth it.

It does taste aweful though. You have to mix it into a glass of water and drink it down. Drink it all...