staph infection Archives - Hormones Matter

Treating Antibiotic-Resistant Super-Bugs with Vitamin B3

Published on February 12, 2016

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treating antibiotic resistance with vitamin b3

If you are like me, you unnecessarily worry about things completely out of your control like untreatable illness (amongst many other things – from radiation poisoning to earthquakes and of course the zombie apocalypse). As I hear about the increase in antibiotic-resistant diseases, I comfort myself with the fact that I do not use antibacterial products, have not taken an antibiotic in at least five years, and have a super strong immune system (I’ve been sick with the flu once in the last three years and have not had a head cold in the last four to five years). Still, I have an irrational fear of these super-bugs; specifically the flesh eating virus. That’s why I was delighted to read that a new study reveals a treatment that does not involve antibiotics; a treatment that can boost the immune system 1000x’s so the body can fight off these infections. This new study found that vitamin B3, or nicotinamide, taken in large doses was able to kill staphylococcus aureus in both mice and human blood samples. The vitamin B3 significantly boosts the number and effectiveness of neutrophils, or white blood cells that target infections. Various news reports noted that this treatment, unlike antibiotics, won’t kill the natural bacteria in our stomach that are necessary to our immune systems.

It is important to note that the doses used in this study are above the government recommended daily intake of vitamin B3 and should not be attempted through diet, over the counter supplementation or without the supervision of medical professionals.

Click here to read the full report in the Journal of Clinical Investigation

The article was originally published on Hormones Matter in September 2012.

From Humans to Pigs and Back Again: the Latest Strain of MRSA

by Chandler Marrs, PhD

Published on December 26, 2012

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Responsible for over 250,000 hospitalizations annually in the US, methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections are quickly becoming the next great threat to modern medicine.

In February of this year, the threat escalated when scientists and medical epidemiologists identified a new strain of MRSA that originated in humans (first as a methicillin susceptible strain), then infected nearby livestock (pigs). With the heavy prophylatic use of antibiotics in commercial livestock farming, the ST398 strain of MRSA quickly became resistant to not only methicillian but also a host of other antibiotics including at least dozen beta-lactam antibiotics and tetracycline. It then jumped back to humans in a more deadly form.

The ST398 strain of MRSA has also been found in milk from commercial dairy farms in Europe and in animals from 19 countries and four continents.

The presence of MRSA on commercial livestock is growing. One recent study in Belgium found MRSA in 26 of 30 farms tested and the prevalence of MRSA in pig farmers was 760 times greater than in the general population.

A study comparing organic pig farms to non-organic commercial livestock operations in the Netherlands found the presence of MRSA in only 17% organic facilities and 3% of the pigs themselves. This is compared to a larger study a couple years earlier where 71% of non-organic commercial facilities tested positive for MRSA, with 38% of all pigs testing positive. In the US, MRSA ladden pork products can be found in at least 6% of retail meats and methicillin susceptible staph bacteria was identified in 64% of retail meats tested.

Experts warn that commercial livestock farming is becoming a public health threat that should not be ignored any longer.

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