Herbal Antibiotics: Natural Alternatives for Treating Drug-Resistant Bacteria (12 page)

Formulation
Ear formulation with lomatium, honey, berberine plant, or cryptolepis or use ear infection glycerite (page 345) with the addition of lomatium: 1–3 drops topically, up to 6x daily

Closely related to both shigella and
E. coli
, salmonella organisms cause typhoid fever (
S. typhi
), paratyphoid fever (
S. paratyphi
), and salmonellosis, a.k.a. food poisoning. Most infections come from contaminated foods.

Salmonella can survive outside a host for years—active organisms have been identified in dried two-and-a-half-year-old feces. They are not destroyed by freezing and have to be heated to at least 130°F for 1 hour to kill them (or 10 minutes at 170°F). Poultry, pork, cattle, and many fruits and vegetables are now commonly infected with the bacteria. About 150,000 people in the United States sicken from eating infected chicken eggs each year.

The bacteria inhibit the innate immune system as they penetrate the body to better enable their survival. General symptoms are diarrhea, vomiting, fever, severe abdominal cramps. Sepsis and infection of other organs can occur in severe cases.

The organisms, due to heavy antibiotic use in both plant and animal agriculture, have developed multidrug resistance and are becoming much more difficult to treat.

The primary herbs effective for salmonella are cryptolepis, sida, alchornea, bidens, the berberines, juniper, honey, licorice, lomatium, and ginger.

Formulation 1 (antibacterial)
Cryptolepis, sida, or alchornea tincture: 1 tsp–1 tbl, 3–6x daily depending on the severity of the infection

Formulation 2
Berberine plant tincture: 1 tsp–1 tbl, 3–6x daily, depending on symptom picture

Formulation 3 (immune support)
Licorice tincture, rhodiola tincture, and ginger juice (equal parts) combined: 1 tsp, 3x daily

Note:
Juniper-evergreen and sida teas are especially useful for treating salmonella.

For salmonella with sepsis:
Formulations 1, 2, and 3, and add
Echinacea angustifolia
tincture, ½ tsp–1 tbl, each half hour to hour.

This is primarily a hospital-acquired infection. The bacteria can colonize the urinary tract (causing UTIs, from catheters), surgical wounds, the blood (bacteremia), the eye (conjunctivitis), the respiratory tract (pneumonia), the CNS (meningitis), the bones (osteomyelitis), and the heart (endocarditis). It is becoming highly resistant.

The primary herbs active against the organism are juniper, bidens, licorice, lomatium,
Coptis chinensis
, honey, oregano oil,
Tribulus terrestris
, and
Emblica officinalis.
The following plants are also active:
Trichosanthes cucumerina
,
Cassia didymobotrya
,
Blumea lacera
,
Moringa oleifera
,
Isodon
spp.,
Dendrophthoe falcata
,
Zuccagnia punctata
, and
Phrygilanthus acutifolius.

Note:
For all
Serratia
infections, use piperine, 20 mg, 2x daily, with the first dose in the morning 30 minutes before taking the other formulations, and the second dose at 4
P.M
.

Formulation 1 (antibacterial)
Juniper berry and bidens (1 part juniper, 2 parts bidens) tincture: 30 drops, 6x daily for 10 days

Formulation 2
Bidens fresh plant juice or tincture; or
Coptis chinensis
tincture; or
Tribulus terrestris
tincture; or a combination of the three (equal parts): ½ tsp, 3x daily

Formulation 3 (immune support)
Ginger, licorice, and rhodiola (equal parts) tincture: ½ tsp, 3x daily

Formulations 2 and 3 for
Serratia
UTI infections (above), plus topical honey dressings daily (see monograph,
page 188
)

Formulation 1 (antibacterial)
Bidens fresh juice: 1–3 drops applied to the eye, up to 6x daily

Formulation 2 (immune support)
Lomatium, licorice, and ginger (equal parts) tincture: ½ tsp, 3x daily

Formulation 1 (antibacterial)
Echinacea angustifolia
tincture: ½ tsp–1 tbl, every half hour

Formulation 2 (immune support)
Lomatium, licorice, and ginger (equal parts) tincture: 1 tsp, 3x daily

Formulation 3
Bidens fresh juice or plant tincture: 1 tbl, 6x daily

Formulation 1 (antibacterial)
Bidens fresh plant juice or tincture: 1 tsp, 6x daily

Formulation 2 (immune support)
Lomatium, ginger, licorice, and red root (equal parts) tincture: 1 tsp, 6x daily

Formulation 3
Juniper or oregano essential oil inhalation as aromatherapy: 3x daily

Formulations 1 and 2 for
Serratia
pneumonia (above), plus topical honey dressings daily (see monograph,
page 188
)

Formulations 1 and 2 for
Serratia
pneumonia (above), plus formulation 3 below:

Formulation 3
Isatis leaf (or root) and either Japanese knotweed or stephania (equal parts) tincture: 1 tsp, 3–6x daily

Note:
Echinacea will also be of benefit, as for
Serratia
bacteremia.

The main
Shigella
species are
Shigella dysentariae
,
S. flexneri
,
S. boydii
, and
S. sonnei.
Shigella,
E. coli
, and salmonella are all closely related; all usually cause some form of severe diarrhea.
S. flexneri
causes about 60 percent of the shigella infections in the nonindustrialized nations, and
S. sonnei
about 80 percent of those in the industrialized.
S. dysentariae
is the cause of most epidemics of dysentery.

Shigella organisms destroy the cellular lining of the intestinal mucosa and invade the body; the disease is generally accompanied by mild to severe diarrhea and/or dysentery. There are some 165 million shigella infections a year and about a million deaths. The main route of transmission is fecal/oral. There is frequent loose-stool diarrhea consisting mostly of blood and mucus accompanied by fever, pain, and bowel cramping. Sepsis, intestinal perforation, toxic megacolon, dehydration, hyponatremia, encephalopathy, hemolytic-uremic syndrome, and pneumonia are common acute complications from the infection. If untreated, persistent dysentery, severe protein loss, and malnutrition commonly occur, even in uncomplicated cases. Fever, malaise, and body aches are common no matter the severity of the infection. Some strains produce shiga toxins, which exacerbate the symptoms considerably.

S. dysentariae
is very prone to antimicrobial resistance and soon passes the information on to the other species in the genus (as well as to
E. coli
and
Salmonella
spp.). Most strains are now resistant to nearly all low-cost antibacterials. The bacteria developed resistance in much of the world to the last low-cost antibacterial, quinolone NA, within 6 months after it was used to treat an epidemic outbreak.

The herbs that are effective for shigella are cryptolepis, sida, alchornea, bidens, the berberines, juniper, honey, licorice, lomatium, and ginger.

Formulation 1 (antibacterial)
Cryptolepis, sida, or alchornea tincture: 1 tsp–1 tbl, 3–6x daily depending on the severity of the infection

Formulation 2
Berberine plant tincture: 1 tsp–1 tbl, 3–6x daily, depending on symptom picture

Formulation 3 (immune support)
Lomatium tincture, licorice tincture, and ginger juice (mixed in equal parts): 1 tsp, 3x daily

Note:
Juniper/evergreen needle and sida teas are especially useful for GI tract shigella infections.

For shigella with sepsis:
To the above formulations, add
Echinacea angustifolia
tincture, ½ tsp–1 tbl, each half hour to hour.

Once considered to be
Pseudomonas maltophilia
, then identified as
Xanthomonas maltophilia
, now this newly emerging resistant bacteria is called
Stenotrophomonas maltophilia.
It usually occurs in hospitals, where it can cause infections in surgical wounds, pneumonia, bacteremia, endocarditis, and meningitis. Few herbs have been tested for activity against it as of 2011. Here is what is known to be active so far:
Berberis
spp., alchornea, boneset, honey, epigallocatechin (green tea constituent),
Scorzonera sandrasica
(aerial parts), eucalyptus essential oil, eucalyptus leaf tincture, thyme essential oil, oregano essential oil,
Acacia aroma
,
Zuccagnia punctata
,
Sechium edule
fluid extract,
Salvia
spp.,
Menyanthes trifoliata
,
Artemisia dracunculus
,
Mammea americana
,
Oedogonium capillare
,
Centaurea cariensis
,
Artemisia arborescens
,
Artemisia afra
, rosemary, garlic, and devil's claw (
Harpagophytum procumbens
).

Formulation 1 (antibacterial)
Alchornea tincture: 1 tsp, 3–6x daily, depending on severity of symptoms

Formulation 2
Fresh garlic juice: ¼–1 tsp, up to 4x daily

Formulation 3
Thyme, rosemary, eucalyptus, and oregano essential oils (blended in equal parts), inhalation as aromatherapy: 3–6x daily

Formulation 4
Eucalyptus leaf infusion: 8 ounces, up to 6x daily

Formulation 5 (immune support)
Boneset, licorice, and red root (equal parts) tincture: 1 tsp, 6x daily

Formulation 6
Piperine: 20 mg, 2x daily, with the first dose in the morning 30 minutes before taking the other formulations, and the second dose at 4
P.M
.

For
S. maltophilia
pneumonia:
Formulations 1 through 6

For
S. maltophilia
bacteremia:
Formulations 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6 (omitting formulation 3). Add
Echinacea angustifolia
tincture, ½ tsp–1 tbl, every half hour to hour.

For
S. maltophilia
wound infections:
Formulations 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6 (omitting formulation 3). Add daily honey dressings (see monograph,
page 188
).

For
S. maltophilia
meningitis:
Formulations 1, 2, and 6. Add tincture of isatis leaf (or root) and either Japanese knotweed or stephania (equal parts), 1 tsp, 3–6x daily. Echinacea will also be of benefit, as for bacteremia.

Cholera organisms infect the small intestine and cause extensive watery diarrhea (10 to 20 quarts a day—usually without cramping), generalized muscle cramps, and sometimes vomiting (clear fluid), which in turn lead to dehydration and electrolyte imbalances. (One of the most important interventions in cholera treatment is fluid replacement.) About five million people a year suffer from cholera, but before
antibiotics cholera epidemics were much worse. Generally, contaminated water or food is the culprit.

Prior to 1977, there were no reports of resistance in cholera organisms, but now they are common. Most cholera strains, including O1 Inaba, O139, O138, and El Tor, are now resistant to many antibiotics, including tetracycline, ampicillin, kanamycin, streptomycin, sulphonamides, trimethoprim, and gentamicin.

The herbs useful against cholera are the berberines, cryptolepis, licorice, ginger,
Geranium mexicanum
(or any of the geranium species' roots),
Psidium guajava
(guava) leaf and bark tea or ethanol extract, and
Punica granatum
(pomegranate) fruit peel or bark as tea or ethanol extract. Basil (
Ocimum basilicum
), nopal cactus (
Opuntia ficus-indica
),
Acacia famesiana
, and
Artemisia ludoviciana
are also very active against cholera organisms. Extracts of those four plants (and the geraniums as well) disrupt the cell membranes of the cholera organisms, increase membrane permeability, decrease cytoplasm pH and cell membrane hyperpolarization, and decrease cellular ATP concentration in all strains tested. In fact, nearly any of the acacias will do for this use.

Formulation 1 (antibacterial)
Cryptolepis and berberine plant (equal parts) tincture: 1 tsp, 6x daily

Formulation 2
Geranium root strong decoction: 3 tbl, every hour

Formulation 3
Guava leaf or bark and pomegranate peel or bark (equal parts) tea: as much as possible

Alternative Effective Decoction
Acacia bark decoction: 3 tbl, every hour; basil and artemisia infusion: 8 ounces, every hour