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EpiCor yeast - anyone tried it yet?


pmoreno

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Hello,

(Worried Dad - hope you read this). I know that some of you feel like you have used all kinds of supplements and nothing seems to be effective. Gaby continues to do well & is catching up after almost 2 years of being in this "fog". I can't tell you how well she is socializing (after retreating in a corner whenever playmates would visit her & her twin sister in the past). Now she is initiating play with others and is completely appropriate. Her academics are improving tremendously. She is consistently in a good mood & has absolutely NO OCD tendencies left at all - no aggressive behavior - no crying or worrying, etc. I believe that her immune system has turned the corner. I think it has to do with the daily kefir that she drinks (or else it's pretty coincidental that since she started it, she gradually improved). It may not be the thing that works for all, but the key is to modulate the immune system - whether it's kefir, IVIG, or some other immune modulator. From what I can read here, some of these methods work for some kids and not for others. I guess if I had tried 99 things and they didn't work, I'd try one more just to see if that was the one.

 

Even though Gaby seems completely recovered, I haven't let my guard down completely and I still keep my radar up for anything that is immune modulating (just in case). One thing that has caught my interest and I have followed any dialogue about it on other forums & where ever I hear about it, is EpiCor. It is simply baker's yeast- but specially fermented and dried and has been proven (scientifically) to modulate the immune system. (Google epicor yeast) to see exactly how it works. I have considered ordering some for Gaby - even though she is doing well, I feel that it can't hurt to give an extra boost and it would protect against some of the flus coming our way. It apparently works to "scotchguard" mucous membranes so that viruses, bacteria & pathological yeast aren't easily absorbed. I was reading on someone's post that their child continues to have problems with yeast overgrowth. Apparently that is a reaction to an imbalance in the normal gut flora, but this yeast product is supposed to be a prebiotic and restores normal gut flora, thereby cutting down on pathological yeast infestation. It's completely benign - natural - not a drug or herb - just a specially processed food.

 

Anybody out there tried it yet? Would love to have some feedback from one of us. If not, I am thinking of trying & I'll keep you posted. Pat

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No, but it sounds great. Are you going to try it? It will get expensive to get the whole family on it but if it actually worked it would be worth it.

 

Susan

 

I've checked a couple of different sites and it looks like you can get it for as little as $10 for a bottle of 30 500 mg caps. (which should last a month for a child or an adult). I think it was called Puritan's Pride or something like that where you buy 1 and get 1 free. (The cost is $19 but by getting one free it breaks down to $10 for each one). Anyway, I've read more about it and apparently a lot of people are actually taking the original product which was made as a supplement for animal feed (still the same product - a fermented form of brewer's yeast which is then dried), but when you buy it at a feed store, you can buy it in bulk and save a lot that way. The only thing is that when they change the name to epicor, they have to have it approved by the FDA (which is why it costs more), Otherwise, it's basically the same product - using non-genetically altered, no pesticides added dried, fermented yeast. I think they call that product Diamond V XPC. The beauty of it is that it does not overstimulate the immune system - it modulates it. They're doing a lot of research now for its effect on other autoimmune diseases like lupus, MS, etc. I do believe I am going to order it, but I'm going to check with a DAN doc as a final precaution before I do. Pat

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So would you take that instead of probiotics? With probiotics?

 

I haven't tried the kefir you talk about - my son tested with off the chart igg allergies to all dairy -including goat - when all this started. I've had 2 traditional allergists tell me they don't believe that test is worth anything. They agree his immune system is producing antibodies to those foods, they just don't care. Common sense tells me if I'm worried that his immune system isn't functioning properly, I shouldn't have it produce antibodies against food! I've seen a new coconut milk kefir product out and was going to try that.

 

The homeopathic protocol we are currently using recommends no dairy and eggs.

 

Please keep us informed of what you think of it.

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So would you take that instead of probiotics? With probiotics?

 

I haven't tried the kefir you talk about - my son tested with off the chart igg allergies to all dairy -including goat - when all this started. I've had 2 traditional allergists tell me they don't believe that test is worth anything. They agree his immune system is producing antibodies to those foods, they just don't care. Common sense tells me if I'm worried that his immune system isn't functioning properly, I shouldn't have it produce antibodies against food! I've seen a new coconut milk kefir product out and was going to try that.

 

The homeopathic protocol we are currently using recommends no dairy and eggs.

 

Please keep us informed of what you think of it.

 

The new cocounut kefir product is healthy - we've tried it, but realistically does not have the same effect as kefir made from real kefir grains - you can look that up to see why (has to do with multiple strains of bacteria & yeast in actual kefir grains that are live and much more effective than the powder that they put in most commercial kefirs). I've discovered that the best way to do this is to buy the kefir grains on line (a one time cost of $20), then make it yourself and you just keep re-using the grains - they will eventually grow so much that you have to give them away. From the source that I bought them from I'm told you can use them on young coconut milk as well as dairy. If you do any of this, you really don't need to do probiotics - they're expensive and don't give the same quality of immune support as what you get from fermented foods. Besides you get such a wide spectrum of bacteria, that it really isn't necessary to add more with probiotics. The only reason to do that is if, for some reason, the child had a stubborn yeast infection (from on-going antibiotics), in which case it wouldn't hurt to give the s. boulardii probiotic during the time. As far as the epicor goes, even if we give that, I'll probably still give kefir - it has so many healthy ingredients, including all the minerals they need. Pat

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I wanted to add one note of caution here.

 

Look at these. See my concern? bolding mine

 

 

http://www.naturodoc.com/library/cancer/epicor.htm

 

They analyzed blood samples, and what they found was fascinating. The group exposed to EpiCor showed a significant decrease in CD8 suppressor cells, resulting in an improvement in the CD4/CD8 ratio. The CD4/CD8 ratio suggested that these EpiCor-exposed individuals had at least 2 to 3 times the natural killing activity against viruses, bacteria, and cancer cells than would normally be expected!

 

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16996487

 

We analyzed peripheral blood of TS patients and healthy age-matched control subjects by fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) on multiple occasions and determined the numbers of CD4(+)CD25(+)CD69(-) T reg cells. Further, we quantified the number of CD4(+) and CD8(+) lymphocytes with regard to Vbeta chains to which SPEs are known to bind. RESULTS: A significant decrease in T reg cells was observed in patients with moderate to severe TS symptoms compared with healthy age-matched control children. A decrease in T reg cell number was also noted during symptom exacerbations in five out of six patients. Further, we found a significant decrease in numbers of CD8(+)Vbeta18(+) T cells in moderate to severe TS patients. CONCLUSIONS: These data support our hypothesis that at least some TS patients may have a decreased capacity to inhibit autoreactive lymphocytes through a deficit in T reg cells. Interactions of host T cell immunity and microbial factors may also contribute to the pathogenesis of TS.

 

 

I'm going to find that study that Novartis did (posted a couple of weeks ago) looking at autoreactive elements in strep. I think the concluding line said something like.... individuals exhibited a strong response to the strep components. If this product works in the way the article suggests, I think you want to be careful with decreasing T regs or CD8

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Here it is. bolding mine

 

Protein array profiling of tic patient sera reveals a broad range and enhanced immune response against Group A Streptococcus antigens.

 

Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics, Siena, Italy.

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1962325...ogdbfrom=pubmed

 

QUOTE

This comparative analysis identified 25 antigens recognized by sera of the three patient groups and 21 antigens recognized by tic and pharyngitis sera, but poorly or not recognized by sera from children without tic. Interestingly, these antigens appeared to be, in quantitative terms, more immunogenic in tic than in pharyngitis patients. Additionally, a third group of antigens appeared to be preferentially and specifically recognized by tic sera. These findings provide the first evidence that tic patient sera exhibit immunological profiles typical of individuals who elicited a broad, specific and strong immune response against GAS. This may be relevant in the context of one of the hypothesis proposing that GAS antigen-dependent induction of autoantibodies in susceptible individuals may be involved the occurrence of tic disorders.

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Here it is. bolding mine

 

Protein array profiling of tic patient sera reveals a broad range and enhanced immune response against Group A Streptococcus antigens.

 

Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics, Siena, Italy.

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1962325...ogdbfrom=pubmed

 

QUOTE

This comparative analysis identified 25 antigens recognized by sera of the three patient groups and 21 antigens recognized by tic and pharyngitis sera, but poorly or not recognized by sera from children without tic. Interestingly, these antigens appeared to be, in quantitative terms, more immunogenic in tic than in pharyngitis patients. Additionally, a third group of antigens appeared to be preferentially and specifically recognized by tic sera. These findings provide the first evidence that tic patient sera exhibit immunological profiles typical of individuals who elicited a broad, specific and strong immune response against GAS. This may be relevant in the context of one of the hypothesis proposing that GAS antigen-dependent induction of autoantibodies in susceptible individuals may be involved the occurrence of tic disorders.

 

Kim,

thanks for your extensive research on this. I will definitely read this a little more thoroughly. From what I had read before, even though the natural killer cells are increased, there is a simultaneous process going on that modulates the immune response, and for that reason, it is felt that it could be effective against autoimmune responses. In any case, I will delve into it more with the help of the DAN perhaps. Otherwise, it may be that this would be especially helpful for those kids who react to viruses rather than those who react to strep (which there are a number of individuals on this forum, I believe). Keep me updated on any new info - I will do the same. thanks again, Pat

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